WILKES-BARRE — Less than a week after Davy Jones came to Wilkes-Barre, a second celebrity visited with a positive message, this time for educators, therapists and those who live with hearing loss.

Justin Osmond, son of Merrill and Mary Osmond of the Osmond Family, came Monday to Genetti’s Hotel & Conference Center to speak about his hearing loss as the keynote speaker of a conference hosted by Luzerne Intermediate Unit 18.

The conference, titled “Hear Now & Forever,” featured an exhibit hall with 40 vendors and presenters, and was attended by about 300 people who work with those affected by hearing loss — educators, parents, therapists, emergency responders, community members and nurses.

Osmond suffered hearing loss because he was born with a hereditary problem, but he wasn’t diagnosed until he was almost 2 years old. He is the spokesman for the Starkey Hearing Foundation, a group that promotes hearing health awareness and donates hearing aids to underprivileged children.

Since 2000, the Starkey Hearing Foundation distributed 255,000 hearing aids worldwide, averaging about 30,000 hearing aids a year. Osmond discussed how his hearing loss affected his life, and stressed his positive attitude helped him overcome his hearing problems.

“I believe we all have something we wish we did not have,” Osmond told the audience, noting how his hearing loss was emphasized growing up in a famous musical family. “In my mind’s eye, I was thinking I have every right to be bitter.”

Seven members of Osmond’s family are affected by hearing loss, and Osmond related how the group started singing to raise money to buy new sets of hearing aids for two of his uncles. This led to the creation of the Children’s Miracle Network.

As a child, Osmond had difficulty in school, and he used to get up every morning at 5:30 to practice his speech and reading. He used to sit in the front of the classroom, paying full attention so he could perform as well as he wanted in his classes. This eagerness in the classroom, along with his oversized hearing aids, caused the other children to ridicule him.

“I used to flush (the hearing aids) down the toilet,” Osmond said. “I had a hard time with them growing up. I had that stigma.”

Throughout his life, Osmond overcame many challenges, such as learning how to speak and succeed in school, but he says his greatest accomplishment was learning to play the violin. Osmond was able to do this because of his mother’s tireless dedication to teaching him. While playing violin, Osmond has trouble keeping the beat because his intonation is bad. Osmond watches the other instrumentalists’ bows, and when the bows go up and down, this lets him know the song’s tempo.

“I may have a hearing loss, but the hearing loss does not have me,” Osmond said, encouraging the audience. “Accept it, but don’t let it control you. Don’t let it get in the way of your dreams and aspirations.”

Sue Zerfoss, the program coordinator at the LIU, said the topics covered at the conference were teaching language and speech to children with hearing loss, learning how to protect hearing, and teaching emergency responders how to deal with people who suffered hearing loss.

Barbara Beard, a member of the state advisory council of the Hearing Loss Association, said that events like the conference help inform the public about her organization and new advances in hearing loss technology. The Hearing Loss Association is a national support and advocacy group that hosts monthly meetings for those affected by hearing loss. Beard, 71, of Hershey is affected by hearing loss and, for the last 14 years, has worn a cochlear implant. Beard communicates by reading lips and using the implant, which she calls a miracle.

“What we are trying to do is get the word out, to let people know what we can do to help people with hearing loss,” Beard said.

Also at the event, Ashley Zerfoss, a 16-year-old junior at Dallas High School, presented an $800 check to Osmond and the Starkey Foundation. As part of a project at school, she wrote a children’s book, and gave the proceeds from the book sales to the charity organization.

Osmond graciously accepted the check, and called Zerfoss a hero for her efforts.

csheaffer@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2083