Jasper Loten, 12, who was born prematurely alongside his twin brother, was diagnosed with a profound hearing loss when he was two-and-a-half years after contracting meningitis at six weeks old.
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After his diagnosis, Jasper’s parents began working with Auditory Verbal UK (AVUK), a charity which helps deaf children learn to listen and speak using specialist Auditory Verbal Therapy.
Jasper was fitted with cochlear implants aged three and later graduated AVUK’s specialist programme with age appropriate language.
Earlier this year, Jasper was picked as one of the winners of a creative writing competition run by AVUK.
He won the opportunity to read out his entry at the charity’s Power of Speech event, at the House the Commons, in front of an audience of MPs and experts in the field of hearing loss.
Jasper’s poem The Discovery details his experience of finding his Deaf identity after growing up alongside a hearing twin.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the Power of Speech event has been postponed until 2021, however, AVUK posted the videos of the winners reading their poems on its Instagram page.
Jasper’s video drew the attention of awarding winning poet Raymond Antobus, who also has a hearing loss.
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He wrote: “He must keep writing.”
Jasper said: “When I was younger I underestimated my hearing loss. When I had friends who understood my challenges, I turned my hearing loss into a positive thing, by sharing my experiences with other people and letting them understand me more.”
Jasper’s mum, Jennifer Loten, praised AVUK for helping Jasper “find his voice”.
She said: “He is sporty, plays the piano and has found his voice. Jasper recently spoke at his secondary school open day, to a packed auditorium of prospective students and their families.
“Being given the opportunity to speak in the House of Commons as a result of winning the Power of Speech competition is an amazing achievement for Jasper and we are incredibly proud of him.”
“Our greatest wish has been for Jasper to achieve his potential and to be given the same educational opportunities as his twin brother and hearing peers. AVUK has enabled Jasper to do this and to continue to push through the many barriers faced by children with a hearing impairment,” she added.
The Discovery
I am a fraternal twin, with the curliest of curly hair
I am told I look like my Mum and he is told he looks like my Dad
I am the quieter one and he is the chatty one
I am the bigger twin and he is the smaller twin
Although we are always compared, I know we have separate identities
He found his identity earlier, whereas I have been looking for mine
Then I made an amazing discovery, when they told me I was profoundly deaf
They offered me new ears, which I called my "magic ears"
In fact they are cochlear implants and they finally allowed me to hear
I was taken to AVUK, where I found my voice to speak
Which has given me my Deaf Identity
Which is why I am standing here and why I can tell you this.
