By 
A STRABANE mother has spoken about her young daughter’s hearing condition after transforming her annual Halloween display into a heartwarming fundraiser for the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS).
Natasha Coffey’s four-year-old daughter Amelia, who uses hearing aids, has lived with hearing difficulties since birth. The family raised £320 for NDCS through a Halloween trail at their Carlton Drive home – more than three times their original target.
“Amelia was born with Group B Streptococcus which affected her auditory senses,” Natasha explained.
“When she was two, we were referred to an audiologist who diagnosed mild hearing loss. We had no idea – we just thought she could hear.”
Alongside her hearing condition, Amelia is also autistic and has a heart defect. Tests later revealed a rare genetic code responsible for her hearing loss.
“Both Darren and I went for testing to see where the gene came from,” she said.
“We thought it might be from Darren as he also uses hearing aids, but it turned out to be from my side. You never expect to hear something like that.”
Although the condition cannot be reversed and is likely to deteriorate with age, the family have worked hard to make sure Amelia has every support possible.
“When Amelia was diagnosed, I contacted the National Deaf Children’s Society and they have been nothing but helpful,” Natasha said.
“They helped us with paperwork and arranged courses in British Sign Language so we could all communicate better with her. I’m now Level 2 in BSL, and I’d love to see it brought into schools.”
Now in Primary 1 at St Mary’s, Amelia uses a combination of hearing aids and BSL to communicate. She also has a one-to-one classroom assistant – and, most importantly, she is loving it.
“We were told she would do well in mainstream education, and she loves it,” Natasha said. “She has two best friends who’ve been with her since nursery and the school made sure they stayed together in the same class. It’s all going great for her.”
The family also have the option of sending Amelia to Knockavoe in the future, should her condition worsen, but for now they say she is settled and flourishing.
Natasha, a self-confessed lover of Halloween, decorates her home every year – but this was the first time she decided to use it for charity after encouragement from friends and neighbours.
“We put it on social media and invited anyone who wanted to come,” she said. “There was a long tunnel, gazebos, animatronics, smoke machines — and Darren kept jumping out to scare people! Everyone had such a brilliant time.”
Their fundraising target was £100 — but donations poured in from across the area.
“To more than triple that is amazing,” Natasha said. “We’re just so grateful to everyone who came and supported us. It means we can give back to the NDCS, who have given so much to our family.”
