Boys Town Hosts Roots & Wings Workshop for Families Affected by Hearing Loss

Friday, July 25, 2025

On June 27 and 28, Boys Town National Research Hospital hosted 13 families at Roots & Wings, a free workshop for Nebraska families with young children who have recently been diagnosed as deaf or hard of hearing. The focus of the workshop, held at the Lied Learning and Technology Center, was to educate the families about hearing loss, provide networking opportunities, show ways to support their child's development and inform about educational advocacy.

The weekend kicked off with the five host families sharing their stories of parenting a child who is deaf or hard of hearing. These host families were available to provide real-life examples in the presentations, as well as answer questions one-on-one.

The attendees participated in four sessions that focused on embracing the parenting journey, understanding audiology appointments and hearing tests, the importance of communication development at an early age and meeting state resource organizations.

“Boys Town has had a long history of having Roots & Wings as a family workshop program, and we feel really proud that we are able to provide this for families," said Amy Tyler Krings, M.A., CCC-SLP, Director of Clinical and Educational Programs at the Childhood Center for Deafness, Language and Learning. “The workshop is a special time for families to get an opportunity to really focus on their child. We hope that Roots & Wings will provide the attendees with a roadmap of what next steps should be and to help them anticipate what might be around the corner for their child and family."
 
A huge thank you to the volunteers, presenters, community partners and sponsors who made this weekend a success!