Who Was Rocky Stone:
Rocky Stone was a retired government employee who founded Hearing Loss Association of America as Self Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH) in 1979 to meet the need for a national organization for hard of hearing Americans. Until 1993 he was the executive director. He passed away August 13, 2004.
What Was Rocky Stone's Hearing Loss?:
He acquired a hearing loss in his late teens. In later years, when he became blind, he received a cochlear implant.
Rocky's Involvement in the Deaf/HOH Community:
Rocky Stone was involved in multiple deaf/hard of hearing organizations:
- Cochlear Implant Association
- International Federation of Hard of Hearing People
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (advisory council)
My Meeting with Rocky Stone:
One day early in my career, not long after I graduated from Gallaudet University, I was fortunate enough to get a personal meeting with Rocky Stone in the Bethesda offices of SHHH. He gave me this advice: it takes a long time to build up credibility, and you can lose it just like that.
Other Rocky Stone Facts:
- Rocky Stone wrote the foreword for the book, "Living with Hearing Loss," published by Gallaudet University Press.
- His real name was Howard.
- The SHHH publication "An Invisible Condition" collects editorials by Stone.
Rocky Stone's Obituary:
On Tuesday, August 24, 2004 the Washington Post newspaper published a detailed obituary of Rocky Stone. The obituary emphasized Stone's career prior to founding SHHH.
