2025 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 9-11, 2025 • Pittsburgh, PA
DAVID L. LAWRENCE CONVENTION CENTER
Award Winners 2025
Kim Reimann
It is an honor to nominate Kim Reimann for the 2025 EHDI Family Leadership Award. Kim has made a tremendous impact on enhancing services and support available for children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and their families in Wyoming. She is the proud mother of three grown children: Gabrielle, who was identified with hearing loss shortly after birth which has progressed to profound deafness, Natalie, who was diagnosed in her twenties with late onset hearing loss, and Curtis, who has normal hearing. Kim and her family have been actively involved with Wyoming Families for Hands & Voices every step of the way from spending countless hours fundraising and organizing fun runs to contacting lawmakers and supporting other families. Her tenacity, passion, and strong spirit are obvious in her family life and in her work.
One of Kim’s most important roles has been as a Family Educator, first at the Wyoming Pediatric Audiology Specialty Clinic, which operated every six weeks for ten years before expanding to CDC+ Audiology, the state’s only full-time pediatric audiology for the last six years. On days that for many are difficult, Kim meets parents where they are before, during, and after audiology appointments without judgment. Families leave CDC+ Audiology knowing that they can always reach out to her for assistance. Kim’s authenticity, warmth, and kindness shine through her interactions with families and professionals.
Kim realized she could not watch DHH children in Wyoming fall behind due to not receiving timely hearing aid fittings because of the cost. Her perseverance, enthusiasm, and hard work paid off as she rallied parents to persuade Wyoming lawmakers that this was unacceptable and could not continue. As a result of these efforts, the Wyoming Children’s Hearing Aid Program (WYCHAP) was established in 2012 to provide prompt access to amplification for children from birth through high school without Medicaid or insurance coverage for hearing aids.
In 2024, at a time when parental involvement was essential to the passage of legislation supporting appropriate early intervention services within Wyoming for children who are DHH, Kim took the lead once more. She singlehandedly enlisted the support of other parents in the successful campaign to convince the Wyoming Legislature to fund additional positions to support children who are D/HH.
Kim’s roles and contributions have been numerous over the years and include:
- Wyoming Families for Hands & Voices Assistant Director: 2011 – 2015
- Wyoming Guide By Your Side Program Coordinator
- Family Educator at CDC+ Audiology
- Wyoming EHDI Advisory Board Member
- Wyoming Early Intervention Initiative (WEII) for Families with Children who are D/HH Member
- Developed materials for the Wyoming Family Resource Manual
The details mentioned above are but a handful of instances of Kim’s dedication, generosity with her time, and her willingness to go above and beyond to strengthen systems for families. Kim is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to supporting families of children who are DHH. Wyoming Families for Hands & Voices and the Wyoming EHDI system would be much diminished without Kim Reimann.