KT Maviglia, Miss Michigan 2014 and founder of the KT Maviglia Fund for Hearing, advocated for those with hearing loss and urged others to accept their quirks and oddities in her speech on March 21 in the Charles V. Park Library Auditorium.

When Maviglia was nine, she sat in a classroom in Dundee Elementary School behind the learning curve and mispronounced many of the words her teacher wanted her to say, she said.

At this time, Maviglia’s teacher suggested hearing loss may be an issue. Maviglia’s parents took her to an audiologist, and she was diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss.

As a child and through her teenage years, Maviglia tried to hide this part of her.

In high school, she refused to wear her hearing aids and took other precautions to do well in school. Maviglia didn’t care if she had to work extra hard to earn good grades — she said she just wanted to fit in with everyone.

It wasn’t until Maviglia was in college and started doing pageants that she even considered getting hearing aids again, she said.

As a pageant participant, the contestant must have a topic for which they are an advocate. Maviglia’s first topic was hospice because she still wanted to hide her hearing loss. After chatting with someone, though, she decided to return to the audiologist and get hearing aids again.

She was stunned when she had to pay $5,000 for her hearing aids. On top of that, the insurance wouldn’t cover them.

That’s when she started advocating for those with hearing loss in her pageant competitions and started her KT Maviglia Fund for Hearing.

The KT Maviglia Fund for Hearing is a nonprofit and works with people age 26 or younger to provide them money to pay for hearing aids, FM systems or other hearing accessories.

Maviglia said being in charge of the fund isn’t always easy. She has listened to some really tough stories.

“It makes it all worth it when you go into the audiologist’s office, and you’re there, and you present a big check to a kid that literally would not have been able to hear without you,” Maviglia said.

As of now, Maviglia has helped 15 different people.

“On one front, I’m just so thankful that I’m able to be that person for some people, but on another front, it makes me angry that I am sometimes the only option for people,” Maviglia said.

This frustration sparked Maviglia to take the matter regarding lack of insurance for hearing aid to legislation. Maviglia, a board made up of parents who have kids with hearing loss, two audiologists and a person with the Hearing Loss Association of America are working to get a bill passed.

Bill 449 works to provide insurance coverage for hearing aids in both ears and allows them to be replaced every three years for people age 26 and under.

While the bill is a slow process, Maviglia and her board are still pushing for it, she said. Maviglia added she is proud of the person she has become today.

Aside from her foundation and the legislation, she graduated from University of Michigan with her bachelor’s degree and has now completed her master’s degree online.

Maviglia also won Miss Michigan 2014 and has advocated for people with hearing loss.

“I just want to be a voice for people that don’t have one, that have a challenge speaking in general or that feel bad about themselves because they feel different about themselves,” Maviglia said.

Maviglia said she wants others to be proud of who they are, too, and to not hide their uniqueness. Maviglia said that she would not be able to do what she does now if she hadn’t accepted every part of her.

Now, Maviglia walks into modeling auditions with her hearing aids and basically says to take her as she is or leave her, she said.

“It’s okay to be unique, to be quirky, to have these weird things about you,” Maviglia said.