The Hard Rock Heals Foundation, in partnership with Hard Rock Café Dubai, has announced a $5,000 grant to be awarded to Al Jalila Foundation on the occasion of World Hearing Day. This comes as part of Hard Rock Heals Foundation’s commitment to improving the lives and resiliency of local communities. Al Jalila Foundation is one of 50 local grant winners around the world to get support from Hard Rock International’s charitable arm.
Al Jalila Foundation is a home-grown global healthcare philanthropic organisation dedicated to transforming lives through medical research, education and treatment. Through its treatment programme, Al Jalila Foundation provides cutting edge cochlear implants to children in the UAE suffering from severe hearing loss.
“The Hard Rock Heals Foundation exists to improve lives through the power of music and we know that the sense of sound is crucial to all areas of childhood development. We are proud to deepen our support of the Al Jalila Foundation’s tremendous work, especially on a day as fitting as World Hearing Day,” says Kellie Brown, manager of global philanthropy for Hard Rock International. “As part of our effort to improve lives through the power of music, our yearly grant programme provides the opportunity for each Hard Rock team to nominate a charitable organisation in their community. With properties in more than 75 countries, this process allows us to serve diverse, local communities through trusted partners that share our belief in the universal healing power of music.”
This announcement marks the foundation’s third consecutive year supporting community-run programmes through grants that provide greater opportunities for those who share Hard Rock’s passion for music. In 2019, the Hard Rock Heals Foundation will donate a total of $250,000 to local charities in in support of their music-related efforts.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), hearing impairment affects 360 million people globally, 32 million of which are children under the age of 15. In the Middle East, hearing loss is one of the region’s top five health problems, estimated to affect 1 in 25 people.