Waller decided to bring his services to the retired and elderly by working with retirement homes to perform free hearing screenings for all those who are interested. Together with Brumfield, Waller is visiting retirement communities in Baldwin, Jones, Putnam and Washington counties to provide seniors with some incentive to check their hearing.

“We had a good response,” Linda Head, Dogwood Retirement Housing manager, said. “Most of our residents came by to have their hearing checked.”

Waller would like to expand his free hearing screening services to include children and schools.

“A lot of children are accused of having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,” Waller said. “We could be looking at the wrong symptoms.”

But for now, Waller is content to provide his services to those who need it most: The older generation.

When talking about the importance of healthy hearing, Waller cites what Helen Keller said when asked what sense she would like most to have.

“She said the ability to hear, more than anything else,” Waller said. “Blindness separates you from things, deafness separates you from people.”