Meet Ella Keyte!
People who wear Starkey hearing technology don’t let hearing loss stand in the way of doing amazing things—and Ella Keyte is a brilliant example.
This summer, university student and Starkey wearer Ella climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, raising an incredible £4,858 for Meningitis Research Foundation. Before setting off, Starkey UK supported Ella with new Omega AI hearing technology and rechargeable accessories to help her feel confident, connected and prepared for the challenge.
The climb also held a special family connection for Ella. In July 2004, just before her 60th birthday, Ella’s grandmother climbed Kilimanjaro with her friend Anne and a team of guides.
Ella has always looked up to her gran, who spent much of her life visiting India and helping local communities build schools. Before Ella began her journey, her gran offered some simple advice:
“Listen to your guides, drink lots of water and look forward to reaching the roof of Africa, as it is an amazing achievement.”
More than 20 years later, Ella followed in her gran’s footsteps and reached Kilimanjaro’s 5,895-metre summit while supporting a hugely important cause.
Now safely home, Ella shares how her Omega AI hearing aids performed through humid rainforests, freezing temperatures, high altitudes and one unforgettable journey to the roof of Africa.
Performance in extreme conditions
Throughout the climb, Ella travelled through multiple climates and environments, from humid rainforest to freezing, windy rock faces.
“The hearing aids performed fantastically throughout the climb,” Ella said.
Daily rain and perspiration exposed her hearing aids to significant amounts of moisture as she made her way through the rainforest. Despite the challenging conditions, their performance remained consistent.
“I would be sweating and it would rain every day we walked through the rainforest, so the moisture on the hearing aids would’ve been a lot, but they still worked perfectly.”
Ella had initially been concerned about how the altitude might affect her hearing aids. However, they continued to perform reliably—even when she reached the summit at 5,895 metres above sea level.
“They were fantastic even at 5,895m above sea level. Insane!”
Safety during the climb
One of the most technical sections of Ella’s journey was Barranco Wall, a 270-metre cliff face that required climbers to scramble over rocks on their hands and knees.
Listening carefully to the guides was essential, making dependable hearing technology particularly important during this part of the climb.
“It was vital we listened to the guides during this bit, and so having hearing aids that were up to the challenge was really integral to my safety climbing the wall.”
The secure fit of Ella’s hearing aids also gave her confidence that they would remain safely in place while she climbed.
“I certainly felt a lot more confident climbing the wall having hearing aids I knew I could depend on, but also ones that fit well enough to not fall out.”
Battery life throughout the trip
Ella took three rechargeable cases with her to ensure she had enough power throughout the journey. However, she was impressed to discover that one case lasted for the entire trip.
“It was a really nice feeling to know that my hearing aids would be fully charged in the mornings. It was definitely one less stress, especially on more challenging days of the trip.”
The longest and most demanding part of the challenge was summit day. Ella began climbing at 11pm and continued until 6pm the following day.
“On summit day, we were climbing from 11pm at night until 6pm the day after, which the hearing aids withstood perfectly, even at the high altitude and the severe weather conditions that we had on the night.”
Double Tap and Edge Mode+
With her phone switched off throughout the trip, Ella used the Double Tap feature to switch between her personal hearing programme and Edge Mode+ without needing to use the My Starkey app.
“This was helpful as my phone was off the entire trip, so it meant I could switch between modes without having to turn on my phone.”
Ella found Edge Mode+ particularly helpful during mealtimes in the busy mess tent, where large groups of climbers gathered and the noise levels could quickly increase.
“The best time to use Edge Mode was actually in the mess tent during mealtimes, since it could get very loud—hungry climbers!”
An overwhelmingly positive experience
Looking back on the journey, Ella described her experience with Omega AI as “overwhelmingly positive”.
For Ella, the hearing aids did much more than help her hear during the climb. They gave her the confidence to communicate with a new group of people and fully participate in an experience she will never forget.
“It means a lot that I’m not held back from doing cool things by a hearing impairment, and it shouldn’t have to stop anyone.”
Ella has previously experienced moments of isolation when she has been unable to hear other people or access conversations. Throughout her Kilimanjaro journey, her Omega AI hearing aids helped her communicate with her fellow climbers and guides in one of the most challenging environments imaginable.
“I have felt isolated at times, not being able to hear people and access conversations. Wearing hearing aids, especially top-notch Starkey ones, has meant that I am able to do incredible things like climb the tallest freestanding mountain in the world and raise £4,858 for Meningitis Research.”
After reaching the summit and completing an incredible personal challenge, Ella shared one final message for other hearing aid wearers:
“My advice to other hearing aid wearers is to never let your hearing impairment or loss make you feel like you can’t do crazy, exciting, incredible things—because you can!”
