Home

Oticon's Focus on People Awards Celebrate Champions of Inclusion and Awareness

via Business Wire

Three honorees' accomplishments strengthen connections and redefine perceptions of hearing loss

Oticon, Inc. has named Brenda Schmidt of Naperville, Illinois; Ethan Ocker of The Woodlands, Texas; and Jayden Rosenfeld of Livingston, New Jersey, the recipients of the 2025 Oticon Focus on People Awards, which celebrate individuals who are reshaping perceptions of what it means to live with hearing loss.

This year's honorees are being recognized for strengthening inclusion and awareness, empowering others through connection and demonstrating that hearing loss is not a limitation. The Oticon Focus on People Awards has honored more than 300 individuals who are advancing hearing loss awareness across the country since 1997.

"The Focus on People Awards spotlight those who push us to see ability where others might see limitation, and this year's winners have changed lives in ways that ripple far beyond their own communities," said Lisbeth Collignon, Vice President of Marketing for Oticon. "Brenda, Ethan and Jayden show how advocacy and innovation grow from lived experience, and their impact will resonate long after this recognition."

Schmidt, a longtime hearing services coordinator for school districts in the Chicago area, dedicated her career to supporting children with hearing loss and their families. She organized programs that resonated with attendees, including annual Advocacy Day events that featured guest presenters and created opportunities for students with hearing loss to connect with peers. After retiring, she became an adjunct professor at Illinois State University, where she taught sign systems for educational settings. She also authored a children's book, "She Heard Her Footsteps," to help young families understand the experience of hearing aids through the eyes of a child.

Ocker, a materials science engineering student at Texas A&M University, has combined technical expertise with real-world impact. Diagnosed with profound hearing loss as a toddler, he has thrived as an Eagle Scout, a volunteer supporting communities affected by natural disasters and a member of the university's solar car racing team. He has also completed international internships focused on renewable energy and engineering solutions. Within the university’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing Club, he provides mentorship and encouragement to others, embodying the belief that hearing loss does not limit achievement or potential.

Rosenfeld, a senior at Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School, has turned his own experience with hearing loss into opportunities for leadership and connection. He founded "Hear for Each Other," a national program that pairs younger children with older teens to provide guidance, support and friendship. He volunteers with the Sound Start Babies program in New Jersey, and shows how people with hearing loss can thrive in academics and athletics simultaneously by playing varsity basketball and baseball.

Winners were honored during a ceremony in Jupiter, Florida, on Nov. 13. Each received a $2,500 cash prize, a $1,000 donation to a charity of their choice and a pair of Oticon hearing aids with BrainHearing™ technology.

Photos and videos from the 2025 Focus on People Award winners are available here.

For more information on the Oticon Focus on People Awards visit oticon.com/fop.

Oticon, Inc. — Life-Changing Technology

Oticon is one of the world's most innovative hearing device manufacturers, with more than 115 years' experience in the design and development of hearing aids for adults and children. Our comprehensive portfolio of life-changing technology improves not only the quality of hearing but the overall quality of life for people with hearing loss. Oticon challenges conventions and pushes the limits of technology to bring to market hearing solutions that exceed the needs and expectations of people with hearing loss, so that they can live their lives without limit. Our groundbreaking BrainHearing™ technology is helping to provide better hearing with less effort by giving the brain the clearest, purest sound signals to decode. For more information visit oticon.com.

The Focus on People Awards spotlight those who push us to see ability where others might see limitation, and this year's winners have changed lives in ways that ripple far beyond their own communities.

Contacts