Sarah Churman (she has her own blog) should be an inspiration to us all. Deaf her entire 29 years she recently had a procedure done in one of ears that allowed her to hear for the very first time. I saw the video she posted to YouTube a few weeks ago and was deeply moved. I don't know her and will probably never meet her; but seeing her hear for the very first time was just spectacular. The miracle of modern medicine really is just that, a miracle. I'm not the only one that has been moved, her video has already seen over 8 million views; and her original posting has already been copied to other YouTube accounts where hundreds of thousands of views have been logged. She has become an internet sensation.

Ellen Dengeres obviously thought so and invited Ms. Churman to appear on her show not too long ago. Through the interview you learn a few things about Ms. Churman and her family. You learn that the procedure cost $30,000 per ear and isn't covered by insurance. Ms. Churman and her husband couldn't afford such an expensive surgery, much less two of them, so her mother-in-law cashed in a small retirement savings so that they could borrow the money for the 1st surgery.

Ellen apparently learned this in advance of the interview and through a little magic of her own worked with Envoy Medical, provider of this new ocular implant, to provide the next implant free. Ellen and Envoy didn't stop there, they presented Ms. Churman and her family with a check for $30,000 to pay back Ms. Churman's mother-in-law.

Both videos are below. If one doesn't bring a little tear to your eye, then you need to go see a doctor yourself.

Meeting with Ellen on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp4usWroDew

Her original video, with over 8 million views so far...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsOo3jzkhYA