Kate, who is deaf and had always read lips, had her cochlear implant turned on for the first time Friday. And with that came the sound of words.

Kate's brain had never heard words before. Now it must learn to process the information and put meaning to the sounds.

Her brain has to learn to hear.

Kate's brother, John Kinstler, 39, received an implant earlier this year. A recessive gene caused the pair's deafness. Their sister, Liz Potter, can hear.

Kate, a Janesville resident, is one of 70 or so adults and 20 children who received implants at University Hospital in Madison over the last 10 years.

Electrodes in the inner ear stimulate the hearing nerve, bypassing damaged hair cells, so the brain can receive digital signals that have been converted by a speech processor. A small headpiece worn behind the outer ear contains a microphone and transmitter.

Kate delayed her surgery for years because of the cost, which for her could reach $80,000. John's insurance covered one implant. He wears a hearing aid in the other.

But Kate's insurance doesn't cover any, and she explored grants and other programs.

Finally, Kate's husband, Dan, said, "Let's just do it. We'll find a way to pay."

Dan's company, Dairy Land Seed Company in Clinton, offered to pay half the cost. The couple took out a second mortgage on their home for the rest.

On Friday, Kate's family gathered at the clinic and rejoiced in what they call a miracle. Her mom and siblings live in Madison. Kate's children, who attend school in Milton, took a holiday.

The anticipation was almost too much to bear.

"To me, it's a miracle," said Rita Britt, Kate's mom. "To have children that have never heard sound before, as we have-they've never heard my voice, their children's voices. Kate has never heard (her husband). This is the happiest I've been in my entire life. I can't believe it's happening.

"It's going to open up her world."

Liz is a professional singer, and Kate and John used to love to watch their sister sing. Now, Rita can't wait for Kate to hear her, as well.

The adversity has made Kate and John strong people, Rita said.

"You'll find one thing that runs through this family, and that's a sense of humor," Rita said. "I knew that was going to be very important. They (Kate and John) were going to be teased and picked on. All that happened. They had to have a sense of humor."

John said his older sister paved the way for him at school. The system had acclimated to a deaf child by the time he got there.

Friday, John returned the favor for his sister. He tried to prepare Kate for what she was about to hear.

John himself was initially overwhelmed by tinnitus, or ringing in the ears. Sometimes, he just had to turn the implant off and give his brain a break.

When that cleared up, he remembers sitting in a quiet room and hearing the tick of the clock.

"What is that?" he remembers thinking.

He moved toward the clock and saw the minute hand clicking away. He remembers hearing his own breathing for the first time. The crinkling of paper drives him crazy.

The family circled Kate in support as audiologist Kathy Brewer turned the implant on. Liz and John held hands.

"It's going to sound really weird," Kathy cautioned.

Kate's body jerked slightly once, and then again. She said she felt as though she was being shocked.

Her family took turns speaking to her.

"I love you, sweetie pie," her mother said.

"It's so strange," Kate said.

The voices sounded mechanical.

"You sound like a robot," she said.

Kate heard echoes and her voice sounded muffled, like she was underwater.

"We talked about how people would sound like Mickey Mouse," Kathy said.

The two will now work together to fine-tune the reception.

A high-pitched din was in Kate's brain. John assured her that she would soon learn to sift the important sounds and relegate others to the background.

The implants pick up the high frequencies of speech, while John and Kate's hearing aides pick up low frequencies.

"That's what we've never heard before," John reminded Kate. "Your brain doesn't know what to do with it. It doesn't know that it's speech."

"The high pitch, I don't like so much," Kate answered.

"Well, that's what's out there," her brother answered.

The family took a walk to the cafeteria, where John remembers how startled he was by the crashing of the ice machine and the noises of the kitchen. John drew in close, reassuring Kate.

Kate said she is looking forward to hearing a phone ring and can't wait to get a cell phone.

She'll hear her kids' voices, she said. She'll hear them argue, she added with a smile.

Everybody tells Kate that her daughter, Abby, has a beautiful voice.

"Really?" she'd answer.

Now she'll know for herself.

By Marcia Nelesen
http://www.gazetteextra.com/martinelli_implant121705.asp