Meet Meghan Barr from Abilene, Texas. Meghan is 20 years old and was born with Microtia and Atresia of her right ear. Meghan says that living with Microtia and Atresia has had its ups and downs, but with the support of her parents, family and friends, it has allowed her to accept living with Microtia and Atresia and is now a part of who she is today.
Meghan loves dancing! When Meghan was five years old, she began dancing and got her ears pierced and began wearing her hair up. She discovered her love for ballet, tap, and jazz. She also moved on to clogging, hip hop, and contemporary lyrical. Meghan says that dance has allowed her to be herself. She says that no one has ever judged her for having one ear and many of her fellow dance friends have no idea and still don’t realize that she is missing her ear, even after dancing with them for over ten years. Meghan also says that dance has taught her to not be ashamed to wear her hair up. Dance has allowed her to escape from any issues that she may be going through and it is a form of expression that she can go to when she can’t say what she feels, but can say it through movements.
As Meghan was growing up, she says she had her fair share of battles when people would talk to her and she wouldn’t always hear everything they were saying to her. She has been able to position herself in class so that she can hear better. While Meghan does not wear a hearing device, she says that her parents did tell her about them and about reconstructive surgery as options, but they never forced her and always told her it was her decision when she was ready. She loves her Microtia ear and does not regret never having surgery. Meghan knows today that she is not alone as she has met many others with Microtia and Atresia through the Ear Community Organization and through Ear Community’s support groups online.
Meghan will be attending Hardin Simmons University this fall where she will begin earning her Bachelors Degree in pediatric nursing. Meghan has been awarded a $750 college scholarship from the Ear Community Organization for this fall of 2016. Thank you to the Resort2Kindness Organization for helping contribute toward this scholarship for Meghan and for helping make her first semester possible at Hardin Simmons University! We hope this gift will help you on your way to becoming a nursing professional! Congratulations Meghan from all of us here at the Ear Community Organization! We are all so very proud of you!
Here are some photos of Meghan and her family:
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