The EAR Foundation has merged with the League for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, after both nonprofits were left headless when their chief administrators retired in quick succession.

Early this year, the EAR Foundation lost its executive director, Suzanne Wyatt, to Premier Micronutrient Corp., where she now heads the hearing health division. Les Hutchison, president and CEO of the League, retired in December.

Administrators at both companies say a merger was the next logical step.

"

We’re in a similar area, and we both noticed we were both beginning a search for a new excutive director," said Steve Masie, chairman of the Ear Foundation.

The merger was finalized on Wednesday, about six months after talks started. New League President Sallie Hussey was appointed in June as talks concluded.

“We are very similar organizations with similar programs,” said Hussey. He described the merger as "a way to provide better and more efficient programs.”

The Ear Foundation will be absorbed into the League for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and the new corporation is officially named the League for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and the Ear Foundation.

“We wanted to make sure we didn’t lose anything,” said Hussey about the 13-word title. “At some point, we’ll try to find a name that fits everyone.”

The merger was a clean one – no positions have been terminated, and Hussey said she may even augment the staff of 13 people to match the increased workload.

Masie also said that things will remain much the same for the thousands of hearing-impaired people served by the EAR Foundation’s services, which include an inner ear disorder support network, a four-year scholarship for profoundly deaf high school seniors, and a fellowship for doctors who specialize in ear physiology.

At the end of each organization's 2006 fiscal year, the Ear Foundation had assets of $334,000, while the League had $1.5 million in assets.