Sister Helen Merrin has many passions. But it was her love of karate that gave her focus as she learned to listen using cochlear implants.

‘Karate challenges the mind,’ she says. ‘There’s an enormous amount to commit to memory and it’s all in Japanese. It helps with balance and is a great source of friendships.’

Sister Helen, a member of the Dominican religious order, and a teacher at St Lucy’s School for children with special needs on Sydney’s north shore, is now 80. But she’s still as active as ever. She has navigated life’s challenges with a willingness to try new things and the drive to keep making a difference.

Sister Helen first lost her sight as an adult. That didn’t stop her. She used her years of experience in teaching braille to keep her love of reading alive.

Then, in her 50s, she began to lose her hearing too. That didn’t stop her either. After persevering with hearing aids for nearly two decades she got her first cochlear implant at age 69. She now has two of them.

This year, her extraordinary contribution to special needs education and the Catholic Church in Australia was recognised with an Order of Australia Medal in the 2024 King’s Birthday honours list.

When we first met Sister Helen more than a decade ago, she was just beginning her cochlear implant journey.

Her NextSense audiologist Jane, says Sister Helen is a wonderful example of how people adapt and continue to thrive when they experience sensory loss.

‘It has been my privilege to work with Sister Helen for many years now,’ Jane says. ‘She is a great example of how much we, as clinicians, can learn from our clients.

‘I’m continually impressed by how well Sister Helen uses the technology and maintains her independence – navigating her Nucleus Smart App and other mobile phone functions via Braille dots on the screen. And using her Mini Mic which is vital for communication in her karate lessons.’

While many people regain their access to music through cochlear implants, for Sister Helen, a former music teacher, the experience was challenging. She says her dual sensory loss added another dimension to her experience.

‘I’m still very much learning and much of my hearing capacity depends on how quickly a person speaks, the noise around me and brain fatigue,’ she says.

‘My experience of hearing music through my implant was not positive, which for me, was the greatest loss. But my coping mechanism was to focus on other things, like karate. And NextSense has been very supportive on the journey. Each audiologist has given their best to me.’

Sister Helen has been practising Seido karate for 22 years. Its goal is self-improvement, not competition with others.

‘I have always loved dancing, but it’s hard to get exercise when one is blind. So, when an opportunity came up for blind karate participants, I gave it a go, and have loved it ever since,’ she says.

She continues to seize each day, still giving back through her role as Chaplain at St Lucy’s, where she has designed an accessible program for students to participate in the Sacraments.