The Nashville Post reported the story on Friday:

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. She described the merger as “a way to provide better and more efficient programs.”