MANCHESTER, N.H. -
A 4-year-old boy in Salem who decided he did not want to wear his blue hearing aid to school anymore received some new inspiration after Marvel Comics designed a superhero after him.
Christina D'Allesandro said her son Anthony Smith can not hear out of his right ear and has hearing loss in his left ear. She said Anthony woke up one day and decided that he did not want to wear his blue hearing aid.
"Basically, one day he woke up and I said, 'OK, time to put in your hearing aid,' and said, 'Let's put in blue ear.' We've always called it that. And he said, 'No, superheroes don't wear blue ears,'" D'Allesandro said.
D'Allesandro assured her son that superheroes did wear hearing aids. She said she wanted to make sure, so she emailed the experts at Marvel Comics in New York City.
Marvel sent back a comic book cover featuring Hawkeye, a superhero who lost his hearing. D'Allesandro said her son was captivated by the image.
Marvel then sent a drawing of a new superhero inspired by Anthony: Blue Ear. Another sketch arrived portraying Hawkeye and Blue Ear together.
Anthony's grandfather, N.H. Sen. Lou D'Allesandro, said he was happy to hear of Marvel's help.
"This is a feel-good moment. This is a feel-good story, and we've got to get the world to recognize that," he said.
Christina D'Allesandro said Anthony, like Blue Ear, is proud to wear his hearing aid and share his good news with others at his school for children with hearing loss. The school had a superhero week, and a costume has been ordered for Anthony.
D'Allesandro said she hopes to finally meet and thank the heroes at Marvel Comics some day.
