GW Micro contributes to Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Sep-14-2006FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Dan Weirich
GW Micro, Inc.
725 Airport North Office Park
Fort Wayne, IN 46825
Phone: 260-489-3671
www.gwmicro.com
sales@gwmicro.com
GW Micro Donates Advanced Assistive Technology to ABC Extreme Makeover to Help Disabled Family
Fort Wayne, IN -- September 12, 2006 -- GW Micro, Inc., a leader in assistive technology for blind and visually impaired consumers is pleased to announce a cooperative effort with ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
ABC's national television show, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" helps families around the country who have been hindered by hardships and recently they selected a family in Bergenfield, New Jersey. The family, originally from the Philippines consists of both parents, two daughters, one son, and paternal grandmother. The father, two daughters and grandmother suffer from a degenerative genetic eye disease, which causes blindness, the son is deaf and the mother was recently diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
To improve the quality of life, GW Micro has graciously donated several assistive technology products, including Window-Eyes, a screen reader that reads all information on a computer screen and the Small-Talk Ultra: the world's smallest, accessible computer for blind and visually impaired people (www.gwmicro.com/smalltalk). The Small-Talk Ultra uses Window-Eyes (www.gwmicro.com/windoweyes) to speak everything on the screen to the blind family members. Jeremy Curry, Training Specialist for GW Micro, hand-delivered the technology to the worksite. "It was quite an experience," said Curry. "It was remarkable how everyone came together to help out this very deserving family, and make this one of the most technologically advanced homes in the world."
"The Small-Talk Ultra with the power of Window-Eyes is the first, hand-held, Windows XP computer that is completely accessible to people that are blind or visually impaired," said Dan Weirich, Vice President Sales and Marketing for GW Micro. "Our goal as a company has always been to help people, and this was just one small way that we could help."
The family can use these talking computers wherever they go, whether in the house, in class or riding the subway. Since the son is deaf, the Small-Talk Ultra can also be used as a communication device between the blind members of the family and the son, since Window-Eyes speaks everything on the screen and the Small-Talk Ultra includes a visual display. "GW Micro is not only making the world accessible for visually impaired people, but we are bridging the communication gap between people with various types of disabilities," said Weirich. "Advanced assistive technology devices like ours are opening up a whole new world for people with disabilities and GW Micro is at the forefront; pioneering innovative technologies."
GW Micro has been producing adaptive technology solutions since 1990, enabling blind and visually impaired consumers to lead productive lives at home, work and school.
"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is produced by Endemol USA, a division of Endemol Holding. David Goldberg is the president of Endemol USA. The series is executive-produced by Tom Forman and co-executive produced by Denise Cramsey. This episode airs Sunday, September 17, 2006 (8:00-10:00 p.m. EST), on the ABC Television Network.
For more information, contact:
GW Micro, Inc.
Dan Weirich, Vice President of Marketing and Engineering
725 Airport North Office Park
Fort Wayne, IN 46825
Phone (260) 489-3671
www.gwmicro.com
sales@gwmicro.com
# # #
Return to Latest News
