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Memories of Clarence Whaley2008-06-15Memories of Clarence WhaleyOn behalf of the entire staff of GW Micro, it is with deep Comments, Pingbacks:
Comment from: Don Coco [Visitor]
I worked with Clarence on some utilities for his computer. He was a Terrific Smart and Talented person and he will be greatly missed. My hope is that his Kind Sprit continues to live within each one of us. Don Coco, Sacramento, ca.
I never met Clarence in person I don't think.
We both graduated from the Tennessee School for the blind, many years apart though.Eleven years ago, I got my first guide dog. I somehow got his phone number, but can't remember how. I called him and we talked about living and working with guide dogs. It didn't matter that he didn't know me, he talked to me as though we'd known each other for a long time. That meant a lot.I know he will be missed by all who knew him, and I will pray for his family and friends during this most difficult time. Clarence, you will be missed and thought of fondly for years and years to come.
Comment from: Stacey Robinson [Visitor]
I never near Clarence but heard him on presentations on ACB radio. I know he will be truly missed.
Clarence was the guy who I always ordered my Window Eyes upgrades from. I don't know why exactly... I was put in touch with him years ago, and I simply continued to phone him. We also exchanged some email over the Mobile Speak list.
He was a super nice man, and highly professional. I'm sad to hear of his passing, and will pray for his friends and family.
While I've never met Clarence in person, I have heard several of his trainings and presentations - most notably the one on the Small Talk Ultra and Window-Eyes. He will always be remembered, by me, as one of the best presenters I have heard on Main Menu & The Desert Skies Podcast.
Comment from: Sonja Homan [Visitor]
Today is a sad day for me. I have lost a good friend and the world has lost a good man. As I think back over all the times we spent together working and traveling for GW Micro, I remember his sense of humor most of all. One day he made me laugh so hard telling me how to sell a CCTV that I backed my car into a curb and I crunched the tail pipe. He never let me live that down; he told everyone we met about it. Another funny story was at CSUN when Clarence tricked Mike Lawlor and me by letting us believe that he tried to order a fried bologna and egg sandwich from room service. He told the room service employee that they needed to upgrade their menu! I'll miss you Clarence, but you'll always be with me.
Comment from: Shane Jackson [Visitor]
This is truly a very sad day for a great many people. Clarence Whaley was a fine man, and I am proud to say that I had the privilege of meeting him several times. He would come up to me with his dog, and he was always glad to see me. My wife even met him and liked him a great deal. Among all those Yankees at the conventions and conferences, it was always refreshing to hear that Tennessee Southern language, even if it was a little bit less than my Alabama brogue. My business partner got to meet Clarence in February at the ATIA conference in Orlando, and he was so excited by Clarence's encouragement of our new business, which has since fallen by the wayside. It seems that I just spoke with Clarence yesterday, although I know this isn't so. We are really going to miss you, Clarence. Rest in peace, Brother. We know you are with God, now! No more pain, no more tears, no more sorrow. All joy for you, Good Friend. Blessings to the family, as well!! Thank Heaven for fine folks like Clarence Whaley!
Comment from: Chris Grabowski [Visitor]
Hello, I met Clarence 3 times. once in a business meeting and the other two times at CSUN 2007 and 2008. In 2007 he showed me the SynkBraille and VoiceSense.
In 2008 I had the plesure of working along side Clarence as I assisted in the GW Micro booth with the Braille Sense Plus. I will never forget that. He talked to me as we had known eachother for years. He will be missed. Chris
I never actually met Clarence in person, but was always really impressed by his presentations that I heard about Window-eyes and the Small Talk Ultra. Clarence was one of these really rare guys who was able to present something in such a relaxed manner, that it didn't even feel like a presentation. It was more like one of your friends coming over to show you his latest tech gadget {You know us guys and our toys} . The access technology world lost a great guy. He'll be missed.
I had the privilege of knowing Clarence for many years. I remember Clarence as quite kind, very funny, and the consommate southern gentleman. I'll never forget how excited he was to show me the Braille Sense in Las Vegas. Clarence was one of those rare people who always left me smiling. This is how I will remember Clarence, with a smile and feeling thankful that I was lucky enough to have been touched by his life.
I'm a tech person who have worked at HIMS during 9 years. I met him twice in person. One is when I visited CSUN 2004 and another is when I visited GW Micro office to finalize the Braille Sense in USA. Since then, he gave me a lot of supports for us to be able to improve Sense notetaker. And when my mother was passed away this April also he gave me his condolence although he was bad condition. So I'm so sad to hear of his passing and I will pray for him and his family.
I have known Clarence since he moderated a list on which people talked about their guide dogs among other things and Clarence always had a one-liner to share. I knew him as salesperson, teacher, trainer, lover of good steak and distinguished chef of fried bologne sandwiches! His dog, Clay was a favorite topic of conversation when he wasn't talking about assistive technology and his knowledge of both were expansive. I considered him a friend, a wise fielder of questions at conventions and one who lived to help others. My thoughts and prayers rest with his family and close friends. I thank him for making me a better person.
Comment from: Kay Mathis [Visitor]
It is raining in Louisville today; I believe the angles are crying tears of Joy for Clarence joining them and our loss here on earth. Clarence was beyond words in benefit to not only me but in benefit to my company. From the beginning when Citi was trying to implement Window Eyes into our environment Clarence was there to help guide us, train our associates and myself. He not only partnered with us but became part of us with his dedication to achieve the goal to employ as many visually impaired associates as we could in all our locations. When there were issues that we encountered Clarence was the first one there with the answers, he took ownership for issues and worked until they were resolved. He and his wife drove to my office on several occasions to meet with me to work through technical issues, even though we were states away, it is a very tearful day for me as we have lost a very good friend one that could keep the humor going, that through any issue, could put a smile on my face, we at Citi will miss our friend and colleague
Comment from: Stephen Baum [Visitor]
Clarence was one of the original beta testers for Kurzweil 1000. That product was developed with the intense involvement of a small group of pilot customers, who contributed greatly to its feature set and its overall quality. Clarence was an important member of that group for a number of years. We'll miss him very much.
Stephen
Clarence was an angel to me. I remember one of our first conversations we had. I said to him that God sent me an angel. As I was saying that to him we both thought of the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life”. I said to him he was my “Clarence”. Clarence, I heard a bell ring on June 14, “when an angel gets their wings you will hear a bell ring”
Comment from: Sue Sweetman [Visitor]
No one will be able to fill Clarence's shoes (or his purple GW Micro shirt). He was so knowledgeable and helpful - and entertaining, too! His passing is a huge loss to the assistive tech industry, and he will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.
Bob and Sue Sweetman
Comment from: Lainey Feingold [Visitor]
hi. I have posted a piece about Clarence on my website at:
http://lflegal.com/2008/06/clarence-whaley/ Clarence was one of the hundreds of blind individuals across the country who have actively helped enforce the Americans with Disabilities Act through the process of Structured Negotiations. Clarence and Paul Parravano were involved in the Structured Negotiations with American Express, along with my co-counse Linda Dardarian and myself. American Express' Braille statements now often arrive before the print ones. Thank you Clarence, and my condolences to his family and community.
Comment from: Christopher McMillan [Visitor]
Clarence was a huge influence on the AT Community around the world. I had the honor to know the man from the days when I worked for the VA in Blind Rehab as a computer training specialist, with ALVA Access / BV to support our refreshable braille displays with GW fine screen reader for Windows and lately as a contractor to help in the New GW Micro Training Project. No matter what the issue was for training, consulting or doing a trade show, Clarence was always there wanting to show how Window Eyes would support the area I worked in.
Clarence and I always had the running joke of no matter when we worked together we would always find a way to have a bad meal some how and so every time we got together I always joked with him about which night would be our bad meal this time. I had the honor to know this man has a friend and mentor for the last 10 years and I will miss our trips together in the AT World. He was a fighter for anything that was a wrong for the Blindness Community and would make sure that it was corrected if it could be. This is such a huge loss for the Blindness Community and GW Micro but more importantly to his loving wife. I my thoughts and prayers are with the GW Micro Family and his loving wife Dranda. Clarence I know you will be having the best coffee and dinners from now on and I will be thinking of you every day.
Clarence was a lovely person, and I am deeply saddened by his passing. Clarence lives on in his great works, which include making sure that American Express monthly statements available in Braille and Large Print. Every time a person with a visual impairment receives a Braille or Large Print statement from American Express that they can read independently and privately, Clarence has made another positive contribution to the world.
Comment from: Dessie Page [Visitor]
I worked with Clarence for many years as our GW Micro sales manager,even though I never had the pleasure of meeting him face-to-face. Nevertheless, his strong leadership, integrity, and commitment to his mission was always present. When I talked with him by phone, I always felt his spirit of peace and goodwill. Personally, I feel a sense of loss and sadness when I realize that Clarence has moved on to a higher calling.
Comment from: B. T. [Visitor]
Clarence was always quick to answer any question I wrote or called in to GW Micro. I will miss him. Beth
Comment from: Sigi Kipke [Visitor]
Clarence passing away filled me with deep sadness. It seems like yesterday that we met at CSUN. Clarence was an institution in the blindness field world wide and the whole community will miss him. I enjoyed his wonderful sense of humour and it was always a pleasure to have him around.
I send my sincere condolence to Clarence’s family, friends and colleges. Sigi Kipke, CEO Handy Tech
My thoughts and prayers go out to the GW Micro staff and to the Whaley family and close friends during this sad time. Clarence will be missed greatly by all who knew him.
I first became aware of Clarence when I joined the buddy-l email listserv which he and Robert Carter formed for guide dog users in the late 90's. Being a long time user of jaws and only a new user of window eyes for a short period of time, in 2005, I had the pleasure of meeting Clarence while attending a training class in West Palm Beach. I brought along a word document that I was not able to read with jaws and mentioned this to Clarence. He told me that window eyes would read the document just fine and I doubted him, but guess what, he was right! I was then hooked on window eyes! I also attended the two workshops last year at the ACB convention in which Clarence was part of. He will be missed for sure. I'm glad I got the chance to learn from him.
Well, I will miss him. Contacting Gwmicro when Clarence was there to answer e-mais was something very personal for me. Let's believe that he preys for us in heven. today my preyers will be with him and his family.
Comment from: Larry Lewis [Visitor]
I met Clarence for the first time back in 2000, and he introduced me to Window-eyes in the GW Micro home office. He did an amazing job presenting the product to me in a fun, yet informtive way. He was an excellent balance between a sales guy and a trainer. More importantly, he was one of the most down-to-earth, grounded individual who you will ever find in this industry. Whether you shared a meal, product demo, phone call, or personal conversation with Clarence, when he interacted with you, you always left feeling like you were important to him. Clarence, you will be sorely missed at the summer conferences, my friend.
Larry
I just couldn't believe it even as I read the email more than once. I had just seen Clarence both at ATIA. and at CSUN. and had just sent him an email in early April expressing that our thoughts and prayers were with him. One of the funnier things Clarence said to me at ATIA. was in reference to my husband's unusual ability to immitate the people and voices he so chooses at will. Of course, one that certainly made Clarence laugh, was his attempt to sound like Clarence. So, as I was leaving the booth in Orlando, Clarence said, "hey, if you start missing me or something, just ask that crazy husband of yours to sound like me in that lousy Clarence imitation he does, okay?" Wow, if it were only that simple. He will certainly be missed, but will never be forgotten. I only wish he knew just what an impact he had made on so many people.
The Wilkinsons
Comment from: Sara Swerdlick [Visitor]
What I'll remember about Clarence is how genuine he was. That's hard to find in our world these days. From a difficult question to one of those "I know this sounds stupid but..." questions, Clarence always had the same helpful tone. Whether in person or on the phone, he always made me smile. And remembering him now makes me smile.
Comment from: Rich Krafsig [Visitor]
When I first entered this industry with a local AT dealer I had the pleasure of working with Clarence. I found Clarence to be a kind man who listened and who was not afraid to work on developing strong relationships. My family and I will lift up those close to Clarence in prayer during this difficult time.
Comment from: Roland Bowers [Visitor]
Clarence was one of those rare individuals who had the ability to "tell it like it is" and make you enjoy hearing it. His integrity and personal character were unquestionable. He will be missed both in and out of our community.
-Roland
I met Clarence two years in a row when he brought the GW Micro stand to the UK. He was very kind and despite the place being very busy he gave me his full attention and made me feel my views were important. The second year I met him he remembered me. As a result of his warm and patient nature I will always be a GW Micro customer. His memory will live with me forever.
Comment from: Jake Joehl [Visitor]
I am a JAWS user by default, but I did use both Window-Eyes and Vocal-Eyes a little bit and found them to be quite good. I never knew Clarence Whaley in person, but I did get to hear him a few times on ACB Radio and his knowledge and skills were incredible. He will be sorely missed and I send my condolences to both his family and friends, including his friends at GW Micro.
Comment from: fiddle_pup [Visitor]
At my very first Window-Eyes training session Clarance told the class of mostly sighted Teachers for the Visually Impaired and one young terrified teenager making the transition from using a screen enlarger to a screen reader that by the end of class he was going to turn off our monitors and make us serf the internet. It was said in such a playful tone with that slightly evil smirk that the entire class cowered whimpering but at the end of the class we were all able to do basic surfing with no visual input and tease Clarance back with the best of them. I've never forgotten that and often retell the story to sighted friends who can't conceive of life without their computer monitor. Thank you Clarance.
I only met Clarence once when he did a
Window-Eyes workshop at the CNIB in Toronto, Canada, many years ago but that's all it took for him to leave a lasting memory. He impressed me as a person who was infinitely comfortable with what he was teaching, believed in his product, proud to represent his company and presented to the participants in a non-threatening and comfortable manner. He was easy to approach and speak to. It is sad that he is no longer with us but he will be remembered as the warm and helpful person he was. My condolences to his wife, his family and the GW Micro staff.
Comment from: Wade Wingler [Visitor]
Clarence will be greatly missed. We at Easter Seals Crossroads are all saddened by this loss. Clarence was truly "one of the good guys."
I met Clarence on several occasions. Without his insights and input the product Verbal-eyes for electronic forms may never have gotten off the ground. To his family go my deepest sympathy. May God be with you through this time.
Please accept our condolences and prayers on the death of your friend. I know that he will be greatly missed. God bless you.
I was on the GW Micro site and noticed the little message about Clarence's passing. Although I never had the privilege of meeting or talking to Clarence on the phone, several years ago, not too long after he responded to an e-mail with a question I sent to tech support, he sent me a personal e-mail that was so friendly and warm. I cherish that e-mail, because he showed me that I was important to him. Because he touched my life, I miss him. I will pray for his family.
Comment from: Erik Deckers [Visitor]
I remember meeting Clarence and his wife Dranda for the first time when I started working at GW, when I flew out to Boston to learn how to use Window-Eyes from Clarence.
He also taught me to quit using the mouse. It was during a Window-Eyes training in Boston, and I was getting frustrated with using the keyboard. The rapid shouts of "graphic graphic graphic" from Window-Eyes told Clarence what I was up to. "Erik, quit using the mouse!" he hollered. I let it go from that day on, and rarely use it these days, even though I no longer use Window-Eyes. So, thanks to Clarence, I'm now a real computer user.
I do not own a fully functional copy of Window Eyes but I heard Clarence a number of times on Acb Radio. His warm sense of humor will be missed I'm sure by Gw Micro. My prayers go to his family.
Comment from: Patrick Tice [Visitor]
I think he was a ham radio operator, too: KD4PT.
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