By Emily Flynn, Program Coordinator, Ability Tools
I have been working with Ability Tools and CFILC’s Digital Access Project for about six months now and I have been really enjoying seeing the connection between the two programs.
The partnership between the assistive technology (AT) that Ability Tools provides and Digital Access Project’s low-cost internet service allows many individuals to gain the tools they need to be independent. The following story is one such example of that bridge.
In late April I received a call from Christine who was looking into signing up for DAP’s low cost internet service on behalf of her daughter, Nicole.
Nicole lives independently, is legally blind, and uses a Braille note-taker and a Victor stream reader for her work and school. These two items can be found for loan on Ability Tool’s AT Exchange. However, in order to use this AT, Nicole also needs wireless internet, which she did not have, as she could not afford the large monthly fees of most of the carriers in her area.
Nicole is currently a Braille tutor who is on her way to becoming a Certified Braille Transcriber. Thanks to the Digital Access Project, Nicole was quickly connected to the internet via a low-cost service provider, Basic Internet, and she now pays a contract free charge of just $10.90 a month.
Now that she is connected to the internet, Nicole is able to go online and download any of the briefs she needs for her courses towards her certification.
Nicole and Christine were so happy with the simple sign-up process, the ease of set-up and the quality of the service with the Digital Access Project that they sent me a thank you email with this picture attached.
“Thank you so much for the Wi-Fi. We received it a couple of weeks ago and Nicole just loves it. Nicole was so happy and excited when received and it was surprisingly easy to set up. Nicole has been able to navigate the internet much better with this device. I can’t tell you how happy she is, as a matter of fact, she reminded me to send you a picture and she hates taking pictures so that might tell you how appreciative she is. Attached is a picture I took with my cell phone. Again, thank you so much for the Wi-Fi …. Have a good day!”
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Nicole sitting at her desk using her Braillenote which is now connected to the internet.
