Next Extreme Makeover Home Edition
In today’s virtual mail bag:
Sunday’s Extreme Makeover Home Edition Includes Freedom Scientific Products
(St. Petersburg, Florida, April 26, 2005) – Be sure to tune in for a special two-hour broadcast of Extreme Makeover Home Edition this Sunday, May 1, from 7 PM to 9 PM EDT, featuring an accessible home for a blind Florida resident.
The highly-rated ABC TV series focuses on the construction of the house for Jamie Dolan, a St. Petersburg resident who was blinded in a November 24 shooting. Several companies, including Freedom Scientific, contributed products, time, and labor to the community-wide effort. Freedom Scientific contributed JAWS®, the SARA™ Scanning and Reading Appliance, a PAC Mate™ QX440, the StreetTalk™ accessible GPS, and the FSReader DAISY player for both PAC Mate and Desktop.
Because of public interest and the broad content of this show, ABC has extended the usual one-hour broadcast to two hours. The national broadcast will be preceded at 6 PM EDT by a one-hour pre-show, aired only in the Tampa Bay area by the local ABC affiliate. The pre-show will spotlight the local volunteers and companies that contributed to the home.
After the May 1 air date, clips from the series and product information can be viewed on the Extreme Makeover Home Edition Web site. Freedom Scientific’s participation is highlighted in an article on the ABC Action News Tampa Bay Web site.
On Monday, May 2 at 8 PM EDT, the Dolan home again will be featured on the one-hour ABC series, How’d They Do That? The broadcast will go behind the scenes to show more about building the home’s accessible features.
-jd
April 26th, 2005 at 7:00 pm
Not entirely sure what I think of this. On one hand, it is just one more opportunity to get the word out to the public about blindness and how accessibility can make a difference between failure and success. On the other hand, do blind people really need expensive, specially built “accessible” homes? Isn’t that the wrong perception to be putting out to the public?
April 26th, 2005 at 8:15 pm
I won’t have an opnion until I watch the show. But without seeing it, I’m leaning in favor of this show being a good thing. Here’s why:
1. The reason you mentioned: Get the word out. There are far too many misconceptions about blindness and people who are blind.
2. Draw attention to all of the inaccessible appliances and other electronics out there. If you’ve shopped for major appliances lately, then you know that everything is going touch screen and LCD display. Same thing with thermostats, as I’ve recently discovered. I have to replace mine soon since it and reality seem to have parted company. I’ve decided I’m going to get a talking one.
3. Educate people on the specific tools that enable people who are blind to access information, gain and maintain employment, and run a household.
My gut is telling me that the moral of the story presented to the audience will not be that blind people need big, specially-built houses. And if my gut is wrong, then you know I’ll be writing about it here. (smile) I’ve never seen an entire episode of E.M.H.E. However, in the bits and pieces I’ve seen, when the person/family comes home the spin isn’t, “You need all of this stuff, poor you.” It’s more like, “Hey, look at your cool new house, with its cool new toys and all of these people who love you!”
We won’t know for certain, of course, until we see it….
April 26th, 2005 at 8:25 pm
Hey, anyone want to volunteer to send the press release to Judy Ramsook? (smile)