Rebuilding Computers for the Blind: C.O.M.P.
The Computer Operators of Marysville and Port Huron, Michigan (C.O.M.P.) have teamed up with Michael Geno, the President for Michigan Council Of The Blind and Visually Impaired.
Mike informed C.O.M.P. that he has “been doing this for the past 6 years, [rebuilding computers for the Blind] and completed about 6 computers each year on my own. I was able to work on three computers yesterday, and finished one ready for placement with a blind person. I expect to place two adapted computers in the next two weeks.” Of course that statement was in May 2008, those numbers grow each month.
Larry Mobbs, President of COMP explains how it all started:
“Some months ago our club met Mike Geno, working behind us here, he rebuilds computers for the blind. So we offered to do the hardware setup. Volunteers donated computers and their time and so since about February we have been rebuilding, donating computers approaching about 50 of them have gotten done. Work stations we have set up, about 6 places. People are at work building hardware and setting up windows 98. And Mike puts on special screen reading software called Jaws, which allows the sightless and limited vision users to drive the computer with the screen reader guiding them.
I was invited to visit the C.O.M.P. volunteers in action, a few weeks ago. I left Ontario for Michigan (a 15 minute drive depending on customs of course), armed with a video camera and pad & pen. I wasn’t expecting to find such a well oiled machine. I found it amazing how eager these members for the computer user’s group C.O.M.P. were so involved in this wonderful community project helping rebuild computers for the Blind.
WATCH THIS VIDEO and see for yourself and listen to their President tell you how it all began. See Mike Geno working on a computer that he cannot see:
Rebuilding Computers for the Blind: C.O.M.P. said,
June 15, 2008 at 8:37 pm
[...] avyaya wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptThe Computer Operators of Marysville and Port Huron, Michigan (C.O.M.P.) have teamed up with Michael Geno, the President for Michigan Council Of The Blind and Visually Impaired. Mike informed C.O.M.P. that he has “been doing this for the past 6 years, [rebuilding computers for the Blind] and completed about 6 computers each year on my own. I was able to work on three computers yesterday, and finished one ready for placement with a blind person. I expect to place two adapted computers in the next two weeks.” Of course that statement was in May 2008, those numbers grow each month. Larry Mobbs, President of COMP explains how it all started: “Some months ago our club met Mike Geno, working behind us here, he rebuilds computers for the blind. So we offered to do the hardware setup. Volunteers donated computers and their time and so since about February we have been rebuilding, donating computers […] [...]