Congratulations to #MyLifeWithAT2017 Facebook Photo Contest Winner, Vanessa!
#MyLifeWithAT2017 Vanessa loves to play with Old MacDonald’s Farm using her eye gaze to activate a Tobii I12 Speech Generating Device to name the animals and tell them what to do. A student at Easterseals of SE PA, Vanessa is 5 years old and has been talking using her eyes and speech generating device for over a year. She got her own device in September! Here’s a photo of Vanessa playing with Joy McGowan, Director of Augmentative Communication at Easterseals of SE PA.
For this contest, we asked people to share a photo that captures something they’re doing or have done that they care about – an achievement made, a passion followed, an interest explored, or even a simple every day activity that is important to them. Then we asked them to caption that photo telling us how assistive technology (AT) played a part.
This has been, by far, the most difficult contest to judge since we began running this contest a few years ago. While Vanessa received, far and away, the most Facebook “votes” (likes and comments on her photo), she also received the most admiration from our panel of judges, made up of PATF staff. But it was a close race, with every photo/story combination offering an honest and personal look into the life of a fellow Pennsylvanian with a disability and some of the things that matter most to them. Entrants ranged from Matthew, who gave a speech at a rally on Capitol Hill using a communication device, the Dynavox Maestro; to Susie, one of our runner-up winners, who uses her rowing machine to maintain her healthy and active lifestyle; to Ami, our other runner-up winner, who is on the hunt for a job and uses a keyguard when applying online, writing letters, and corresponding through email.
With the conclusion of this year’s photo contest, we say thank you again to all of our participants for sharing a little piece of yourselves with us and our followers, and for showing the world not only the cool technology you use, but the even cooler things you’re doing with your technology!
Check out the photo entries and the stories that go with them on our Facebook page.
Curious how PATF can help you determine and access available funding resources for your assistive technology? Contact us!