IFB Beat – Week of January 16, 2024

A Message from the Editor

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to stroll The IFB Beat. This week you will find:

• IFB Solutions in the news.
• Winston-Salem Facility construction update.
• Assistive Technology support group update.
• Learn how you can earn a $1000 referral bonus!

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful week!

Anastasia Powell

IFB Solutions Communications Manager

apowell@ifbsolutions.org | 336-245-5698

Quick Links:

New this Week

– IFB Solutions in the News!
– Reminder: Winston-Salem Facility Construction
– See what S.E.E. is Doing!
– Adult Support Group Meetings
– CLVC Item of the Week

From Our Community

– Insider Corner

HR and Opportunities

– $1,000 Referral Bonus
– New Job Openings

Support Group Zoom Meeting Links

 

IFB Solutions in the News!

Maximus, a leading strategic partner to governments across the globe, and IFB Solutions has partnered to hire blind and visually impaired for full-time contact center work. This partnership has grown our workforce services professional staffing business led by Shannon Satterfield. We now have 45 people who are blind working in professional positions across the country and our goal is to increase this number to hundreds of jobs in the future.

Maximus’ communications team, led by Kelly Ceballo, has been incredibly supportive of IFB and our mission over the past year. They have actively pushed to share the story of how work-at-home call center jobs put people to work. Their PR agency, Susan Davis International, was successful in landing a story with an El Paso news outlet about local opportunities for people with disabilities. Read all about it here:
https://www.elpasoinc.com/news/local_news/job-hunt-a-challenge-for-el-pasoans-with-disabilities/article_0dce80d0-ad8a-11ee-88e8-4f93b0f20600.html

 

Reminder: Winston-Salem Facility Construction

Demolition is underway in the former optical lab and warehouse areas. Shipping and receiving employees will be using extreme caution navigating the WSSA warehouse space; all other employees are prohibited from entering the warehouse area. If you need to access shipping and receiving, please walk around the outside of the building and enter near the former mattress store.

 

See what S.E.E. is doing!

On day 3 of S.E.E. Christmas Camp “Christmas Past”, we explored Old Salem. The Moravian attendants at the Vogler House and Dr. Vierling’s house were fantastic. Sharon and Zach made our experience very tactile and gave specific descriptions that made the past come alive for us. We enjoyed a bag lunch that we packed the day before in the visitor’s center.

Adult Support Group Meetings:

Assistive Technology Support Group Update

Effective immediately, the assistive technology support group is no longer a monthly meeting. there will be podcasts posted for you to listen to at your convenience. You can listen to the podcast here:
www.athotcorner.com.

Upcoming Support Group Meetings

• Tuesday, January 16 VIPS club meeting from 12:00-1:00 in TADS Room
• Wednesday, January 17 Diabetic support group meeting from 12:00-12:45 in TADS room

CLVC Item of the Week:

Nostalgic Salt and Pepper Shaker Set for $8.95. Get the look of nostalgia with these attractively painted, tin plated steel shakers. Large holes for easy use and distribution of salt and pepper.

If you are interested in purchasing Low Vision Equipment through our Loan Program (3rd Party), please contact a Low Vision Coordinator for assistance.

 

From Our Community

Insider Corner

This section is edited by Faith Harding. Reach out to her at fharding@ifbsolutions.org. 

10 Things to Know About iPhone Accessibility.

The iPhone is quite possibly the most adopted device ever, for people with vision loss. This is because it is accessible out-of-the-box, even if you can’t see the screen at all. If there is one good reason to use an iPhone, there are a hundred good reasons. Here are the top 10.

1. Live accessibility support is always available.
Apple has an Accessibility Support line that you can reach at 877-204-3930. This line is dedicated to addressing the needs of customers with visual, hearing, motor and learning impairments. Don’t go at it alone, call for help 24/7. Get expert assistance with all features in this post, and more.

2. Voiceover makes it possible to use the iPhone even if you can’t see the screen.
Voiceover is the intuitively designed, gesture-based screen reader that enables people with low vision or total blindness to fully access the iPhone. Touch or drag your finger around the screen and Voiceover tells you what’s there. Swipe left or right to move from one element to the next. Double-tap to activate a link. Voiceover is speech output; you do not speak to it; it speaks to you. Click for a list of Voiceover Gestures.

3. Siri is ready to follow your voice commands.
Siri, your virtual assistant, will send text messages, place calls, schedule a meeting, and even turn Voiceover on and off. Communicate hands free with “Hey Siri” and Siri will always speak responses, so ask a question and hear the answer spoken. Learn more at these links on OE: 10 Things Siri Will Do If You Ask and 10 MORE Things Siri Will Do If You Ask.

4. Dictation turns your speech to text.
Whenever there is a keyboard, there is the option to dictate instead of typing. Tap the microphone key and speak as your words are converted to text. The microphone key is usually located at the lower right corner, below the keyboard or to the left of the space bar. Now you too can be a dictator Get started with this step-by-step tutorial: Are You a Dictator?

5. Speak Screen reads to you upon request.
Turn on Speak Screen in Accessibility Settings, under the heading: Spoken Content. Turn on Speech Controller and an expandable button will appear on every page, allowing you to adjust voice speed, go back, pause or go forward. Learn more about The Freedom of Speech.

6. Make the screen easier to see.
A simple adjustment to Display and Brightness or Accessibility Settings can make your screen easier to read. Try more or less bright, increase the size of text, and consider making it bold.

7. Pinch to zoom.
To get a closer look at an image, tap it to expand, then use thumb and index finger to pinch out on screen and zoom in.

8. The camera turns into a magnifier with light.
Turn on the Magnifier in Accessibility Settings and the iPhone’s camera will increase the size of anything you point it at, up to 15x. See details more clearly and use the flash to light the object. More about this on OE at: Using the iPhone Magnifier.

9. Safari Reader makes web pages easier to read.
Tap the AA at left of address bar for page settings, then select Show Reader. This feature magically removes ads and other elements that clutter the page, leaving only the content you want to read without distractions.

10. Spoken feedback and image recognition assist your photography.
Using Voiceover, the camera will say how many faces and where they are in the frame. Hear where and when the photos were taken and touch the image with 3 fingers to hear description or read text in the photo.

 

HR & Opportunities

$1000 Referral Bonus for San Antonio, TX Positions

Do you know anyone living in the San Antonio area looking for an awesome opportunity? IFB is urgently hiring legally blind Customer Service Representatives in San Antonio, TX (must live within 70 miles of the city). As a part of our recruiting plan, we are excited to offer a $1000 referral bonus to existing employees who refer qualified candidates for this job. What this means: if you refer a person who applies and is hired you will receive a payout of $500 at hire, and $500 after the person successfully completes training (approx. 90 days).

Please ensure that anyone you refer for the job adds your name to the application in the “referred by” section. Please also notify Brent Burkholder at bburkholder@ifbsolutions.org or 336-245-5611, of any referrals so that we can track the information. Feel free to reach out to your online communities about this opportunity as well and take advantage of the bonus!

See the full job posting for Customer Service Representative – Maximus here: https://www.paycomonline.net/v4/ats/web.php/jobs/ViewJobDetails?job=76375&clientkey=8B43E6E34C5D5C9AA3D07BB04DBEB909

Pay is $14.00 per hour. Applications can be submitted through the Careers section of IFB’s website here: https://ifbsolutions.org/careers/

 

 

New Job Announcements

For all current openings, visit https://www.paycomonline.net/v4/ats/web.php/jobs?clientkey=8B43E6E34C5D5C9AA3D07BB04DBEB909

For information about any employment opportunities with IFB Solutions please contact Brent Burkholder at bburkholder@ifbsolutions.org or X5611.

 

Zoom Meeting Links

Adult Support Groups Zoom

https://ifbsolutions.zoom.us/j/99498078576?pwd=ODJzK0sxcXZrME9yN25YRTdiNXBSQT09
Meeting ID: 994 9807 8576
PASSWORD: 92638
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Meeting ID: 994 9807 8576