Messenger
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Company Message
Pat Nola, Sorenson Communications President and CEO, and Ron Burdett, Sorenson Communications Vice President of Community Relations
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Local Number Update - “Get Connected Wizard”
Sorenson Communications® is working to assign a local 10-digit and a DirectVP number to all Sorenson videophone users. When Sorenson has a local 10-digit number for you, Sorenson will ask you to accept your new number and select Sorenson Communications as your default VRS provider. Sorenson will ask you a few questions through your VP-200® videophone. These questions are presented to you in a simple registration process called the “Get Connected Wizard.” When you have finished the Get Connected Wizard, you will see the new local 10-digit number and DirectVP number that have been assigned to you. You can even select which of your two numbers you want to send to other videophone users as your Caller ID number.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the government organization that oversees Video Relay Services (VRS), is requiring that all deaf VRS users choose a default VRS provider. The FCC is urging VRS users to choose their default VRS provider by March 31, 2009. Between April 1 and June 30, 2009, VRS users who have not chosen a default provider will still be able to make videophone calls. However, users who are not registered after June 30, 2009, will only be able to make 911 calls until they select a default provider.
If you have not already received the Get Connected Wizard through your VP-200, you can expect to receive it in the near future. If you have questions about the status of your local number, feel free to call us at 800-659-4781 and we’ll be happy to give you an update.
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Get Connected
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Empowering VRS Users One Person at a Time
Sorenson Communications’ Tele-Ed representatives are contacting those who use Sorenson videophones—users like you—to provide updates on products and services offered by Sorenson Communications. The goal? To empower you with information on VP-200 features you can use to enhance your communications experience.
From time to time, you can expect to receive a videophone call from a Sorenson Tele-Ed representative who will familiarize you with functions of the VP device. The representative will also provide you with other helpful VRS information, such as tips on working with an interpreter to process calls more smoothly.
For more information on the VP-200 features or on Sorenson VRS, please send a request to be contacted by a Tele-Ed representative to: tep@sorenson.com.
Send request now
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We Want Your Feedback!
Sorenson Communications wants to know more about you, our VRS Messenger readers. We want to be sure we are giving you news you can use—about new products and features, developments in the VRS industry, and issues of importance to the deaf and interpreting communities. Periodically, we will be asking you what you like and what you think we can do better. Please take a few minutes to complete the customer information survey.
Complete survey now
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Sorenson Communications Receives Outstanding Community Service Award
Recently, the Greater Kansas City chapter of the American Deafness and Rehabilitation Association (GKC-ADARA) presented Sorenson Communications with its Outstanding Community Service Award. The honor recognizes Sorenson Communications for distributing Sorenson videophones, providing Sorenson Video Relay Service (VRS), and establishing Sorenson VRS Interpreting Centers, including one in Overland Park, Kan.
The GKC-ADARA honor recognizes Sorenson Communications’ interpreter training series, which includes a variety of initiatives to train ASL interpreters. Among them are the Video Interpreter-Provisional (VI-P) Mentorship Program and Sorenson Communications’ partnerships to provide a variety of Continuing Education Units (CEU) workshops. (In 2007, these CEU workshops benefitted more than 4,000 interpreters.) The award also recognizes Sorenson Communications’ commitment to the pursuit of national certification for interpreters.
Becky Yadrich, Sorenson Communications Central Region District Manager, and Theresa Richard, Sorenson Communications National Professional Development Manager, received the award on behalf of Sorenson Communications. “We are pleased GKC-ADARA chose to recognize Sorensons’ commitment to improving communication products and services for the deaf as well as Sorenson’s dedication to strengthening interpreter skills and training the next generation of interpreters.”
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Spotlight on Interpreters
Lillian “Lipy” Ramirez-RosadoSan Juan, Puerto Rico SVRS Interpreting Center Manager
Hiring Interpreters is Rewarding
Lillian Ramirez-Rosado—nicknamed “Lipy”—was one of the original employees of the San Juan, Puerto Rico SVRS Interpreting Center when it opened two years ago. She has been that center’s manager for seven months.
Ramirez-Rosado was born in New York City and moved to San Juan at age five. As Puerto Rico’s two official languages are Spanish and English, she became fluent in both. Her mother is deaf so Ramirez-Rosado learned a third language, American Sign Language (ASL), at a young age.
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a Sorenson VRS Interpreting Center manager, Ramirez-Rosado says, is being able to offer full-time positions to interpreters who often, in the past, had to support themselves with part-time jobs in other industries to be able to make a living and still continue interpreting.
One of the most rewarding aspects of being a Sorenson VRS Interpreting Center manager, Ramirez-Rosado says, is being able to offer full-time positions to interpreters who often, in the past, had to support themselves with part-time jobs in other industries to be able to make a living and still continue interpreting.
Paula McCluskeySVRS Western Regional Trainer
Interpreters’ Confidence Grows
At an early age, Paula McCluskey learned sign language from a friend’s deaf brother. McCluskey, Sorenson Communications Western Regional Trainer, went on to earn a degree in interpreting from the University of New Mexico. But her American Sign Language (ASL) skills really expanded when she later worked as a bank teller and the deaf customers taught her banking signs to speed up their transactions.
Today, McCluskey trains new VRS interpreters at the Albuquerque SVRS Interpreting Center. She finds great satisfaction in seeing “newbies” gain confidence in themselves. “New interpreters come in nervous,” McCluskey says. “But after extensive training, you can see self-assurance in their eyes as they work.”
As a regional trainer, McCluskey also assists western VRS center managers in their training and answers their questions. “I like being part of a staff working to accomplish goals,” says McCluskey. “And I enjoy being around all the activity at the center. I like working for Sorenson Communications, where we are treated like people instead of numbers.”
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Want SVRS Equipment?
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When you select Sorenson as your default provider of VRS or IP Relay, Sorenson will help you choose a 10-digit telephone number for use with that service. To select Sorenson as your default provider, call 800-659-4810. Your new number will be portable to another provider. To properly route 911 calls to local emergency service providers, Sorenson must have your correct street address. You can update your address on your Sorenson videophone or by calling 800-659-4810 or visiting www.sorensonvrs.com/moving. Sorenson will confirm receipt of this address information. For more information about 10-digit numbers and the limitations and risks associated with using Sorenson’s VRS or IP Relay services to place a 911 call, please visit Sorenson’s website at: www.sorenson.com/disclaimer.
