Due to concerns about the coronvirus and CRIS' great desire to see all of our friends in great health for years to come, Dining and Dancing in the Dark has been canceled. The Gala will return on April 17, 2021. Please save the date. 
Volunteers from around the state came together to celebrate their dedication to Connecticut's only radio reading service for people with disabilities. Volunteers with 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 years of service were honored.
Thank you to all who give their time to make … Continue Reading ››
October 15 was Blind Americans Equity Day and CRIS Radio was humbled to be recognized for its collaboration with Mystic Aquarium in providing audio accessibility to exhibits throughout the facility.
The judges gave perfect scores to Taylor Kinzler, co-host of NBC CT-Live, who danced a salsa with Arthur Murray Dance Studios pro Kadeem Jordon, and to Eva Zymaris, WFSB reporter, who danced a cha-cha with Luis Cabasa, also a dance pro with Arthur Murray. The audience’s votes broke the tie, giving Kinzler the win for her performance.
Among the evening’s highlights were the dance performances of two CRIS volunteers who also are CRIS listeners, Diane Duhaime and Steve Famiglietti. Duhaime danced a waltz with Arthur Murray’s Crisen McKenzie and Famiglietti, manager of assistive technology at Oak Hill, danced a tango with dance pro Sally Nasatka. READ MORE
Staff and volunteers of three nonprofits recently gathered together Thursday evening to celebrate their unique collaboration to bring words to life for people who are blind or cannot read due to other disabilities at the New England Carousel Museum (NECM). Read more.
CRIS Radio honored its 300 volunteers from around the state at a reception at the New Britain Museum of American Art. Volunteers are individually recognized when celebrating 5 year increments of service. Read more.
CRIS Radio has received a grant from the North Central Area Agency on Aging to train seniors in local senior centers, assistive living centers, and low vision groups on the wonders of new technologies. Included in the trainings will be information about the CRIS app, how to use Alexa and other smart devices and Audio Reading Books.
In addition, CRIS is developing a Technology Resource Guide, podcasts and a web page to further help seniors “plug-in”.
The first event was at the Enfield Senior Center and met with great success. CRIS will partner with NEAT @ Oak Hill to help seniors explore the wonders of a smart home.
More information may be found HERE.
The Mark Twain House and Museum and CRISAccess have teamed up to provide additional accessibility to the Hartford bard’s old digs. Audio recorded by CRIS volunteers now reads signs from the museum for people with smart devices.