On June 9th 2010 Wiscraft hosted its first annual Open House event to coincide with our 25th anniversary as a private not-for-profit organization. The greatest ideas and innovations always come from Wiscraft’s greatest resource, our employees, and the Open House was no different. Crystal Lange, the originator of the Open House proposal, says that she originally conceived of the idea as an opportunity to showcase new products, but by the time of the event it had gained a much broader scope.
Jim Kerlin
Ultimately, the event drew more than 200 people, including family and friends of current employees, members of our board of directors, customers, Alderman Michael J. Murphy, and finally, Josie – whom you may recognize from Wisconsin Vision’s advertising materials. (Pictured at the right with President/CEO Jim Kerlin)
Guests were invited to tour our facility and received a first hand look at all of our business unit operations. First, they entered our Communication Center and were shown a demonstration of how JAWS assistive technology allows blind Customer Service Representatives to work with a variety of computer applications to accomplish their duties. Second, they were able to view all production lines of our Assembly & Packaging unit and learn about a variety of tactile and computer aided technologies that are used to train and assist employees there. Finally, they received a demonstration in our Machine Shop on how voice technology allows our employees to run high-tech CNC machining equipment.
Once the tours concluded our guests were invited to eat while several speakers addressed the crowd. Most memorable were the speeches given by two of our current employees, Steven Gastreich and Crystal Lange. Steven and Crystal both provided inspiring testimonials regarding their struggles to find employment as visually impaired individuals, and expounded about the doors that employment at Wiscraft has opened for them. Everyone in attendance was pleased that they were willing to share their stories with the group.
Wiscraft 25th anniversary
This event also provided a great opportunity for President/CEO Jim Kerlin to introduce a new brand concept that Wiscraft has been working to develop, and many of our guests provided valuable feedback regarding the brand concept. Jim introduces the brand to our newsletter readership in the July 2010 President’s Message Section.