If you have a sibling that you are close with, you know the lengths that you will go to protect and help each other, no matter the circumstance.
While for many people this means loaning money to their sibling form time to time, picking them up from the airport, or taking their side in an argument against the parents, for Matt Reamer the idea of protecting and helping out his brother means a whole lot more.
Matt and his brother have looked up to one another since they were small children. They played, fought and did everything brothers do…except for have a conversation. That is because Dustin faced serious complications at birth that lowered both his physical and verbal abilities.
Similar to the story of the six brothers, three of whom are deaf, who found their own special way of communicating, Matt knew Dustin needed a better way of "talking" to others.
Seeing both his family and Dustin struggle to communicate, while also having struggling to have their own independence, Matt decided to create something that would change all of that when he came up with the idea for his own Augmented and Alternative Communication device (or AAC).
The device, aptly named "Dustin's Words," gives Dustin a way to communicate his wants and needs in real-time via text message to his parents.
Although the device was designed specifically for Dustin, Matt came to realize that this kind of device could be helpful to many, many others who also can't speak. With the help of his Indiegogo campaign, Matt hopes to raise enough money to give 100 families a device, free of cost.
If you are inspired by Matt and Dustin, please visit the Indiegogo page and SHARE this story with others!
Dustin's Words from Matt Reamer on Vimeo.
