Meet Nancy

Updated May, 2010: Nancy lost her battle with ALS on the afternoon of Sunday, May 2, 2010. Nancy leaves behind a great legacy, that we were told would not have been possible without her Tobii P10. Nancy touched so many lives through her inspirational writings, her teachings, her spirituality and her strength.

Nancy Bass was born and raised in Shawnee, Oklahoma. Nancy and her husband Brian have two children, Michael, age 14, and Carolyn, age 11. As a teacher of science and math in a Christian school, Nancy found great joy in being an educator. In January of 2005, Nancy was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. By September of 2008, Nancy had developed trouble breathing as a symptom of the disease and needed the assistance of a bipap mask, which goes over the patient's nose and mouth. Because of this, it became even more difficult for Nancy to have basic communication with her family.

Brian had a friend whose son was diagnosed with Downs Syndrome. The child used a communication device and had success with it. The Bass family began the tedious search of looking for the perfect communication device for Nancy. The Muscular Dystrophy Clinic and the ALS Clinic in Dallas, Texas hosted a communication seminar day, and the Bass’ became more familiar with assistive technology options by attending this event. They looked at four different devices, but left discouraged and unimpressed. A few days later the Speech Therapist contacted them about one company that was not in attendance at the seminar. She mentioned that Tobii ATI had a device that was different, and convinced the Bass’ to meet with Regional Sales Consultant, Betsy Walker. Their initial concerns were immediately quelled when the P10 was set up for Nancy. Within ten minutes she was able to use the device with ease, “the setup was easy and once Nancy was calibrated she was off and running like crazy,” Brian explains.

The P10 proved to be the perfect AT solution for Nancy. The eye-tracker worked the best out of all the devices she tried, and the P10's fully integrated feature was essential to her needs. She tried devices that added on to a computer or laptop, and found them difficult to use. At the clinic they discussed funding options and the STAP program offered to pay for eighty percent, and The ALS Association agreed to pay the remaining balance. Elated with this news, the Bass family anxiously awaited the arrival of their P10.

While waiting for the device to arrive, Nancy was confined to either her wheelchair or recliner, and spent her days watching television or listening to the radio. Distraught and losing hope, the Bass family was finally blessed with the arrival of their new device. Brian called Betsy to set up the device for Nancy, and Betsy arranged to visit them in their home in three days. Brian and Nancy were too excited to wait, and easily setup the device themselves, and within ten minutes Nancy calibrated the P10 and was using it efficiently on her own. Betsy arrived three days later and laughed when she realized that she wasn’t needed. “The ease of setting up the device was incredible. It was easier than setting up a laptop for the kids,” Brian, who is very computer proficient, explained. 

When Nancy first received the P10 in September, she was hospitalized for three days due to medical issues. Nancy was able to communicate with her doctors and the medical staff, most of which had never seen an eye-tracking device before. Nancy was glad to be an active participant in issues concerning her medical state. The staff was completely blown away by the device, and Nancy’s proficient usage of it.

Nancy was impressed with all the features of the P10, and she regularly uses the internet, email, media play and of course the communication software. Being a teacher, Nancy is constantly using her P10 to conduct research and continues to educate herself. In April Nancy started a Christian email ministry, and had about one hundred subscribers. The email turned into an inspirational blog site and Nancy developed quite a following. Her teachings range from thirty to two or three hundred words daily, and she writes them all herself without needing or wanting any assistance. 

Her motivational thoughts and blessings give people support and hope, and Nancy is a generous support system for so many people. “The P10 allowed her to wake up again, teach and learn. She is able to learn and converse. If you didn’t know she was writing with her eyes, you would have no idea that she was in a wheelchair or has ALS,” Brian said. 

The P10 comes with Tobii Communicator Software, but Nancy was never one to be satisfied with the basics. She is constantly looking for more things that she can do with the device. She found that using the windows based programs were ideal for her needs, and she is able to access programs like excel, power point and word with her P10. The P10 has truly opened up a door back to her old life, “she is able to do so many things that we thought she would never be able to do again, thanks to her P10,” Brian says. 

“The Tobii P10 opened my world, I was ready to give up, but God gave me the Tobii,” Nancy said through her device.

You can read Nancy’s blog at: http://nancysministry.blogspot.com