Radnor Lake State Park has just announced its installation of colorblind correcting viewfinders. The State Park announced on its Facebook Thursday about its new additions. The viewfinders cost the Tennessee Department of Tourism $3,000 but the special lenses that correct colorblindness was donated by EnChroma.
EnChroma is also the company that created the colorblind corrective glasses and sunglasses. With technology designed by a UC Berkley mathematician and a Ph.D. Scientist, the company has received many five-star “life-changing” reviews.
Colorblindness affects about 8% of men and 4.5% of women. While there has been no cure for colorblindness, the EnChroma glasses appear to be the closest equivalent.
The Radnor Lake State Park is now the 6th state park that has the colorblind viewfinders installed, but there are 13 in total in the state of Tennessee. For a list of parks with viewfinders, click here.
The viewfinders have already received positive feedback. One Facebook user commented on the Tennessee State Park’s page and said that: “This is such a cool thing for y’all to do. It makes the parks more enjoyable for everyone.”
Another commented:
My husband is red/green colorblind. His first time to see colors as they really are, for the first time, was at one of these TN viewers. It is such a blessing!! And then we were able to get him glasses from the same company – because we knew they would work for him. It is SO fun for his family to enjoy watching him experience color in a whole new way!! Christmas lights, fall colors, grass (soccer fields – he is a referee), red trucks, and so much more.
She added that those considering should make the trip to experience the EnChroma technology, and thanked the state of Tennessee for the viewfinders, and also said they were a “blessing.”
During a press release, Commissioner Kevin Triplett from the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development said that:
One of the main pillars we promote in Tennessee is our scenic beauty. The reds, oranges and yellows in the fall and the incredible colors in the spring are a staple of what comes to mind when people think about Tennessee or visit here. But to realize, through red/green deficiencies and other forms of color blindness, there potentially are more than 13 million people in our country alone who cannot fully appreciate the beauty our state has to offer, we wanted to do something about that. We wanted to provide opportunities for more people to see what those of us who can may take for granted.
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Morgan Nicole Veysey is a reporter for The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow her on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected]