App Startup for the Disability Community
Donation protected
Hi everyone! My name is Erin Field. I am a C5 quadriplegic. In July of 2017 I was with my brother, Todd, and my boyfriend, Jack, in Boston. Jack and I were sitting in a hammock when a chimney collapsed on me and crushed my C5 vertebrae. I spent 21 days in the ICU at Mass General Hospital and over 3 months at Spaulding rehab hospital. Throughout this experience I have felt like no one has understood what I was going through. Even though I was surrounded by family and friends, I had never felt more isolated and alone. Existing in a system which was built by and for able bodied people is a constant battle. Disabilities are all unique and have their own variety of challenges which makes it almost impossible to find the information that is relevant to your specific situation. I desperately wanted to talk to someone that would understand me, and I reached out to many other quadriplegics on social media over the first year after my injury and rarely got a response. I turned to my healthcare providers for advice and guidance but it was clear they didn't understand my situation any better than I did. I then found a spinal cord injury facebook group and began to try and connect with people there. I found these groups to be more frustrating than they were worth, filled with devotees (people who fetishize disabilities) and fake accounts. I never knew who I was actually talking to. I also noticed that people with lower injury levels would try to answer my questions without fully understanding my ability level. I found a few friends in the disability community throughout the first couple years who really understood me. These individuals, along with my brother, mom, and boyfriend helped me through the hardest years of my life. I made it my mission to reach out and talk to as many people living with disabilities as I could, helping them in any way possible. I started receiving hundreds of messages a week from people looking for answers.
While talking about my experiences with my brother, Todd, and my boyfriend, Jack, we decided there had to be a better way to connect people within this community. The idea for The 10% Community was born. The 10 Percent app aims to support and connect people within the disability community by providing a social networking platform designed by and for people living with disabilities. The 10 Percent closes the gap within the community by providing individuals with a direct connection to others in similar situations or with similar interests and experiences. You can browse forums to easily find answers to your questions or to see how others adapt to the able bodied world we live in. Join groups to discuss interests, challenges, or goals and make friends along the way by attending local meetups or support groups. You will also be able to browse the news feed to stay up to date on current news related to the disability community. The 10 Percent also offers simple and direct access to all resources offered by private organizations and the government. We want this app to be the most accessible app on the market with features to support all disabilities. There will be advanced privacy and security features so you can ensure that you know exactly who you are talking to at all times. It will be the hub for anything related to disabilities, getting information and resources directly to the people who need it most, all while fostering a safe environment to make lifelong friendships and overcome any obstacle.
We have recently partnered with a development team to start creating the app. This process will take 6-10 months but we hope to launch on the app store in the summer of 2023. Unfortunately, development for a platform like this is not free, so we ask that anyone who is able and sees our vision and wants to support the disability community, please donate what you can so that this dream can become a reality. This app will provide a greater quality of life for everyone living with a disability and ensure that no one has to go through what myself and many others have experienced. We thank you so much for your time and support.
If you are living with a disability and plan to use this app, please visit our website and sign up so we can notify you when it's released!⬇️
While talking about my experiences with my brother, Todd, and my boyfriend, Jack, we decided there had to be a better way to connect people within this community. The idea for The 10% Community was born. The 10 Percent app aims to support and connect people within the disability community by providing a social networking platform designed by and for people living with disabilities. The 10 Percent closes the gap within the community by providing individuals with a direct connection to others in similar situations or with similar interests and experiences. You can browse forums to easily find answers to your questions or to see how others adapt to the able bodied world we live in. Join groups to discuss interests, challenges, or goals and make friends along the way by attending local meetups or support groups. You will also be able to browse the news feed to stay up to date on current news related to the disability community. The 10 Percent also offers simple and direct access to all resources offered by private organizations and the government. We want this app to be the most accessible app on the market with features to support all disabilities. There will be advanced privacy and security features so you can ensure that you know exactly who you are talking to at all times. It will be the hub for anything related to disabilities, getting information and resources directly to the people who need it most, all while fostering a safe environment to make lifelong friendships and overcome any obstacle.
We have recently partnered with a development team to start creating the app. This process will take 6-10 months but we hope to launch on the app store in the summer of 2023. Unfortunately, development for a platform like this is not free, so we ask that anyone who is able and sees our vision and wants to support the disability community, please donate what you can so that this dream can become a reality. This app will provide a greater quality of life for everyone living with a disability and ensure that no one has to go through what myself and many others have experienced. We thank you so much for your time and support.
If you are living with a disability and plan to use this app, please visit our website and sign up so we can notify you when it's released!⬇️
Organizer
Todd Field
Organizer
Avon, CO