Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1546328
14 Fact Book / Doing Business in Maine Q UA L I T Y O F L I F E VO L . X X X I I N O. X I X "It's very task-driven," explains Kevin Phelan, Aira's Maine-based chief rev- enue officer. For example, "even if someone knows the number of steps to get to the food line, the interpreter can help direct them to a shorter line." He says the app gets multiple calls per game and the com- pany aims to continue its partnership with the Sea Dogs amid strong demand. "ere's this really strong baseball connection for the blind community," Phelan says. "ey want to be there just like everybody else." e same is true for hearing impaired fans like his son, Gavin, a student at Cape Elizabeth High School who devel- oped an emergency alerts app offered at Sea Dogs home games. Gavin says the app was inspired in part by the Lewiston tragedy, when an active shooter entered a restaurant hosting a local deaf and hard-of-hearing cornhole tournament. When someone yelled "Get down," many lives were saved — except for those who couldn't hear the warning. e following year, a nationally known deaf couple and their dog died of carbon monoxide poisoning in their home in Sioux Falls, S.D., prompting widespread calls from advocacy groups for greater use of multisensory detectors. Aiming to prevent future tragedies, Gavin— who wears hearing aids in both ears — used AI to create ALRM to alert users to emergency sounds and announcements through vibra- tions on their phones and reached out to the Sea Dogs to conduct a pilot that started this year. "It's not that it enhances the experi- ence – this is more about safety," Gavin says. "Ultimately, this is designed in a life or death situation to help save someone's life." Honored to have thrown out a ceremonial first pitch at this year's Deaf and Hard of Hearing Awareness Night, Gavin describes the experience as "awesome." » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E Ultimately, this is designed in a life or death situation to help save someone's life. — Gavin Phelan Cape Elizabeth High School student and ALRM app developer P H O T O / J I M N E U G E R Gavin Phelan says it was "awesome" to throw out the first pitch.