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Ira Bossert was completely stunned when the doctor had told him he had retinitus pigmentosa. The retina in his eyes would deteriorate into low vision, then blindness. There was no cure. Nonsense, thought Ira. He was an air traffic Controller with a family to raise. Reality slowly set in and it was only a matter of time before his FAA job evaporated. He continued to work however and while on the way home outside Phoenix one night a train hit his car. He never saw the train coming! That incident started him on a search for something, anything that would help him use what vision he had left to better advantage. He attended trade shows looking for a new career and some device that would help him read. His vision was getting worse. Quite by accident he found an electronic magnifying system that actually helped him use his remaining vision. Ira believed there were many other people with low vision, legally blind who needed the same kind of equipment but did not know where to find it. He and his wife Jan, started making sales calls in the evening and the part time venture became a full time career in 1977.Today the business, Bossert Specialties, has grown to carry dozens of manufacturers magnifiers. He has customers across the country; attends trade shows, gives speeches, consults with eye doctors and helps people to see better. -o-
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