Cindy, who lives in Montreal, Quebec, was forced to leave her job of 23 years in the finance department of a business in 2010 after more than a year of pain and exhaustion stemming from “an issue” in her neck. She was looking to re-enter the workforce when she joined the Distance Computer Comfort program.

“At that particular time, I didn’t know if I’d be able to go back to a job where I could just do normal typing. I didn’t know if I’d be able to manage it,” Cindy says.

Cindy’s lessons began quickly. She was taught by Gordon Watt and the Distance Computer Comfort team, who are based in Burnaby, British Columbia. She learned how to use Dragon Naturally Speaking (new window), a speech-to-text program that gives her the option of not having to type.

“I feel lucky to have had the support when I really needed it,” Cindy explains. “I didn’t have any other services — I was waiting for those services. I was lucky to have the training I had with Gordon.”

The Distance Computer Comfort program is Neil Squire Society’s free one-on-one computer tutoring program and it’s available anywhere in Canada to people with disabilities.

“The training was very thorough,” Cindy explains. “Gordon is clearly an expert in what he’s training people [in] and teaching.”

The lessons and her new skills using Dragon Naturally Speaking gave her confidence as she continued her goal of getting back into the workforce.

“It actually gave me hope in a time when I didn’t really know what was going to happen,” she shares. “It gave comfort that I was moving forward.”

Now, Cindy says that she would “definitely” recommend Distance Computer Comfort to others.

“I think a lot of different people could benefit from this service.”