Ageless Passions by Karen Putz

Category: Uncategorized

  • Business and Blogging Examines Steak ‘n Shake Incident

    On Wednesday, January 28, 2008, I experienced discrimination at a local Steak ‘n Shake restaurant when a manager slammed the window in my face and refused to fill an order for two milkshakes.

    After briefly debating whether to sit in the drive thru in protest and allow the manager to fulfill his threat to call the cops, I decided to blog about it instead. Thanks to the power of the internet, customers no longer have to walk away grumbling about poor businesses practices or in my case, outright discrimination. Companies today are seeing the power of Web 2.0 and the lasting effects that search engines can have on their reputations.

    Liz Fuller at Business and Blogging tackled the Steak ‘n Shake incident and examined how Steak ‘n Shake is handling this public relations crisis that resulted. As she explained how the incident unfolded, she noted an interesting fact that should have Steak ‘n Shake executives concerned:

    The next day, she itemized over 80 blogs that had picked up her story. The story was also picked up that night by ABC News and Fox News. Today, approximately three weeks after it happened there are almost 1000 hits on Google when typing in the search words, “Steak and Shake” and “Deaf Mom”.

    More than that, this story appears in positions #3 through #9 on the front page of Google when searching on the terms “Steak and Shake”. Currently, the Steak and Shake site itself holds positions #1 and #2, but if this continues – how long will that last?

    Liz notes that companies today need to implement a crisis management policy to handle any negative publicity that can occur. News via the internet travels faster than the speed of light nowadays. As Liz states:

    This incident underscores what we have been saying – the traditional rules of “managing the message” don’t apply any more. Consumers have much more opportunity to take the message into their own hands with minimal cost and maximum effect.

     

    To read the full post on Business and Blogging: Crisis Case Study: Steak ‘n Shake Denies Service to Deaf Mom

    and a follow up interview:

    Business and Blogging: Interview with Karen Putz

    Several people have asked me for an update on the Steak ‘n Shake situation. Howard Rosenblum, a deaf attorney from Equip for Equality, is working with me on this. Steak ‘n Shake has hired an attorney with a disability rights background to assist them. We are currently waiting to hear from them.

  • MTV True Life Chooses Deaf Student

    MTV is coming to town.

    MTV is producing a documentary, True Life, I’m Deaf and has chosen Aubrey Millar from my hometown. You may remember Aubrey from a previous post:

    The Oldest Goes off to High School.

    David and Aubrey have been friends since they were babies. I’m so excited for Aubrey and I look forward to watching this documentary unfold!

    Update:
    MTV came and shot footage for two days. Now it’s a matter of going back to the producer and determining if they’ll select Aubrey for the documentary or search for others.

    Update II: The producers said they’re going to pass–“Aubrey is really well-adjusted and there’s not enough of a story here to film.”

  • Deaf Bookclub Meets Via Video!

    On Saturday night, after sending my oldest kid off to the Turnabout dance, I headed over to my BookHands meeting. Two of our members couldn’t make it and one had to leave early. Two of our other members moved out of state but they continued to read the books along with the rest of us. We discussed the book, They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, about three boys who lived in Sudan and later came to America.

    We had hoped to connect via Oovoo.com with Karen from Georgia and Kathy from Texas, but Kathy wasn’t able to get her webcam up and running. So we had Karen on Oovoo and Kathy on the videophone and we were able to do a video chat. We will be connecting via Oovoo for our next meeting, which will allow Karen and Kathy to see each other and partcipate fully.

    The only drawback is that Karen and Kathy will have to provide their own chocolate!

    I love technology!

  • Join Me on Oovoo!


    The great folks over at Oovoo, are hosting My Oovoo Day, an event where bloggers from all over are hosting a chat day to interact with their readers using webcams and text and voice chat. This chat is in honor of Susan Reynolds, a blogger who was diagnosed with breast cancer and has been sharing her journey in her blog, Boobs on Ice. You may have heard about the Frozen Peas Fund which is collecting money for breast cancer research in Susan’s honor. I also have a friend, Jill, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer and I’m doing this with her in mind as well.

    I’m hosting an Oovoo chat day on February 21, 2008 from noon until 2p.m. Central time. Participation is limited to five chatters at one time. You can sign up to join the chat here:

    A Deaf Mom Shares Her World–Open House!

    All that is required is a webcam and the Oovoo software which can be downloaded for free here:

    Oovoo Software

    We’ll be chatting about anything and everything– kids, life, blogging, and heck, even boobs!

    Oovoo is generously donating funds to the Frozen Pea Fund and Hands & Voices for the chat.

  • Join Me at the Reader’s Cafe

    Glenda Watson Hyatt has invited me to share the spotlight at her Reader’s Cafe Wednesday, February 6 from 4 to 7 p.m. Pacific Standard time. That’s from 6 to 10 p.m. Central Standard Time.

    Glenda plans to tackle some questions related to the recent denial of service at Steak ‘n Shake such as:

    Why didn’t you go inside to order your milkshake? (I know why, but I would like Karen to explain why.)

    Is this type of incident common for people who are Deaf or hard of hearing?

    What don’t most people understand about being Deaf orhard of hearing? What are some typical barriers you face daily?

    Some unenlightened souls say you shouldn’t even be driving because you wouldn’t hear sirens coming, and thus, are a safety concern on the road. How do you know when to pull over for emergency vehicles?

    As a person with a disability, surely you unfortunately encounter annoying and discriminating situation frequently. What was it about this particular situation that made you fight it rather than brush it of?

    What steps have you taken so far to advocate for your rights?

    You’ve used social media, like blogs and Twitter, to tell your story. What kinds of responses or results have you experienced? How have you managed to keep up with all of it?

    Read more at: Glenda’s Reader’s Cafe

  • Pepsi Commercial Interview with ABC

    Last night, I met up with Darren and Sheri Therriault at the West Suburban Association of the Deaf. I am one of the past presidents of this club and Dennis O’Brien, the current president has taken the club to new heights.

    Darren played the passenger in the Pepsi Commercial that will be airing today during the Super Bowl pre-game. During the “Deal or No Deal” game last night, Darren and I provided the “commercials” for the breaks.

    So many people came up to me last night to share their own stories about drive thru struggles. Most of them related stories about attitude barriers. It is clear that we need to make some changes in the restaurant industry when it comes to serving deaf and hard of hearing customers.

    Darren and I and our spouses had to leave early last night. I had to pick up my kids and he had to get up early to do the ABC News this morning with Karen Meyer:

    “Bob’s House” to Air During Super Bowl

    Photo descriptions:
    #1 Sheri and Darren and me
    #2 Darren and Dennis O’Brien doing a commercial break
    #3 WSAD “Howie” leading the way

  • Culver’s Served Me Through the Drive Thru

    Yesterday, I joined Patrick Hughes, Jr. and Carey Siegel at the Romeoville Culver’s to discuss drive thru solutions for fast food restaurants. Patrick is the owner of Inclusion Solutions, a company that provides products for improved access for people with disabilities.

    Inclusion Solutions has installed a product called “Order Assist” in 28 Culver’s locations.

    I decided to experience the drive thru myself, so I arrived a bit early and went through the drive thru. When I pulled up to the speaker, I pushed a large button below a sign that said: “Deaf or Other Communication Barriers? Review menu, Ring BigBell, Pull Forward.”

    Easy enough. I pushed the bell and went forward. The employee was alerted by the bell and aware that the car coming up needed assistance with an order. She opened the window with a smile and took my order. When she told me I could wait at the window for my order, she included a casual gesture as well. I also had the option of viewing a printed menu and circling items on that or writing down my order on a professional-looking paper that was clipped to a board with a pen.

    I went inside to meet with Patrick, Carey and the manager, Ron Dalrymple. They showed me around the restaurant and explained how Order Assist works. Next to every register is a display stand filled with cards and pens so that customers can write down their orders. Employees are quick to switch to written communication when a customer has difficulty understanding them.

    “When deaf people come in and see our Order Assist, their eyes light up and they know they are welcomed here,” said Ron.

    When Patrick first approached Ron about installing the Order Assist at his restaurants, Ron recognized that it was a simple, easy way to provide access to his customers. Culver’s has encouraged the other franchise owners to install the Order Assist. There are 28 Culvers locations in six states that feature this access.

    How does Order Assist compare to touch-screen menus, I asked?

    The answer was a simple one– fast food restaurants operate on efficiency and speed–touch screens will slow that whole process down. It is also quite expensive to purchase a touch screen and the customer would have difficulty customizing the order.

    “This system is so simple,” said Patrick. “With this system, and awareness by the employees, customers can be served at the drive thru with ease.”

    And by the way, Culver’s serves shakes!

    Can you imagine if every Steak ‘n Shake restaurant had the Order Assist in place–drive thrus would be accessible!

  • Josh Swiller Pens “The Unheard”


    Josh Swiller has held many jobs. He’s been a forest ranger, a raw food chef, teacher, a Zen monk, and he once crafted sheepskin slippers. He spent two years in Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer.

    After being fired from a law firm, Josh settled into a friend’s barn and wrote The Unheard, a memoir of his two years in Kenya, Africa.

    You can read more about Josh in an article that I wrote for Disaboom:

    Peace Corps Years Inspire The Unheard

    Josh blogs at Cochbla. For the time being, he’s decided that being an author is a noble profession and he’s hammering away at his next book.

  • Steak ‘n Shake– The Meeting

    This morning, I had a meeting with three of the executives from Steak ‘n Shake. Joining me at the meeting were Beth Donofrio, a board member from Illinois Hands & Voices and Howard Rosenblum, an attorney from Equip for Equality with me. Beth assisted me in taking notes at the meeting.

    Steak ‘n Shake started off with an apology and said, “We believe in admitting when we make mistakes and learning from them.”

    I had the opportunity to explain what transpired at the drive thru window and they shared that the manager completely failed to follow their five-step procedure for delivering customer service. The incident was recorded on their camera system. The executives have viewed the tape, but there is no sound.

    We discussed different ways that Steak ‘n Shake could improve their service to people with disabilities. The executives listened with an open mind and it appears that they are willing to implement some changes to ensure that this type of service breakdown does not occur again in the future.

    I am cautiously optimistic that we are taking steps in the right direction. It remains to be seen what progresses from this in the coming weeks. Steak ‘n Shake will be getting back to me on this.

  • Steak ‘n Shake Customer Says That I Owe an Apology

    Here’s an interesting comment that was left on the Steak ‘n Shake post:

    My dear aunt is physically handicapped and has a tendency to take things personally. For example, even when family members give her corrective feedback, she easily gets hurt. When she doesn’t receive the special treatment she expects, she assumes she’s being mistreated for her disability.

    I’ve been to the Bolingbrook Steak n Shake. As a customer, I know this manager and he is a nice person. I’m sorry you were hurt Karen but I think you were both having a bad day and you were both being rude to each other and you both owe each other an apology. He denied you service because he FELT he was being abused, not because you are deaf. And perhaps, maybe you are taking the situation too personally, as my aunt would.

    Again I’m sorry you were hurt by the situation but it’s not the end of the world, right? You and your loved ones are healthy and alive and that’s all that matters. You shouldn’t let your world revolve around this one incident. Forget about what happened and do something fun today.

    Dear Anonymous Commentor,

    When I drove up to the Steak ‘n Shake drive thru, I wasn’t asking for “special treatment” as your aunt perhaps does. I was asking for “equal” access to a service, one that I have used at that very same drive thru several times before. With a simple modification, Mr. Manager could have taken my order as other Steak ‘n Shake employees in the past have done, and I would be just another satisfied customer happily drinking a shake along with my son.

    Unfortunately, Mr. Manager decided that he could not accommodate me that day. I’m a pretty patient gal, and I’ve done this countless times with other drive thru employees. Even after explaining it once, twice and explaining the Americans with Disabilties Act and showing him my hearing aids, Mr. Manager still could not make the decision to serve me, the customer.

    Of course, after all of that explaining, I was frustrated and not to mention upset that I was being denied milkshakes on the basis of not being able to physically use the speaker. If Mr. Manager has translated that into rude behavior, well that’s his view and it should not have prevented him from filling a milkshake order. From my training as an employee of a retail store years back, customer service is a high priority.

    And for the record, I was having a wonderful day until I pulled up to the Steak ‘n Shake. I decided to treat my son to one of my favorite shakes and he was all excited about that. All Mr. Manager had to do was make a simple modification to take the order at the window, especially when it was explained to him several times WHY the accommodation was needed. He failed to deliver on that, stated he could call the cops and asked me to leave. He must have been having a heck of a bad day.

    In your comment you stated, “You both owe each other an apology.” That is not going to happen on my end. I was blantanly discriminated against by Mr. Manager. I will not apologize for raising my voice when my rights were violated.

    You say that I shouldn’t let my world revolve around this incident. I have heard from others who have had similar struggles at the drive thrus. In the large majority of the time, it comes down to the attitudes of the people doing the serving.

    There comes a point where one must stand up and say “we need to change this so it doesn’t happen again.”