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Media inquiries: Please contact Dave Neudeck, dave.neudeck@dcr.virginia.gov, 804-786-5053.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: September 09, 2025
Contact: Kim Wells, Public Relations and Marketing Specialist, 804-217-1077, kim.wells@dcr.virginia.gov

The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation announces support for Color Blindness Awareness Month
Twin Lakes State Park will give away a pair of EnChroma glasses to a colorblind guest

(Editors: Follow this link to download an image. Photo caption: Twin Lakes State Park sign)

(Editors: Follow this link to download an image. Photo caption: People with color blindness correction glasses)

(Editors: Follow this link to download an image. Photo caption: Twin Lakes State Park in the fall)

GREEN BAY, Va. – The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation announced today that it has joined with EnChroma, creators of glasses for color blindness, to promote International Color Blindness Awareness Month. As part of the promotion, there will be a chance for two color blind individuals to win a pair of EnChroma glasses by commenting on the posts about EnChroma this month on the Twin Lakes State Park Facebook page or by visiting the park and submitting your name, phone number and email. There is no purchase necessary to enter.

To heighten awareness of the prevalence and effects of Color Vision Deficiency (CVD), in the month of September DCR, along with numerous other organizations around the world, will demonstrate its commitment to accessibility by undertaking activities to:

Educate the public about Color Vision Deficiency via media outreach
Post to social media about International Color Blindness Awareness Month
Encourage families with kids, and the public, to test their color vision by taking EnChroma’s two-minute color blindness test at enchroma.com
Invite color blind people to come to Twin Lakes State Park to try EnChroma glasses and viewfinder for color blindness
Give away a total of two pairs of EnChroma glasses to color blind guests who comment online and engage with our social media posts on the Twin Lakes Facebook page during the month of September or by visiting the park office and submitting your name, phone number and email.

Natural Tunnel State Park was the first organization in the state of Virginia to offer an EnChroma viewfinder for colorblind people in 2023. The viewfinder, made by SeeCoast Manufacturing, is equipped with special lenses from EnChroma designed to help those with red-green Color Vision Deficiency experience colors.

Today, all Virginia State Parks have a viewfinder and the process to get this done was led by Ethan Howes, who is color blind. He is currently the assistant park manager at Twin Lakes and is excited to share this gift with park guests.

“Color blind awareness is important to me because it gives people with color vision deficiency insight into what is happening with their vision, while also promoting understanding and support,” said Howes. “It is so rewarding to watch guests experience the park in color for the first time.”

Be sure to check the Twin Lakes Facebook page or visit the park for your chance to win a pair of EnChroma glasses. Participants must be color blind, and winners will be notified at the end of September.

For more details about Virginia State Parks accessibility visit: https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/accessibility.

View photos and videos from the EnChroma viewfinder unveiling here.

 Color Vision Deficiency affects one in 12 men (8%) and one in 200 women (.5%) – an estimated 13 million in the U.S., 30 million in Europe and 350 million worldwide. While people with normal color vision see over one million shades of color, the color blind only see an estimated 10% of hues and shades. To them, green and yellow, gray and pink, purple and blue, red and brown look similar, and colors appear muted, dull and blend together. This can cause challenges in daily life, frustrate color blind students when doing schoolwork that contains colors, and make visits to colorful attractions like museums, parks, gardens and other destinations less enjoyable.

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