GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Have you ever seen a Skilcraft pen?
I'm willing to bet you've you have if you've ever been in a post office, in the military, or a US Government building then you have most definitely seen one.
Do you think you could put one together?
Maybe if we gave you a couple minutes you could figure out how to assemble these pieces in the right way.
But, what if I asked you to do it in the pitch black dark? Because that is what dozens are doing to make sure this pen is a reality."
"I'm very proud. I've been managing this area for 23 years," said Clifford Alexander, who is completely blind.
"You know, we can't join the military, but this is something that we do to help the military," said Lynn Larson, who lost all sight in one of her eyes right after birth.
Greensboro Industries Of The Blind has been making the Skilcraft pen for 50 years.
Clifford Alexander has been here for 47 of those 50 years, and Lynn Larson has been here almost 40 years.
They, like everyone else directly working on the pens, are legally blind.
Being able to make such a quality product goes a long way.
"That just send a signal that vision impaired people can make a product that almost everyone likes to use," said Alexander.
Remember, this pen was originally designed for the military.
The full length of the pen is 150 nautical miles on a map. The back barrel is the length of a two minute fuse. The front tube can be used for emergency tracheotomy's, and the tip was used to measure women's fingernails to make sure they comply to uniform standards.
This pen is asked to do quite a lot. Not only does it have to write in extremely cold temperatures all the way down to -40° , and all the way up to 160°
If that isn't enough, it also has to be able to write for nearly one continuous mile.
Really, the only thing more remarkable than the pen itself, are the people who are making it.