Area Inventor
posted 11:46 pm Thu July 10, 2008 - Appomattox Co., VA
reporter:
Noreen Turyn
posted by:
Webteam
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An Appomattox County man isn't wasting away his golden years, in fact he's utilizing every minute of them. For our Heart of Virginia report, a 78-year-old who just can't stop coming up with inventions he hopes will end up helping you.
Fred Crowe, Local Inventor - "You can carry it in your pocketbook, and man can carry it in his pocket."
Fred Crowe's mind is always in motion. So when he was hearing all the news about MRSA cases in our area, he had to do something.
Crowe - "I went into Lowe's the lady at Lowe's I said let me ask you a question. What is the dirtiest thing at Lowe's? She said the shopping cart. The shopping cart handle. And that was it."
Enter Handi Gripz. A pretty simple invention that you carry along on your shopping trips.
Crowe - "I go in and put in on the shopping cart and roll around through Kroger and everybody stops and looks at it."
He has the patent and it's in production, so now he's onto his next creation, though he's kind of secretive of exactly what it is.
Crowe - "It is also something that will help prevent the spread of germs, especially in schools. Where school kids go up and what is the dirtiest thing in school? The door knob."
And next up, this is the pocket, a re-usable shopping bag that's environmentally friendly.
Crowe - "When you can no longer us it it's the type of material that will disintegrate."
Fred gets a big kick out of coming up with new inventions and doesn't plan to stop.
Crowe - "I could do nothing. But my life everyday is worth more than doing nothing. I can't foresee myself not doing something."
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