An iPad giveaway for kids with special needs

I'm glad to announce a new iPad giveaway for kids with special needs. This one started with another mom to a kid with special powers. Shannon Henrici is a blogger friend I've known for a couple of years; she's feisty, smart, fun and mom to the adorable Lily, who has tuberous sclerosis. "Lily loves her iPad, so I know how helpful they are for kids with special needs," says Shannon. "We had to find a refurbished one for Lily because of the expense."

Shannon is on staff with a business that does work for Bob Knows Phones, an Atlanta-based company that repairs iPhones, iPads, tablets, and even mp3 players. You print and fill out a form and ship them your gizmo-on-the-blink. They'll let you know what the fee is, you OK it and they fix it within 24 hours and send it back (there's a $10 delivery fee).

The owner has two grown kids who had some developmental issues as children, and understands the power of iPads for our kids. And so, he generously purchased a mint-condition refurbished one from Apple to give away. This one, which Shannon has in her possession:

It is an iPad 2 with Wi-Fi + 3G 16GB in white, valued at $399 (originally released March 2011). It has a 9.7 inch widescreen display, multi-touch screen, FaceTime with two cameras, Dual Core A5 chip and Bluetooth 2.1; it weighs 1.35 pounds and is .34 inches thick. It comes with the Apple guarantee, in the original box, complete with serial number.

HOW TO ENTER

Use this form, which includes an area to privately enter your email address. (If you're using Safari as a browser and it acts wonky, try entering via Firefox.)

ENTRY RULES

• 1 entry per family, please.
• If there is no email accompanying your entry, it is disqualified.
• No entries accepted past the deadline.

• The winner will be asked to provide a letter of need from a speech therapist or doctor in their child's life. The letter from the therapist or doctor must include his/her qualifications and contact information so that he or she can be called to verify that, indeed, the recipient is a child who will benefit from an iPad and speech app.

• This giveaway is open until Thursday, January 31, 2013 at 11:59 ET. It is open to U.S. and Canadian residents 18 and older.  

WINNER DETERMINATION

• I will choose the winner via random selection at wildfireapp.com within 24 hours after the giveaway is closed, and this post will be updated to include screenshots from random.org of the winning comment. I will email the winner at that time.

• If I do not hear back from the winner within five days, another winner will be chosen.

• If a winner does not produce a letter from their child's speech therapist or doctor within two weeks of being informed of the win, another winner will be selected.
• Once I confirm information with the child's therapist or doctor, the iPad 2 will be mailed out.

FYI, Bob Knows Phones is also hosting a giveaway for a 16GB iPad mini, it's here and ends March 7, 2013. Thanks again to the company for hosting this giveaway!

FYI, the IRS requires that you report winnings from sweepstakes.

Good luck!

Update: The winner is...