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DTV Transition
Saving our Seniors from Television blackout.
Houston area seniors won’t
have to face the DTV conversion alone, they will receive some
much needed help from volunteers and Interfaith Ministries for
Greater Houston (IM).
Meals on Wheels for Greater Houston (MOW),
IM’s homebound nutrition program, and a consortium of
senior service agencies are getting homebound seniors prepared
for the Digital Television Conversion by calling on faith communities
to encourage their members to register for and donate DTV converter
box coupons and recruiting and organizing volunteers to install
the digital converter boxes in 2,000 homebound senior’s
homes.
Many of Houston’s elderly need assistance
for the following reasons:
- They are on fixed income
- They have physical challenges that limit their ability to
get out
- They have visual or hearing impairments that limit their
ability to fill out an application, on-line, by hand or even
over the phone
- They have little or no family or support to assist them
- They are not up to date on technology
Every household is eligible for two converter
box coupons from the Federal Government to offset the cost of
purchasing the required converter box for analog TVs.
Many seniors still use analog TVs; and aren’t completely
aware of the changes, don’t know about the coupon program,
lack the resources to obtain the converter box even with the
coupon, don’t have regular access to the internet to register
for the coupon program, and may not be able to install the converter
box without assistance.
IM and the consortium are addressing these
issues by asking the members of religious communities to go
online and sign up for the converter box coupons. Once
they receive the coupons they can bring the extras to their
place of worship where IM has placed collection boxes.
The coupons will be picked up and taken to area HEBs which have
agreed to provide the converter boxes in trade for the consortium
(the coupon is not for the full amount of the box). Once
the boxes are obtained, volunteers who have been recruited and
trained by Volunteer Houston will install the boxes in the homes
of seniors in the Meals on Wheels program.
If you are
a member or associated with any of the congregations listed
to the right, please register for your DTV converter box coupons
by going to www.dtv2009.gov
and drop off your unused coupons in the marked container at
your house of worship.
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