KIPDA and Jewish Family & Vocational Services Help Seniors Prepare for the DTV Transition

Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development Agency (KIPDA) and Jewish Family & Vocational Services (JFCS) have launched an initiative to help seniors prepare for the transition from analog to digital television broadcasting. 

On Friday, June 12, 2009, we anticipate that some seniors, some people with disabilities, and many who are low-income will wake up and be without their only means of communication to the outside world, the television, all because they have not been properly informed of the switch that will occur.  Therefore, we are engaged in a collaborative effort to prepare the "at risk" population for the DTV transition—the "at risk" population being the aging, disabled, low income and rural area residents of our district: Bullitt, Henry, Jefferson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer and Trimble Counties. We know that these individuals are at risk because they either don't have a full understanding of the switch from analog to digital, or they don't have the means to make the transition.

Persons age 60 and older or disabled individuals of any age can call us and we can determine their DTV readiness. We can assist clients with assessing their need for a converter box, applying for the converter box coupon, identifying the different types of converter boxes, and installing the analog to digital converter box. If a client's coupon has expired and they received the maximum amount of coupons from the FCC, assistance is available but limited. At this time we are unable to purchase converter boxes for clients, but we will assist clients with ordering coupons, or purchasing the box at the client's expense.

We are still recruiting volunteers to help with the converter box installation. Anyone who would like to volunteer can contact KIPDA at (502) 266-5571, or JFCS at (502) 452-6341.The contact persons for the DTV initiative are Patrice Odongo and Barbara Gordon, KIPDA, and Mauri Malka, JFCS.

See the next article to find out more about the DTV conversion, and how TV captioning might be affected.