Agency Details:

Rochester Radio Newspapers For The Visually Impaired

Rochester Radio Newspapers for the Visually Impaired is a branch of Minnesota State Services for the Blind.
Its mission is to read the Rochester Post-Bulletin and local area weekly newspapers each evening (except Sunday) to visually impaired people living in an approximate 60 mile area surrounding Rochester.

Description:
Broadcasts originate in a small studio at Charter House with equipment furnished by Minnesota State Services for the Blind. Our broadcast is patched into the Minnesota Public Radio system, and is heard only by people with Radio Talking Book receivers issued by State Services for the Blind. Two volunteers meet in the Charter House library at 6 p.m., decide which local news articles will be read, put them in sequence according to an announcement sheet, and broadcast from 7 to 8 p.m.

History:
Minnesota established a reading network in 1969, programmed and broadcast by Minnesota State Services for the Blind, which included the Twin Cities daily newspapers as well as some national daily papers. In 1994, programs were established in cities which have daily newspapers, including Rochester.
Charter House provides the space, which is an office off the library on the main floor, and the broadcasts continue to the present time.

Contact people:

Jan Engberg, Volunteer Coordinator, (phone), (email) Pat Keith, (phone), (email)

Address:

Charter House Radio Studio 211 NW Second Street Rochester, MN 55901 (See a map)

Web Site: None specified

Last updated on April 14, 2009