What is MARRS?

The purpose of MARRS is to improve the quality of life for blind and visually impaired individuals in Western North Carolina by providing access to print information through the use of special radio units, cable TV and the internet

Mars photo

MARRS HISTORY

SERVICES

PROGRAMMING PARTNERS

RESOURCES VOLUNTEERS FINANCIAL

MARRS HISTORY MARRS, formerly RAISE, was first

established in Asheville in 1987 MARRS is part of a network of

organizations across the US providing broadcast services for the visually impaired

Broadcasts are readings of daily local newspapers

MARRS receives NO state or Federal Funding

MARRS SERVICES-WESTERN NC• 24 /7 programming of local and

national news and special features

• Listeners use special radios provided by MARRS to hear newspaper broadcasts via FM radio signals or cable channels

• Webstreaming: Live streaming and archived programs at http://www.marrswnc.org

MARRS SERVICE PARTNERS

• Programs are broadcast via subcarrier access provided by the courtesy of WCQS-FM and WNCW-FM

• Henderson County local news is available on Channel 11(the local cable system)

• Exploring opportunities with other cable carriers(Charter Cable in Asheville and Morris Broadband in Henderonville)

TYPICAL DAY BROADCAST CONTENT

 

12 am        Evening Odyssey   1 am          Good Night Owl 2 am          After Midnight 3 am          Best in Short Stories 4 am          Nutrition and Health 5 am          Chautauqua 6 am          Armchair Adventure 7 am          News, Weather &

Sports 7:15           Green & Growing 8 am          Newspapers, St.

Paul     Minneapolis 10 am        Past is Prologue 11 am        Take 20 for Fitness 11:20         Entertainment News

12 noon     Bookworm 1 pm          USA Today 2 pm          Armchair Adventure 3-5 pm            Asheville

News 5 pm         Hendersonville

News 6 pm         Asheville

Entertainment Hour 7-9 pm            Asheville

News Repeat 9 pm          Two on the Aisle 10 pm        The Book Was Better 11 pm        Reflections –

biography

MARRS PARTNERS

WNCW(88.7) and WCQS(88.1)-Public Radio

Area hospitals Pardee Home Health Care Henderson County NC Department of Social Services for the

Blind???ask Tom Low Vision Center Asheville Eye Associates Senior Living Facilities Council on Aging

LOCAL PUBLICATIONS WE READ Asheville Citizen-Times

Hendersonville Times-News

Transylvania Times

Mountain Express

Black Mountain News

The Laurel

MARRS CLIENTS

Blind ,visually impaired , or print impaired individuals in Western North Carolina can receive specialized radios at no cost to receive programming

Hundreds of units have been distributed since 1987

MARRS RESOURCES• Volunteers-Currently about 40

volunteer readers 2 locations

• MARRS Volunteers provide access to Western North Carolina newspapers

• Main office located in downtown Asheville

• Satellite office in Hendersonville

• Volunteer Board of Directors

• Part-time General Manager

MARRS PRIMARY EXPENSES

• Radios

• Rent, phone, broadcast equipment

• Broadcast tech support

• Consulting engineering services

• Consulting computer services

MARRS FINANCIAL RESOURCES Grants from local/regional

foundations

Local churches

Contributions from individuals

IMPACT OF RESOURCE LIMITATIONS

Overly dependent on volunteers to operate and manage the station

Some funds restricted Programming limited until funding

acquired for full-time general manager Outreach effort constrained by lack of

financial resources Further funding required to serve

individuals in additional Western North Carolina Counties

PAST MARRS DONORS Asheville Woman’s Club Central United Methodist Church Cummings Foundation Gannett Foundation Individuals Janirve Foundation Jubilee Lions Clubs Steelcase Foundation Volunteers

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

HOW CAN YOU HELP MARRS HELP? Make a donation

Serve as a volunteer reader

Serve as a volunteer manager

Participate as a Board member

Spread the word!