The Los Angeles Radio Reading Service’s Scare-A-Thon Halloween Pledge Drive

By Vic Gerami

The Los Angeles Radio Reading Service (LARRS) will hold its annual Halloween Scare-A-Thon radio fund drive, on Thursday, October 31.

Haunting stories will be read by your favorite celebrities and regular LARRS hosts! 13 celebrities are confirmed to bewitch the audience during the 13–hour Scare–a–Thon! Hear them read their favorite ghostly tales from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. From 7:00 p.m. to the witching hour of midnight, is old time with radio with Halloween themes.

LARRS is a costly undertaking that requires continual support. As little as $90 underwrites the cost of a smart device for a eligible listener. Broadcast on 67 KHz of 88.5 FM Los Angeles, listeners who are blind are able to tune in 24/7 to hear in–depth articles from major local and national newspapers, as well as current best–sellers read to them by sighted volunteers. In addition, LARRS broadcasts programs that address issues of health, education, literacy, travel, and science.

The only way that LARRS can continue to offer this service to the many deserving individuals who can’t afford the cost of a radio, is with your financial support.

In the Los Angeles area alone, there are about 140,000 individuals who have visual impairments. If you were blind, visually impaired, physically unable to turn a page, or a senior citizen with an age–related print disability, how would you stay informed? Without timely news, opinions, events listings, consumer information, and community service reports from printed sources, it is nearly impossible for people who are print impaired to be fully participating citizens. Therefore, LARRS was created Jolie Mason.

LARRS meets this demand for needed information by providing daily radio/internet broadcasts of newspapers, magazines, ads and books, enabling listeners to be aware of local events, election information, back–page stories, grocery and department store ads, sports pages, and even Ask Amy and the comics. LARRS broadcasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on the sub–carrier frequency of 88.5 FM. Reception of the signal requires a special SCA radio which may be obtained from LARRS.

To help meet the need of blind and visually impaired persons on a global scale, LARRS also provides a live audio programming stream online which is available through its website.

October is Blind Awareness Month (BAM). BAM was established for every October to help people understand the realities of living without sight. The World Health Organization estimates that almost 285 million people suffer from blindness or visual impairment worldwide. In the United States about 4 million Americans are blind and 47,000 (1 person every minute) become blind each year.

MORE ABOUT LARRS

The Los Angeles Radio Reading Service is project of Community Partners, a non–profit 501(c)3 organization that accelerates ideas into action to advance public good.

Community Partners acts as a catalyst for community change, civic action and readiness by offering critical support, guidance and training to a range of non–profit organizations, initiatives, foundations, government agencies and social entrepreneurs with innovative ideas for building communities. Community Partners works hard to recognize, invest in, and celebrate the critical role individuals and groups play in achieving a just, vibrant civil society.

Conceived as a “foundation for emerging philanthropies,” Community Partner’s fiscal sponsorship program has grown steadily over the years to include an average of 145–150 projects led by people who reflect the scope and diversity of the Southern California region. Their connection to and understanding of the nonprofit sector led to work with funders and other institutional partners. Today they are engaged in over a dozen programs and initiatives through our grant-maker partnerships.

MISSION

The mission of LARRS is to ensure that those who are print impaired have the same access to information as those who can read text.

LARRS is coordinated by people who are blind or who have worked in the field of broadcasting.

DONATIONS

Donations during the Halloween Scare-A-Thom can be made by phone at 818.345.2874. Additional donations can be made by check or money order, payable to: Community Partners FBO Los Angeles Radio Reading Service (LARRS) and sent to:

Los Angeles Radio Reading Service
6216 Sylvia Avenue
Tarzana, CA 91335

To learn more about LARRS, schedule of programs and to volunteer, please visit Larrs.org