Media Contact:
Courtney Thomas Barnes
Vice President for Communications & Public Affairs
Greater New Orleans Foundation
504.236.7096
courtney@gnof.org
Southern Eye Bank Foundation, a Support Organization of the Greater New Orleans Foundation, and WRBH Radio Station Announce Repair of WRBH Transmission Line
NEW ORLEANS – (February 19, 2025) Today, the Southern Eye Bank Foundation, a support organization of the Greater New Orleans Foundation, and WRBH 88.3 FM, a 501(c)3 non-profit reading radio service, announced the repair of the WRBH Transmission Line. In June 2023, the station discovered that the transmission line had a bullet hole, reducing the station’s service area to only cover Orleans Parish. With a $136,000 grant from Southern Eye Bank Foundation, WRBH was recently able to restore service to their entire service area.
WRBH has been broadcasting readings of newspapers, books, and magazines for over 40 years, so that the blind and print-impaired receive the same ease of access to current information as their sighted peers. It is the only radio station for the blind that broadcasts across state lines with a 90-mile radius, webcasts around the world, and offers weekly original programming that reaches a diverse, multilingual base of listeners.
Photos courtesy of WWL-TV
Andy Kopplin, President & CEO, Greater New Orleans Foundation said, “The Greater New Orleans Foundation is proud to join our support organization, the Southern Eye Bank Foundation, as they announce the repair of this critical piece of infrastructure for WRBH. There is no other radio station like this for our community. Our partners at SEBF took action, and that’s what we’re celebrating today. At the Foundation, we are committed to an economically and culturally vibrant, sustainable, and just region for all, and supporting this increase in accessibility is just one way we can fulfill our mission as a community foundation. This repair ensures WRBH is once again able to reach everyone who relies on the services and resources they provide across state lines.
Southern Eye Bank Foundation’s mission is to improve and restore the vision primarily for residents of South Louisiana with a focus on underserved patients, and to support and encourage projects related to the use of medical equipment, education, research, training, and eye care delivery regionally and with a global perspective.
Honorable Judge Camille Buras, Board Chair, Southern Eye Bank Foundation, and Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, Section H, said, “We are proud to play a part in the dedication of this transmitter for WRBH. The Southern Eye Bank has had a long presence in the Greater New Orleans region from corneal transplants to helping the sight-impaired. In this new phase of our foundation, we look forward to making an even broader impact on those who are sight-challenged through our continuing philanthropic endeavors in partnership with the Greater New Orleans Foundation. Our vision and mission statement as the Southern Eye Bank Foundation is the continue the work started last century by our highly skilled New Orleans eye doctors, as we continue to build a broader system of holistic services for the ophthalmologic community for generations to come.”
Dr. David Kennedy, Incoming President, Southern Eye Bank Foundation, said, “As the Incoming President of the Southern Eye Bank Foundation, I just want to express the genuine excitement on the board that WRBH is back at full strength delivering vital content to the visually impaired residents of Louisiana that makes a difference in their lives every day. Access to these news articles, fiction, science, and sporting programs deliver knowledge, joy, and normalcy to people’s lives every day. I’m grateful to WRBH for their important work and that Southern Eye Bank Foundation was able to help restore the transmitter signal to WRBH for all the listeners in Louisiana and beyond.”
Natalia Gonzalez, Executive Director, WRBH Reading Radio, said, “I just want to convey to the Southern Eye Bank Foundation just how much this gift meant for us. We’re such a small nonprofit with a tiny budget, and this bullet hole in our transmission line knocked us flat. Your most generous donation came at the perfect time when I thought all was lost, and your gift restored us to full power helped us continue our mission of providing current information to those who cannot read for themselves and made the most tremendous difference in the lives of us and our listeners. I’m retiring next month, and I’m happy that I can retire on such a high note.”
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About the Greater New Orleans Foundation:
With roots extending over 100 years, the Greater New Orleans Foundation connects generous people to the causes that spark their passion. As one of the most trusted philanthropic organizations in the region, we work every day to drive positive impact by championing charitable giving, strengthening nonprofits, and leading civic projects in our thirteen-parish region. In addition to grantmaking, we convene people, resources, and ideas to create intelligent strategies and solutions to meet our region’s greatest challenges. We are proud to serve as a vocal civic leader with our partners to ensure an economically and culturally vibrant, sustainable, and just region for all. Learn more at www.gnof.org.