The Masonic Homes realizes the importance of the year 2000 and the implications it has in caring for our residents.

What does Y2K mean? Y2K is a term that is short for Year 2000. It will be a very significant year for computers and those systems and products that use computers to service consumers. In the 1960's and 1970's, computer memory was scarce and very expensive. Computer programmers typically referred to dates as two-digit years instead of four (e.g., 98 instead of 1998). This shortcut saved millions of dollars. Now, as the year 2000 fast approaches, the cost of fixing this problem universally will be astronomical.

So what really is the problem? Computers, machinery, equipment, and systems which depend on computers to monitor or even control how they operate rely on a two-digit date field. By not correcting this problem before the year 2000 rolls around, the computer could read the date 01/01/00 as Jan. 1, 1900 and not Jan. 1, 2000! This could potentially cause problems and failure of computers, equipment, or systems which are run by computers or monitored by computers.

The Masonic Homes has created a Y2K Task Force to prepare for that fast approaching date. Rebecca Roush of Information Technologies at the Masonic Homes is heading the Task Force. The goal of this Task Force is to resolve all issues pertaining to the Year 2000 problem by July 1999. Each department at the Masonic Homes at Elizabethtown, as well as the Masonic Eastern Star Home-East and the Masonic Eastern Star Home-West, has a representative on the Task Force.

For our residents, employees, and as a business, the Masonic Homes want to make sure that we are doing everything possible to meet the deadline that can't be missed!