COLORADO'S BROADCASTERSSERVING EVERY LOCAL COMMUNITY
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In recognition of National Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness Month, the "K99 Good Morning Guys," Brian and Todd from KUAD-FM in Windsor, Colo., stayed on-air for 28 hours straight for their 10th annual "28 Hours of Hope" radiothon. The event raised more than $105,000, which went directly to local community organizations that work to end child abuse and provide aid to abused children in northern Colorado. Just as importantly, the radiothon raises awareness about the prevention of this all too real problem, providing information for abusers to seek the help they need. Highlights of the event include celebrity country western recording artists calling in to give their support. Station staff dedicated 150 hours to the planning and execution of the event. In a letter to the station, one listener wrote "You guys reach so many people and raise awareness so much every year with your ‘28 Hours of Hope.’ Thank you for helping those who are too young to help themselves, and even more, for getting the word out there so other people can help them, too." KUAD was a National Association of Broadcasters Crystal Award finalist in 2008.
Every year, KALC-FM in Denver, Colo., suspends regular programming for three days to broadcast live from The Children’s Hospital to raise funds for the Children’s Miracle Network. This year, the effort raised more than $1.4 million, bringing the cumulative total for the eight years the station has participated to more than $8.2 million. In a related effort, on-air personalities Slacker and Steve organized “Hugs for the Hospital,” an additional fundraiser for The Children’s Hospital. During the month-long campaign, the duo went out into the community and invited listeners to donate money in exchange for a squeeze. In a single day alone, Slaver and Steve hugged more than 1,148 listeners. All that embracing brought in more than $30,000. “Slacker & Steve and everyone at KALC are such phenomenal supporters of The Children’s Hospital,” said Jennifer Lackey, director of The Children’s Hospital Foundation. “This event has once again proven their dedication to the community and its children.”
For 25 years, KUSA-TV in Denver, Colo., has been helping fight hunger and poverty. The station’s "9Cares Colorado Shares" campaign brought more than 450,000 pounds of food to low-income and needy Colorado residents last year. That doesn’t even count the hundreds of toys, 10 semi-truck loads of clothing and $100,000 donated by viewers as part of the effort. The November drive, which is the largest one-day collection in the state, has become a tradition. Its successful outreach starts with a combination of 15- and 30-second spots that air from mid-October through the Thanksgiving holiday. Live broadcasts, including regular news mentions, complement the effort along with extensive use of the KUSA Web site. One million dollars in airtime is given by KUSA to the campaign each year. Overall, the "9Cares Colorado Shares" effort reaches more than 90 food banks in the Denver Metro area and a multitude of other community groups. The number of Coloradans assisted by the program is significant. As the economic climate continues to be challenging for many, KUSA’s campaign will no doubt touch even more lives. In a thank you letter to the station, Betsy Strapp, director of the Broadway Assistance Center, wrote, "This food will go a long way in helping out as we strive to meet the needs of the ever-growing poor population of Denver. They will be better fed and therefore healthier because of your efforts."
Driven by the desire to help its community eradicate methamphetamine abuse, KRAI-FM of Craig, Colo., organized a workshop to help educate employers about the legalities of drug testing and held a community-wide event to raise awareness about the drug’s dangers. At the Communities Overcoming Meth Abuse (COMA) Drugs in the Workplace event, a local attorney armed local business owners with a better understanding of the legal issues and helped them draft drug testing policies for their workplaces. The station promoted the event with on-air information, six newscasts, a five-minute morning show interview and Web-based promotion on the station’s news and events page. KRAI then ran 180 minutes of produced and live promotions, 15 minutes of morning show interviews, stories on six newscasts and prominent Web site coverage for the COMA Community Appreciation Barbecue, which drew more than 300 people together for free food and a live concert in support of eliminating meth from the community. The station’s staff contributed 42 hours to put on the event. KRAI was a National Association of Broadcasters Crystal Award finalist in 2008.
Every month, sister stations KSMT-FM and KCMV-FM in Breckenridge, Colo., reward high school seniors who have made a difference in their community. Launched last December, the KSMT and KCMV Community Connection Monthly Scholarships provide youth from small mountain towns with a monetary award for their dedication to public service. Both stations have spread the word about the scholarship funds with live mentions and a minimum of 100 recorded promotion spots each month. The result: stacks of applications. After monthly recipients have been selected, each station sends out a press release and has the winner record an announcement featuring his or her contributions to the community. Part of the goal, according to KSMT’s Lisa Cheek, is to allow students to become inspired to do good by one another. In addition, KCMV will award a $5,000 Agricultural Studies Scholarship and a $2,500 Vocational Scholarship to an area student in 2008.
A popular mountain trail got a good grooming from KKPL-FM in Fort Collins, Colo. The day before Earth Day, the station held a "Trail Day" to help maintain its adopted hiking path at Horsetooth Mountain Falls. To ensure a strong turnout, the station invited the public to join with recorded promotional announcements and live mentions. In addition to encouraging listeners to volunteer time to help keep Colorado’s hiking areas beautiful, the effort increased overall awareness of the public trail at Horsetooth. Details were highlighted on the station’s homepage for a month leading up to the event, and staff contributed 30 hours of their time toward the effort. A strong supporter of the environment, KKPL also sponsored "Riverboat at the Rockies," a fundraiser for Trees, Water & People, a nonprofit organization that supports environmental education and conservation. KKPL’s on-air support helped bring 300 people to the event, which raised more than 25,000 to protect the earth.
Music lovers start lining up the night before KBCO-FM in Boulder, Colo., releases its "Studio C" CD to make sure they receive a coveted copy. While getting an impressive collection of in-studio recordings by nationally known artists, listeners are also supporting the Boulder County AIDS Project with their purchase. KBCO has released an annual limited-edition CD since 1991, donating more than $500,000 in proceeds toward medical care, support groups and financial assistance for HIV positive women, men and children living in the area. Each year, the 30,000 available copies of the CD sell out within hours. The project is a massive undertaking, requiring 500 hours of staff time. To brew up enthusiasm, the "KBCO Morning Show" conducts interviews with the artists included on the CD leading up to the sale. The station also runs 300 promotional announcements. On the day of the sale, KBCO personalities broadcast live at several locations, and they continue to talk on the air about the massive turnout and support for a week afterward. "KBCO provides the single largest donation that the Boulder County AIDS Project receives from the community. It is 10 percent of our total budget," said Ana Hopperstad, executive director of the Boulder County AIDS Project. "Without KBCO’s unwavering support for the past 15 years, we would not have been able to do the important work of supporting people with HIV and AIDS."
Business offices in the southern part of the state went to the birds this past holiday season, and that was a good thing. The goal of the annual "Take a Turkey to Work" campaign, spearheaded by KKLI-FM in Colorado Springs, Colo., is to inspire as many people as possible to bring a turkey to their workplace for donation to the Care and Share Food Bank. A representative from each business then brings the collective donations to one of three KKLI drop-off sites, where the station broadcasts live from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Captain Dan and Paul, the station’s morning show talent, geared up listeners with mentions and two extended interviews with representatives of Care and Share. Recorded promotional spots featuring the mayor began 10 days before the event, and the KKLI Web site listed information on how to participate. In 13 hours, nearly 4,000 turkeys and $14,000 came in for the cause, which provided 18,000 people with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. After each year’s successful turkey collection, the station follows up on the air to thank its listeners for caring for their neighbors. The success of the annual event prompted the mayor to declare the Friday before Thanksgiving "Take a Turkey to Work Day." KKLI was a National Association of Broadcaster’s Crystal Award finalist in 2008.
To highlight the importance of emergency preparedness to viewers, KMGH-TV in Denver, Colo., partnered with the Mile High Chapter of the American Red Cross to broadcast its "Save a Life" campaign during National Preparedness Month in September. The station built an entire month of news stories to get Coloradans ready in case of an emergency and opened the Call 7 phone lines during newscasts to allow viewers to ask questions of Red Cross professionals. One segment that was a staff and viewer favorite covered pet emergency preparedness. Parker, the 7News Canine Correspondent, went to a Red Cross first aid class for pets, where animal owners were taught pet CPR, the Heimlich Maneuver and what to do in case of a snake bite. In addition to segments on various preparedness topics, 30-second public service announcements on how to put an emergency preparedness kit together ran regularly. Viewers were directed to the Red Cross for more information during news coverage and to the station’s Web site, which supported the campaign with story recaps and even a blog from Parker about the first aid class for pets. The campaign also was translated and launched on KMGH’s affiliate Spanish-language station.
Filling a 26-foot truck from front to back with items needed by deployed U.S. soldiers was the kick-off event for KFKA-AM in Greeley, Colo., to begin an AdoptaPlatoon effort in northern Colorado. AdoptaPlatoon is a nonprofit national organization to support our troops, which local groups can use as a foundation for similar activities. KFKA’s September 2007 "Stuff-A-Truck" multi day event involved organizing collection sites in businesses throughout the community with heavy foot traffic and planting a moving truck near a busy intersection, where the station broadcast live, asking listeners to make donations and interviewing military and AdoptaPlatoon organizers. In addition to the 15,264 pounds of material donations made as of December 2007, more than $11,000 has been raised for postage to send the supplies. KFKA is following "Stuff-A-Truck" with a "Stuff-A-Store" event, and offers continual support to AdoptaPlatoon through the station’s Web site, where information about needed items and collection centers is readily available. A recent letter from a company commander best summed up the impact of the effort: "My troopers’ deployment is finally drawing to a close and hopefully, they leave knowing two things: One, they have done an outstanding job here; and two, America loves and supports them. They should take the credit for the first, and you for the second."
For more examples of how Colorado’s local radio and TV broadcasters are serving every local community, please contact the Colorado Broadcasters Association .