leisure & libation
(L-R) BLAINE GREENFIELD of WPVM’s Blainesworld show, Jeff Messer and Amy Prxynosch photo courtesy WPVM
Arts for Life Arts for Life focuses on a different kind of literacy, providing seriously ill or disabled patients opportunities to become fluent in art. Volunteers must complete a 52-hour onboarding process because “volunteers will be working with seriously ill kids and their families. They not only need to know the art or music skills, they need to know how to handle families in intense situation, and they need to know how to care for themselves, since not all patients will do well,” explains Director of Development Lari Hatley. Yet Hatley assures that the payoff is equally intense, like when she recently overheard one young patient, who hadn’t been able to eat or sleep due to intense pain, tell their nurse, “What pain? I don’t have pain. I’m doing art!” The public can also support their annual art show featuring art created by their youth participants, as well as the Rise and Shine Benefit Breakfast every September, where families impacted by Arts for Life share their stories.
WPVM Noncommercial Radio Maybe you have the gift of gab and performing live doesn’t intimidate you? Consider joining 104
| November 2019
community radio station WPVM-FM 103.7, where folks can get trained to deliver live broadcasts as an interviewer, DJ, or general show host. “We use our broadcast ability to help local community organizations, art events, public forums, and nonprofits tell their story to the listeners both on the 103.7 radio frequency and also live video to social media. We have 168 hours a week to fill, and we are dedicated to covering in-depth interviews and performances to reflect the essence of life in Asheville and the region,” explains Davyne Dial, WPVM’s general manager and president of Friends of WVPM. Dial shares that the organization will soon be opening an exhibition, A World of Radio, to help raise funds and have some other innovative revenuebuilding ideas in the works for 2020 “so we can avoid the annoying radio fundraisers that are common with the community radio and NPR stations.” For WPVM volunteer Blaine Greenfield, host of “Blaine’s World,” the “freedom to be in charge of a show with no interference from management,” and getting to “help local theaters promote their upcoming shows and help nonprofits tell their story” are what make volunteering with WPVM most rewarding. Fellow volunteer and host of “NC Serves Western Veterans Radio Hour” also relishes getting to utilize WPVM’s platform to serve a particular