Event 1: Worship Night at Summer Motion in Ashland, KY with Anne Wilson! Summer Motion is Ashland’s biggest summer bash and is hosted on the riverfront. There’s a crowd of about 10,000 people that attend every year! We had a tent set up with bracelets, stickers, and magnets. We got to fellowship and meet new friends and reconnect with old ones. The biggest hit was our fans, and we passed out over 1,500 Walk FM hand fans to beat the heat. It was an incredible night!
From Brittany — “a long time donor, and sweet friend to the station called in this morning to tell us about a song that ministers to her and how glad she was to be able to hear Kyle’s show. She isn’t always able to hear him because of her work schedule, but appreciated being able to hear part of it today. She said she loves the station because we’re local and we “always make it so easy to reach out to and talk to at events”. Said that she and her husband love getting to see us when we’re out and that taking the time to talk to them means so much. As she was getting off the phone, she took the time to pray over us and over the station. She and her husband are sweet people and we love getting to see them just as much.”
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On Thursday, July 25th, the WCQR team represented well at Funfest in Kingsport with Crowder featuring Blessing Offor! In addition to setting up a booth in the concession area and interacting with our listeners and potential listeners, Rhonda, Christian and Amanda were also able to say hello to everyone when they went on stage. Many of our amazing volunteers helped with the band merch sales and our WCQR tent. We prayed for no rain, and even though it rained a bit in the morning, the sun came out in the afternoon!
It turned out to be a beautiful event, with a packed field and just a wonderful time of worship and fun. And “Crowder on a stick” even made many photo appearances.
We got this sweet comment on a “thank you” reel that we posted on Facebook.
This is a message from a mom and donor on Instagram: “Listening to you all at work today. Wanted to add, as parents we want to have control in what our kids see and hear. We want them to be safe and honestly if I could have my child in bubble wrap I would. I’m so thankful for this station, because I want her to hear the positive encouragement. I want her to hear and know about Jesus. It’s one of the best things I can do for my little girl.”
This is a message we received from a listener on Facebook.
We were blessed by a visit and a Chick-Fil-A lunch from Gale and Margaret Rhudy, listeners, donors, and our former Office Manager Bobbie’s parents. They are so sweet and stop by to say hi regularly.
An email from a WCQR listener and monthly donor: “I hope you are doing well. I just wanted to say thank you again to you and everyone at WCQR for being a part of a such an awesome ministry. • We are monthly donors and absolutely love WCQR. I wanted to share a quick story…. June 25th I was at work and my mother called to tell me my brother passed away very unexpectedly. I really don’t remember leaving work and getting in my car to drive to her house, but I was in the car a few minutes and heard Anne Wilson’s STRONG come on WCQR. I just kept repeating “I hit my knees with my hands held high saying “Dear Lord Jesus , you know I can’t do this on my own” ..I can’t do this on my own” and that was my repeat saying for the next few days. Thank GOD I know who makes me strong and have relied on that so much through this unexpected storm. • There are so many other songs on WCQR that genuinely stop me in my tracks and speak to me and at times I have taken that for granted and I want to be more intentional on telling you all THANK YOU…… • Also, I received my cute t-shirt, and I can’t wait to wear it proudly. Thanks again for being a light to us in the Tri Cities!!!!!”
On the first Monday of the month, one of our listeners popped by with a treat for the staff. David said “I wasn’t able to make it through a drive thru to do the DriveThru-Difference, so I decided to bring you guys a drivethru-difference” It was very thoughtful, especially the Dr. Pepper cotton candy!
We received this email and photo from a donor:
“Look what I got in the mail!! I just wanted to say thanks! I love this station. I listen every day and only to this station. It’s such a blessing. I pray for you all daily!”
We’ve gotten many messages from donors who received their Goodness of God shirt in the mail, and love it!
A listener and social media follower showed up to our station early one morning to ask if we had any extra tickets for the NEEDTOBREATHE concert happening that same night. She really wanted to go, and was praying for free tickets.
On Casey’s drive to work in the morning, she had essentially prayed for someone to really want the tickets she had, because she was feeling less than energized to go (especially with the possibility of rain). So when Amanda messaged the group and said someone really wants tickets, Casey and her friend agreed that they should let her take them. Casey met the listener at Stillwater Coffee and became fast friends, and even exchanged numbers. She was beyond excited to go, especially with the added surprise that they are VIP. What a fun blessing to be a part of.
A note from Rhonda: “Adam was dropping me off to pick up my car. We made a quick stop at Walgreen’s (and I will just note that Adam and I were dressed alike in our bright blue WCQR t-shirts). An employee came up to us as Adam was getting back in the car and asked if we worked at the station. He then asked us if we could do him a favor...I’m thinking song request, tickets, etc... and then he broke down in tears and asked us to pray for his 6 month old granddaughter who will be having brain surgery later this month.
Our office manager, Aziana, made this basket of goodies for our delivery drivers that come to WCQR. Kindness is contagious!
When Adam dropped me off and I got out to pick up my car, the technician was still in the car. When he got out and saw my shirt, he asked if I worked at the station. I told him my name and this big, burly 6’4” guy with a ponytail got the biggest smile on his face and said “I listen to you and Adam every morning!” He wanted a picture with us, so I chased Adam down before he got out of the parking lot and we took a selfie. He told us that we “made his day.”
A sweet donor and her grandson came by our office with donuts. She told us that back in October last year he had waited in the line of Dunkin Donuts at 5am to win either free coffee or a dozen donuts. He won free donuts for 14 months! So throughout the month, he looks for places he can be a blessing to by giving away donuts! We were so grateful that he chose to bless our station.
WCQR visited our friends at The Fox’s Den on July 31st, their 1st birthday! We wanted to support and congratulate them on 1 year of being in business. The Fox’s Den was one of our Coffee Stop locations back in March.
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Event 1:
Last Friday Joseph, Jackie, and Jackie’s wife had a wonderful time at the All American Festival & Fireworks. The rain came but that didn’t stop them from fulfilling the mission to reach out to the community! It was such a great turnout — there were so many people from all walks of life who came out to enjoy the event, attractions, concessions, and fun activities. They were able to reconnect with some listeners and create connections with those who hadn’t listened to Spirit FM before. Plus, they created moments with the children and brought them exciting prizes they could win!
Event 2:
We had an incredible celebration of 30 years of ministry with our listener family! From those who have been with us from the beginning to those who have just started listening. People from all generations were here to celebrate the ministry that God has put in place with us! So much joy, laughter, and recollection of the past in this ministry filled the building! Word’s can’t describe how much fun we had getting to hear stories of those who were impacted by Spirit FM.
“Happy birthday Spirit FM Family! Many blessings to you and thank you for everything over the years!”
“Thank you, Spirit FM, for 30 wonderful years of blessings! We live in Staunton and, for a while, only were able to pick up your station when driving through the Roanoke area to get my step kids. We were so happy when the station expanded and we could listen to you all of the time!! You have been such a blessing in countless ways!!
“Jackie, Peggy and I both want to tell you how much we appreciated all that you and your co-workers did yesterday. All of you treated our grandchildren like adults, and the time you spent in the studio with them went above and beyond any call of duty. The kids had a wonderful time! In fact, one of them said it
We had several listeners send in thoughtful, handmade cards to celebrate our 30th birthday.
Cards from a sister and brother.
Event 3:
We attended the Salem Fair and had an amazing time with everyone. We met a ton of the listening family, and also got to bless people before they went into the fair! Kids were flocking the table to spin the wheel. Seeing the kid’s excitement, and
One of our Business Partners blessed us with these stunning flowers to congratulate us for 30 years of ministry.
We had a listener drop by the station to say thank you for the ministry, and give us a half dozen of donuts! It was such a sweet reminder of how you never know the impact of the Lord’s ministry in the community. What a great way to kick off the month!
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Event 1:
The Joy FM family had a wonderful time of good food and great fellowship with a few of our donors here at the Lexington Cracker Barrel !
Linda and John
Josh was a wonderful greeter as they came into the door!
Both tables were filled! It was an awesome time!
Our dear, sweet donor, Helen, brought her grandsons by to visit. She also brought us some delicious fruit!
From Wendy: “I talked on the phone with a dear, sweet donor, and we discovered that we had the same issues going on in our lives. We talked about how Joy FM has helped both of us through those hard times. She shared with me that she had gotten a new Jeep and could not get our station in it, so she was frustrated. She actually went back to the dealership to get Sirius off her car and put it on Joy FM! She stated that she prays for everyone and that she loves all of us!”
From Wendy: “I was so humbled by this phone call from a donor’s son. He called to cancel his mom’s donation because she was dying, but at the same time, his sister is picking up the monthly donation to keep it going. As we were talking, he was talking to his mom in the background. She only has a few weeks to live.
How humbling is it, that while going through this trying time, they are thinking about Joy FM, and making sure that we get our monthly donation! Wow, even after death, this dear lady through her daughter, will still be a testimony to others.”
Email from a Day Sponsor: “Good evening! Hope you are well. We day sponsored on the 15th of July. We were so thrilled with how you messaged it! We played it for Mama and Daddy. Daddy wanted to listen to it an extra time, with a huge grin on his face. I had recorded it on my cell phone because of the reception at the nursing home.
May God continue to bless you, the Joy FM staff, and all the listeners. God is moving in a great and mighty way! We both love the Joy FM message, music, and team. I pray for you often.”
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Event 1:
We had another Tuesday home game at the FredNats . This was our first donor appreciation night where we served some of our donors with a meal and dessert at the game. We had one of our donors throw out the first pitch. It was a perfect night for the weather, and so many people came up to our tent to spin the wheel and win some cool WPER swag. Our volunteers, Laurie and Mark, had a great time helping at the tent too. We have the best volunteers!!!
We didn’t have as many people stop by at the FredNats game because of the potential rain moving in, but we still had a fun time loving on some more of our donors with a meal and dessert. Heather got to throw out the first pitch. Seeing the Lord’s race car parked behind our
Event 3:
We had our 3rd Pop-Up Stop today in Henrico County beside Chick-fil-A. Chick-fil-A donated the gallons of lemonade and ice to us. We had an unbelievable amount of listeners and donors stop to see us and have a cold cup of lemonade while winning some cool prizes on the spinning wheel. We even had a few special guests stop by to visit (Chick-fil-A Cow and Oliver(Alan’s dog)). What a wonderful day out in
Event 4:
We had another fun night at the FredNats game . It was extremely hot…..but it didn’t stop our donors from coming out to a ballgame. We got to bless some of our donors with a meal & dessert. We also surprised our volunteer Dale with a WPER team jersey, a meal, and he even got to throw out the first pitch! It was hot all evening, but we had a great time seeing so many people come up to the tent to spin the wheel for prizes and just fellowship. The FredNats do a wonderful job spotlighting us
We had our 4th Pop-Up Stop! This time it was in Richmond in the parking lot at Baskin Robbins, and our listeners showed up in groups the entire two hours!! Heather, Tommy, and our volunteers had a blast meeting and chatting to all the listeners. These stops have been incredible to see so many people that are excited to see us out in their community. We gave out cups of cold lemonade, prizes on the spinning wheel, and surprised
Received this note along with an $800 gift!! First time donor!
From a listener thru the App: “I got this shirt from one of our first visits to King’s Fest. The other day, within 10 minutes of wearing it, I got two compliments on it. I told both people about your station & how the music gets me through everything, everyday. I love telling people of your station & how God works through you. God Bless You All!”
Email from a day sponsor: “Thank you Theresa! It is always a pleasure to give to a cause that definitely has a huge impact on our community.”
Email from a listener: “Good morning WPER Family, I absolutely love WPER! Every one there is a blessing to the state of Virginia and beyond! I listened to y’all last year from Ireland. It was Awesome!!! I’m so happy and thankful for your app! God bless y’all! Your sister in Christ.”
Email from a donor: “I just got my loyal listener T-shirt today. I just love it. Your station is so uplifting and encouraging. I won’t listen to any other station. Been a loyal listener for over 15 years. I was fortunate to meet you guys at the Tappahannock live remote last week. Continued prayers for your music ministry. Thank you so much.”
Email from a donor regarding her day sponsorship: “Theresa, It is with very heartfelt thanks to you for the excellent job you did on recording the memorial to my mom that aired on June 18th. I got to hear 5 out of the 6 times it aired and I cried every time. In fact I had a fellow bowler friend that was driving a truck in Northern Virginia at 5am that day and was randomly skipping through channels when he paused for a second and began hearing the tribute. He even said he does not typically listen to Christian stations but he paused that day for whatever reason (we know that was a God moment) and listened. We may never know the direct impact on him after that moment but I would like to think he is listening more often to the station now. Again thank you so much for what you do on the radio, on your speaking engagements and in your personal life. I hope to meet you in person one day at a station event.”
Long time friends, donors, and volunteers sent us this card. We were able to bless them with FredNats tickets and serve them a meal. They been going through a tough time lately.
5 events
From a listener: “Morning, I’ve been listening to Spirit FM for years but never really got into listening to podcasts until recently. Your messages are so refreshing and uplifting, but I like how they are so “real” and something everyone can relate to.
On one of your recent podcasts you touched on dealing with the death of a loved one, family member, friend, co-worker etc., and it really hit home. Just over a month ago my husband lost his son to cancer. He was 48 years old. He was diagnosed with cancer on February 14, 2024 and passed 4 months later. To say how difficult it’s been for him is an understatement. Most people have been very understanding and supportive of his grief but then you have those others.
Everyone is different and how they grieve is different. I was not able to have children so I cannot relate to the deep pain my husband is going through, but he knows I am here for him and will cry with him. It’s a loss he will never get “over” even though some people like to say he needs to get over it. I told him its a marathon, not a sprint, and it will get harder before it gets better. In his own time and way he will find a way to move forward.
Thank you again for all the love and laughter you bring through this podcast. I look forward to each and everyone of them. Many God continue to bless you both.”
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