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Events 1 & 2:
On October 5th, Walk FM attended the MercyMe, Cochren & Co, and Crowder concert Huntington AND the Zach Williams, CAIN, Matt Maher, and Ben Fuller concert in Charleston. The team split up for two different events: Brittany, Zac, and Lindsay were in Huntington while Derek and Jordan were in Charleston. Walk had a great night loving on donors and listeners, and meeting Mike Cochren!
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Event 3:
Walk FM participated in the Camp Landing Safe Trick or Treat again this year, and had such a blast!! Over 2,000 kids alone went through to receive candy and gifts from 40 vendors! Walk even had a few little “monsters” of their own to help out at the Walk FM table!
In October we received over 200 Butterfly Hugs from KY, WV, OH, and NC!
We were able to bless over 20 donors and volunteers with Butterfly Hugs, as well!
During our October events, we had many people tell us they love our station!
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220 + butterfly hugs
experiences
Hurricane Helene
Wednesday, September 25th, WCQR began fundraising but we were almost immediately interrupted with severe rainstorms and local flooding. Nearby areas received upwards of 7 inches of rainfall in just 4 days leading up to and including September 27th, the day that Hurricane Helene hit. The saturation of the ground and already-rising rivers caused extreme, record-breaking floods in mountain communities in Southwestern Virginia, West North Carolina, and East Tennessee.
Many homes were destroyed, bridges and roads were completely swept away, and lives were lost. It was a devastating time for our communities, yet through the devastation, God brought people together to serve, provide shelter and supplies, and support those in need.
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THROUGH THE DISASTER, WCQR MADE QUICK ACTIONS TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY BY VOLUNTEERING, DONATING, AND PROVIDING SUPPORT ON AIR.
The WCQR team has volunteered at First Baptist Church of Roan Mountain, Unicoi County High Schoo l, has hiked up to deliver supplies to people who were stranded, and individually has been serving the community on their own time and continue to be supportive and encouraging.
Amanda and her family have all been volunteering regularly at Happy Valley High School , which was set up as a donation center for the community. Amanda says: “A tractor trailer from a church in Corryton, TN pulled up at 7:00 full of supplies on pallets! I had fun today! They taped these messages on every item that came.”
Listener Jessica, her daughter Reagan, sister Amanda and mom Denise volunteered at Happy Valley High School on Saturday, October 7th and loved meeting Amanda and Grace. From Jessica: “My heart has been so moved to see what a wonderful community I was brought up in.”
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We have our social media platforms to engage with our listeners and followers, and create experiences that inspire people to live passionately for Jesus Christ. When the community went through this disaster, we were able to provide encouragement and hope through posts and responding to messages, since for many people, that’s all they had. When our main 88.3 signal lost power and struggled for a few weeks to regain power, our listeners noticed and reached out to make sure we knew our signal was down. We have such a great listener family.
When we posted about pausing our Fundraiser, there were many comments and messages in support
A listener sent a message to make sure we were okay during the storm.
When our listeners can’t hear 88.3, they really notice. We got so many messages about our tower being down, static coming through, or hearing another station playing instead of WCQR. People really missed 88.3!
We received this message from Facebook, along with sweet videos of the kids singing to Christian songs.
We received this message on Facebook. It is a testimony to how the right song comes on at just the right time. It truly is the power of God at work in our station: I wanted to let you know the power of the Holy Spirit in song choices... My little boy, who isn’t so little anymore as he is 14, is being picked at so much at school this year that he has started wearing headphones, whenever possible, to drown out the outside noise... This morning I told him the only way to get through this is being sure of himself through Jesus, to know without a shadow of a doubt who he is because of who Jesus is. The first song that came on when we got in the car was ‘Made for More’ with the first lines being “I know who I am, ‘Cause I know who you are” he got out of the car, and for some crazy reason morning workouts were canceled so I went back to get him, and he gets back in the car, and Megan Woods is belting out “The Truth”... Nobody can give him a message better than God can... Thank you all for what you do...
We’ve been blessed with the ability to create and deliver experiences on our app as well. We recently began to receive and respond to messages that listeners send on our app. It could be anything from a song request, to appreciation for what one of the on-air hosts said, prayer requests, or just a “thank you.”
It takes a lot of courage to admit a struggle, so we reached out and asked for his favorite song and the general time that he listens each day. He said he really likes the song “Nobody” by Casting Crowns. We added it to the list to play when he listens, and he responded.
Another encouraging message through our app:
This message came through our app from a listener and donor a few weeks after Helene:
Amanda received this sweet note from listener and donor, Carolyn. Amanda called Carolyn after the storm to thank her for her donation to the Fall Fundraiser but to also check on Carolyn and the community who live in Mountain City.
experiences
Sticker Stops at Coffee Shops #!: Open Doors Coffee House! Friday, October 18th, WCQR was at Open Doors Coffee House in Johnson City for the first Coffee Stop of the season. In addition to normal greeting, hugs, laughs, and coffee, we offered brand new WCQR stickers! There were several WCQR listener family members that we got to meet for the first time, and several that we have known for a long time. It was a lovely day, and a great way to be out in the community to love on people after such a difficult time.
God’s Pit Crew is one of our ministry partners. They are a non profit that provides support and relief to people affected by disaster through Blessing Buckets and truckloads of supplies. While they usually go to more southern states affected by hurricanes, God’s Pit Crew brought supplies and support to our area for relief after the flooding. It’s unusual that they would have to come up to the mountains to assist, but this was a full-circle moment, seeing an organization that we have helped raise money for come back to support our local community. It filled our hearts! Check out the wrap on their truck, which is branded with PAR and our sister stations.
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Jess’s Birthday:
A couple of sweet friends surprised Jess at the station for her birthday!
Just a few of the countless Facebook messages to Jess
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Event 1 (from Stephanie): Joseph, my husband Mike, and I went to the Salem Red Sox Spooktacular and met lots of folks. We handed out a ton of candy and swag. We chatted with a few listeners and made a great impression as a “Multi-Generational” table. We even heard a few comments from kids and adults that we had the best table! One moment that stands out is when a kid dressed as a NASCAR driver came to our table and Mike handed him a hot wheel (my husband purchased a few hot wheels to hand out). This kid was over the moon. His parents were taking his picture in front of the booth and sign. We even got to give one to a kid dressed as a hot wheel!
Events 2: These are from the for King
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Doug and Joseph went to Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church in Roanoke to make butterflies with kids in the after school program. Questions asked included: How old are you? How much do you make? Do you play Elvis? They also wanted to know about the ministry: What kind of music do you play? Where do you send the butterflies?
Doug and Jess were invited to WDBJ to be on the “7@four” to give information on the 30-year celebration, along with sharing about some upcoming events. The host, Melissa, loves us!
Watch the video recording here!
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One of our volunteers is an amazing artist, and she drew several cards for our Letters from Home project.
When preparing for Fall Fundraiser we reached out to Mission BBQ in hopes of getting a food donation. The person we spoke to kindly explained that their mission is aimed towards military and emergency service responders (both active and retired) so they were unable to help with our need. However, they asked that we email them should we ever need a gift basket (for door prizes, etc.), that they’d be happy to help out! We received this letter from Mission BBQ in Lynchburg.
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1 1+ 1+ messages birthday butterfly hugs letters from home
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Event 1: Joy FM had a table at Center Church of Welcome for the Mylon Hayes Family! They were wonderful and the congregation was made up of the sweetest people.
Event 2:
Joy FM attended an event with Joseph Habadank, and The Hoppers wonderful listeners and donors and had an amazing night!
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Our donors sending us hope and encouragement!
From Wendy: “I met this dear, sweet lady at an event last October. She was with two other ladies, Vera and Jackie, and they were called the “Rambling Ladies.” They would go on adventures throughout the state. They invited us to be honorary Ramblers as we all became friends. On October 3, 2024, Patsy went home with Jesus as she died peacefully with her friends holding her hands and singing by her side. Her memorial was October 13th and Melody and I were able to attend. Later, Vera, Jackie, my mom, and I were able to go out for supper together, and my mom and I just sat and listened to all their stories. Working here at Joy FM gives me the greatest pleasure because I get to meet some extraordinary people like these beautiful, “Rambling Ladies”.
Email from listener in Yemen!: “Hello Joy FM great team. I am a South Sudanese who started listening to you from 2008 while in Sudan and I am currently listening from Yemen. I love the hymns and preaching you always present. I hope to donate something soon to support your mission. Thank you and may God bless You all.”
From Wendy: “Today during our fundraiser a little lady called from Preston, MD. Her husband had died on Christmas Day and the lady told us that he found Joy FM, and heard “little Candi.” He fell in love listening to her and he listened every day til he passed away. Now she keeps the radio on all day.”
From Wendy: “During our fundraiser, Donna took a call from a donor who’s grandson listens to us every morning in Iceland!”
From Josh: “During Fall FC, a gentleman called to share that he and his wife, Elsa, were listening to Joy FM after church one Sunday when Elsa realized her need for salvation. She gave her life to Christ that day. Though she has since passed, he finds comfort knowing she’s in Heaven, thanks to Joy FM. Thank you and may God bless You all.”
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Event 1: WPER was at the Brandon Lake concert at the Richmond Raceway (Virginia Credit Union LIVE!) We met these ladies at the Mechanicsville Christmas Parade last year and now they have come to several events and even volunteered at our 25th Birthday Celebration.
Email from a listener:
“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
At 54 years old one starts to reflect on their life and realizes that the greatest gift in this life is accepting Jesus as your Savior. I have always known that there was a God. Now, not only do I know that there is a God, I put him at the forefront of my life, and what a difference my life took.
I have always said, and will continue to always say, that my blessings are so rich, and when we struggle through our trials and tribulations in this earthly world, it just makes those blessings so much richer when we do all things through Christ.
Thank you 90.5 for playing music that feeds the soul!”
From a listener through the app:
“I just want to say how much of a blessing your station is to me. I stepped out in faith to give this year so the words of love of Jesus could get to everyone. This station has brought me through a lot of ups and downs, and really rough places. I pray for you every day, and praying that your goal is met above and beyond what is needed. My daughter and grandkids listen to the station now every day. It has lifted them up in times that they needed it. I don’t know what I would do, or where I’d be, without this station talking about Jesus all the time. It has surely lifted me and keeps me grounded in my faith. I love you guys for what you do, for being there and doing what you do every day. May God richly bless you.
Anita, an avid listener”
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Email from a donor after fundraising: “Hi Theresa! First, I want to thank you and the rest of the WPER team for being such a wonderful gift to me everyday. Listening to the music, the stories from other listeners and the inspiring messages from all of you has been a huge blessing to me and my family. We are now expecting our first grandchild! So I am extremely thankful that I will be able to share this station with him when he arrives in April!!
It is my joy to help in a small way by contributing to the financial needs of the station. Thank you all again for being such an important part of my day, everyday! Blessings to everyone at WPER!”
Received this note, which was with a donation
Note from our Business Partner, Zoe Freedom Center
This is from our friend, Lexy. She is the sweetest little girl and LOVES WPER!!
8 experiences
1 event
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4 emails letters
3,391station app downloads
2,920 Walk FM engagement
65,658 WCQR engagement 1,054 1,455 322
66,401 Joy FM engagement
14,851 Spirit FM engagement
5,856 WPER engagement
64 app downloads
2,392 podcast downloads
340
653
863
275
387 109 last month: 3,897 last month: 3,158 overall total: 35, 337 overall total: 15,670 overall total: 3,460 overall total: 20,942 2,475 36,502 55,329 9,920 5,789 last month
261 overall total: 79,169