One of the many special things about our campus community is the willingness to give to a cause. Many have called on that giving nature, including students and staff that have helped many organizations and community businesses to thrive. Now our campus radio station is looking for those dedicated to continuing a tradition that will allow them to thrive as well.
WEMU 89.1 will begin its spring pledge drive beginning this Thursday in support of raising $165,000 for the station by March 22. There are high hopes of raising $50,000 within the first day, and thanks to the early donations coming in, the total is already $11,000.
Created in 1981, the station’s fundraising donations were greatly supported by National Public Radio (NPR), EMU staff and students and of course, devoted listeners.
WEMU’s spring and fall fundraisers have successfully met and surpassed their goals. Last spring’s fundraiser set a goal of $135,000 and amazingly earned $165,000. True dedication and passion of those willing to maintain its place in the community shined through.
Molly Motherwell, WEMU general manager, voiced her overall excitement and appreciation of the abundance of support the fundraiser has received over the years.
“We get a lot of people who come from the community,” Motherwell said.
“We have musicians, we have politicians, we have community figures. It’s
just really fun when the phone starts ringing a lot. The energy just goes up everyone gets really excited.”
The spring drive counts for approximately 30 percent to 35 percent of their funding received, while the remainder consists of assistance from public broadcasting, EMU and listeners age 50 years and older.
During the broadcast at King Hall, students have played a special role behind the scenes as either a program producers or answering phones.
The responsibilities of the students who signed up to participate in the phone booth include documenting the caller’s pledges for tax deduction purposes. All donors will receive a gift according to their pledge amount, starting at $65 and above.
In addition to traditional donation methods, the WEMU staff has endeavored to become better-connected technologically to students on campus with the recent launch of the free mobile “WEMU Public Radio App.”
Available especially for the Android and iPhone (as well as the iPad and iPod Touch), you can tune into the live broadcast and place a donation easily.
“We think we’re a great asset to EMU,” Motherwell said. “We enjoy the great support from the university and the university’s community. We just encourage everyone to make a pledge and support their community.”
If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact 734-487-2229 or go to WEMU.org.
