Sitemap

Horseshoes and hand-grenades…

3/23/2022

A Good Time Trying

….Where did that thing come from?

We recently wrapped up a fourteen day fundraising Pledge Drive here at KWMR. We came up a bit (well, more than a bit) short of our goal of $50,000. These things happen. I have done at least 25 pledge drives. I was telling some newer staff members that you can never predict how these drives will go. At least it is not boring to work here at KWMR. In fact, there is NEVER a dull moment, at least not that I can recall.

The Pledge Drive campaign will be up a bit longer if you missed the opportunity to donate. Thank you!

Throw a global pandemic into the mix (who would have thought), and the past two years have been a time of adapting, being thankful for good health, and of patience. Patience with one another, with the times we are in, and with myself.

While the fundraising may have come up a bit short, the people involved did not. In fact, it was really cool to see more people this time around, and to have our very first event since March of 2020. The ribbon cutting for the Chazmo bench and the sidewalk sale on March 5th was a really sweet way to kick things off.

And here is what happened on the morning of March 5th.

The Charlie Morgan memorial bench had been shipped to Toby’s (thank you Chris and Oscar) since they have a forklift. It was delivered, wrapped tight as a drum, by Oscar.

Your friendly neighborhood forklift driver, Oscar!   photo: Alyssa Tanner

On Saturday morning I arrived early to get things set up for the sidewalk sale. Tom Kent was here, and when it came time to unwrap the bench, he helped me strip off the layers of plastic and paper that had protected the bench. As we pulled off the last layer, there, on the bench, I kid you not, was a baseball. Not a brand new baseball, just a perfectly worn baseball. Just sitting on the bench.

The baseball.    Tom Kent looks on as Amanda is in awe.    photo: Alyssa Tanner

It was the darnedest thing. That baseball. We all stopped in our tracks and tried to figure out how it got there, when we were pretty sure it was Chazmo. I even called the bench manufacturer, and he had no idea. 

Alexandra Morgan (Charlie’s sister) and Amanda cut the “ribbon.”  photo: Alyssa Tanner

There were some speeches, a few tears shed, and some real-life crowd mingling in front of KWMR. 

The event set the tone for some lively programming, phone answering, tallying of pledges, and the usual “all hands on deck” vibe that accompanies our pledge drives. It was especially great to have actual in person conversations with folks who stopped by the station to drop off their pledges. And I have had a wonderful time chatting with folks while sitting on the bench out front.

A big hearty THANK YOU to everyone who participated in the drive and to our sustaining Calendar Club members. Special thanks to the banner hanging team; Grey Shepard, Neil Dickman, Jeff Manson, Ryan Hett, and Tom Kent. I am very thankful for the KWMR staff, Jeff, Mia, Alyssa, Richard, and Ian. 

Onward!

Thank you for reading our newsletter and for your support of KWMR!

Amanda Eichstaedt
KWMR Station Manager and Executive Director