2011
Isn't it weird, that when we flip the page on the calendar we don't know what adventures lie ahead? Like on Friday January 28, the CRTC revoked the radio licence of 88.1 CKLN in Toronto, owned by Ryerson University. On Monday January 31, I released a media advisory that Trust Communications would be applying for the vacant licence. Toronto finally gets a Christian radio station? Let's wait and see!
Jammin' Jeff and I reunited for supper one cold January evening. Jeff ruled Slammin' Christian Hits for five years and left his mark on LIFE history. It was good to catch up, hang out and reminisce.
Then, after one of the worst snow storms to hit Toronto, I ventured into the city to tour Q107 at their new studio location on the waterfront. I could write a novel about this "radio showpiece" but someone from Q would be able to tell the story much better than I.
I met with Program Director Blair Bartrem and midday host Joanne Wilder and soaked up as much info and wisdom as I could. From that meeting I invited Joanne to hold a seminar for the LIFE announce staff later in April.
My Dad looked out the window of his retirement living room and saw his Chev Aveo under the snow in the parking lot. He decided he was tired of driving (age 85) and donated the Aveo to LIFE 100.3. Yes, donated! The Aveo became our third vehicle and we wrapped it with graphics to match the other vehicles in the fleet. Thanks Dad!
February 22, Geoff Moore turned 50. It was years ago that I discovered "Rescue Me" and "A Friend Like U." Geoff's songs were the catalysts to my discovery of Christian music, then Christian radio which led eventually to the vision of LIFE 100.3. So, I thought a short birthday tribute on this blog to Geoff would be suitable. Happy Birthday, Geoff!
In February, two big promotions were happening. "Couples Night Out" was a co-presents with World Vision. WV always puts on great evenings for couples and girls. (Hey, what about the boys?!) In Newmarket Janice and I attended "CNO" with music by Greg Sczebel.
LIFE 100.3 acquired the movie rights to "Letters From God". We took the film to 13 churches across Central Ontario. Movies seem to be a big hit with LIFE listeners and it gives our Street Team a reason to visit listeners in many cities.
In March, it was vacation time. But a vacation for me always includes visiting another radio station. I mean - what could be more fun?! In this case, Janice and I flew to Los Angeles for five days and my visit included a stop at KIIS-FM.
It is the highest revenue making station in the U.S. It's impact on other radio stations is obvious. It is also the full-time job for Ryan Seacrest. But you know what? As honouring as it was to visit KIIS, the facilities at KISS don't come close to Q107 in Toronto - in size, in class or in bigness!
March means Sharathon. This year we added social media to the presentation. In my office created a mini-TV-set where we shot video of pastors and rock stars. With AJ filming, Crystal posting status updates on line and Kristen updating the donation totals, Sharathon went into orbit! The videos that weren't posted were saved for future use. Pastors brought their church staff to Phone Central to take pledges. Artists come to perform - Sean Dayton, To Tell, Levi DenBok, Andy Taylor, Miranda Fox and Jody Cross. In the end, Sharathon totals were outstanding as we surpassed both the monthly goal and the one-time goal. Praise God! Thank you LIFE listeners!
Sharathon signed off on Thursday night. Two days later, Steve Jones and I were off to Toronto to see Steven Curtis Chapman and Geoff Moore in concert. SCC is to Steve Jones what Geoff Moore is to me, so seeing them together was a special night. The show was at Queensway Cathedral in Toronto.
Before the ice began to melt, LIFE went to winter carnivals, including one in Owen Sound where Ben and Woody took in the polar bear dip!
It was good to be on the air. While AJ is doing the 10-Noon shift, I still get to jump on from time to time, just to fill-in. It's the combination of the music, the contests, the listeners on the phone, chatting on Facebook, the Street Team stuff and the current events all mixed together and I get to be the glue between it all.I enjoy the managerial stuff but being on-air is like playing in the sandbox. It's fun - and I miss it.
April was one month of amazing prices, thanks to Jen Melanson.
Every day we gave away a $500 prize, in contest we called "30 Things In 30 Days".
Steve Jones and I did a Christian radio tour of the Prairies with stops at KAOS in Fort McMurray, SHINE-FM in Grande Prairie, SHINE-FM in Edmonton and CHVN and IGNITE 107 in Winnipeg. It's always great to hook up with other guys who work in Christian radio. We talk by email but rarely, or never, meet. The four-station tour was a bit nuts. Every night after dinner we flew to another city. We felt like rock stars! By the third day we zonked from flying but on the fourth day in Winnipeg, we caught our breath and enjoyed the tour. Made new friends and stole some ideas!
One week after the radio tour was Air Raid 19 and for the first time we took the concert to two cities - Peterborough on June 3 and Barrie June 4, 2011. The line-up was headlined by Hawk Nelson (“Letters To The President”) and supported by Manafest (“Fire In The Kitchen”), B. Reith (“Knockin' On My Door”), and To Tell (“Safe To Say”). In Peterborough more than 450 people showed up at Calvary Church which was a huge encouragement. The Barrie show had close to 800 kids at Mapleview. Hawk Nelson put on the best show of all the Air Raids. B. Reith - we had not seen him perform before but he wasn't touring in our area, so by request he came!
So, one day I'm sitting in my office at the computer, minding my own business when I hear a - B O O M! Not a crash. Not a bang. But - - B O O M! My office walls shook! Terrorist? Explosion? I looked out my window and there was the back half of a van. The front half was not visible because it was - in the building! We ran outside and saw the van, having busted down the glass doors and took out several pieces of brick! The driver and his wife were visiting a medical office in our building and got out of the van without being hurt. I stood there, looking at the van, just 6 feet from my office window. I could feel the hand of God on me, around me, protecting me. It was so real; I was frozen in that thought of "a very close call".
In June, LIFE presented "The Heart of Worship" concerts. Yes, two. We had Barrie planned nearly a year in advance with four worship artists. Bringing in four guys requires a lot of planning and we felt doing a second show would make it worthwhile for everyone. So, during Sharathon we challenged listeners by awarding a free concert in the city with the most donors per capita - and Huntsville won! Chris Bray came from London, Sean Dayton from North Bay, Dan Macaulay from New Haven, CT and Dan Bremnes from Salmon Arm, BC.
Dan and I met last year in Calgary at a conference and his stage presence for worship music blew me away. So we flew in Dan and his band, who became the "house band" for both shows. Dan and I hit it off and we spent three days together at shows and cruising Toronto.
I bought a new bike this year - a Specialized Roubaix. (Specialized is the manufacturer - it's not a specially designed bike, although that would be nice!) If the day is nice I try to sneak out of the office early, but it doesn't happen often enough.
In August we launched more billboards, which we find very effective judging by listener comments. Billboards, positioned in key locations with lots of traffic, are a great way to build loyalty with current listeners, and hopefully repatriate listeners from other stations. Peterborough got their 89.3 billboard and Barrie, Orillia and Midland got the "Bad Company" campaign. The message is "bad company corrupts good character" from 1 Corinthians 15:33. Can you believe we actually got a listener complaining that we were making fun of the 70's rock band Bad Company? Yeeesh!
In August, we boarded the Peterborough Sunset Cruise for a 3 hour dinner ride on the Otonabee River. Andy Taylor from LIFE's Karaoke Superstar performed with his band, and my son, Brett and his wife opened the night as "Handsome and Gretyl".
Woody Woodland left LIFE in July. We were sad to see him leave but we replaced him with Maria Lopez who came to us from 105.9 SHINE-FM in Edmonton where she did the midday show. Maria has a long resume of broadcasting experience from radio, TV, traffic, promotions, sales and on-air. We're lucky to have her on the team as Ben's new co-host!
Newsboys launched a ten-city cross-Canada tour. "Maple Noise" came to Toronto at Catch The Fire church, also known to most people as the Toronto Vineyard. On the tour was a big roster of Canadian bands including our good friends To Tell, Manic Drive, Manafest, TFK, Jody King and Jon Bauer.
I admit, I thought Michael Tait would last one year as their new lead singer. I kinda figured he was too big in his own right. But now, more than two years later, he is sounding great and as a band they are all looking great. Tait takes the familiar Newsboys songs and does them his way, which isn't better or worse - just different. Different is cool and fun. And man is he a great preacher! I really like the new show!
Still sounding fresh and relevant at age 44 is Toby Mac. He played in Toronto September 24 at "Church On The Queensway". I was waiting backstage to get a concert poster autographed for the LIFE studio. The stage intro played and Toby dashed through the room, signed the poster, posed for a photo and left for the stage. With a few second remaining in the intro Toby stopped at the door and said to me, "hey thanks for promoting the show". That's the first time I remember a big artist saying thank you to me. Nice.
During the Toby Mac show fans were jumping and singing along and others just stood there. I'm guessing those who knew the songs came from Barrie and Kitchener where Christian radio promoted the show but Toronto fans probably didn't know his songs because there's no Christian radio. I stood in the audience thinking about our pursuit of a Toronto license and was actually getting excited. Up til this point I was only applying out of listener peer pressure, not because I felt God's call. At that moment I felt a hand on my head. It was warm. There was nobody near me and I felt weird. I remember thinking, "wow, is the calling, now?" Now I'm excited! In my mind's eye I pictured our new radio banner hanging over the balcony at Church on the Queensway. Wow! The excitement did not leave!
LIFE went on location to the Huntsville Fair where Ben and Maria rode the ferris wheel for three days! It was a fun stunt. Here's a video.
Evan Duran produced a sexual addiction show, hosted by Ben and Paul Lavergne a therapist. We got many encouraging reports from listeners about our boldness to tackle a sensitive issue. But I also started getting an abnormal amount of negativity - about everything. Listeners complained about the sex show, listeners complained about songs and artists we play; listeners complained about our "Bad Company Corrupts" billboard. Some of the complaints were nasty and combative. Even inside our team there was controversy. Is this like a spiritual attack meant to discourage us? Man, it sure was a discouraging time!
I left my church in Alliston after we bought a house closer to Orillia. Leaving APC also meant leaving the regular drum gigs, that is, until Tom Roe came along. He invited me to play several times, often with different musicians along side. We seemed to find a home and fit in leading worship at Living For Jesus Outreach Ministries in Orillia.
Late October - Gospel Music Association Canada hosted four days of music showcases and seminars for radio and artists. I try to go every year.
The best part is the schmoozing - meeting the Canadian artists we play on the radio. (And a bit of scoping out new radio talent!) Geoff Moore and Steve Taylor (not Canadians) were guest speakers. Both guys have a deep history in Christian music.
Christmas time! The LIFE 100.3 staff party was held at the Southshore Community Centre in Barrie, overlooking Kempenfelt Bay. We had musical entertainment by Handsome and Gretyl (my son Brett and his wife), magic by Sawyer Bullock and "The Price Is Right" hosted by Crystal Summers.2012
When Zach Havens told me about his CD release in London, (his home town), I insisted he do a companion release for Barrie fans, which he did on January 13. We picked a trendy art gallery off Dunlop Street in Barrie. Unfortunately it snowed like crazy and the turnout was less than we wanted but it didn't hold back To Tell from performing a blistering set of songs!
The application for 88.1 in Toronto was never far from my thoughts that winter. The first Advisory Committee meeting was held in Newmarket - Eric Spath, Reg Middel, Sean Wood, Paul Firminger, Herbie Kuhn, Fazal Karim, Drew Brown, Hiram Joseph and Maria Lopez. (Later TCM Chair Andrew Hamilton) We began planning for the CRTC hearing in May. Ahhh, the project that never ends.
Every month I write a promo spot for a mainstream artist, asking God to touch lives. In January I chose the CBC "Cover Me Canada" winners Whosarmy - four guys fromToronto with a great pop/rock sound whom I became a fan of. They had a show in Cannington during the dog sled races. Apparently two of the boys are from that area - I went to the show, loved the gig and said hey to the guys, and later in February the did a show in a church in Uxbridge. Praying for these guys!
Air Raid 20 was held at Timothy Christian School in Barrie on February 25. This show was booked four months ahead, with more prep time than any other Air Raid. House of Heroes drove their bus in from Ohio, V. Rose flew in from California, Manic Drive from Mississauga were just returning from the States and Behold! The City were the local opening screamo act. Jen Melanson was on maternity leave so Rozz Maassarany filled in, coordinating most of this event. Thanks to me we only went over budget by $2,500 - but it was worth it! 610 fans, flying sharks over their heads and batlights flooding the winter sky!
V. Rose performed a short 5 song set. It was uncomfortable to watch just her on that big stage singing to tracks. "Ooh My Ahh" and "Battery" sounded great but her set ended with a drabby version of "Here I Am To Worship" that, most people said, went about 4 choruses too long. The highlight though, was off-stage, while during Manic Drive and House Of Heroes set, V was at her merch booth signing autographs and talking to teen girls, non-stop. It was REAL ministry!
Sharathon promotion began on March 1 with this video.
March 11, Ben Davy was the guest speaker at Malvern Christian Assembly in Scarborough.
Here is an amazing church, that listens to LIFE thru the static of cloud cover and supports us with a fat cheque of $5,000!
Ben gave a message about being the salt of the earth - he was at the top of his game!
The same month, Chris Bray performed at West Oro Baptist Church. It was his return appearance, bringing with him new songs from his “Hope Arise” album. Chris and I had become good friends over the last couple of years. After he and his wife hung out at the house for the afternoon, we set up at the church and I was invited to play djembe along side. My first time playing drums with a recording act! Big fun!
Our 13th Sharathon "Lift Me Up" was the most successful to date. More pledges (1,886), busting thru the roof for goals – monthly $24,518 and one-time $148,478. For the first time, the monthly goal was reached before the one-time and it is the toughest to fulfill. This was Maria Lopez's first Sharathon at LIFE – she caught on immediately. In radio, we play practical jokes while the DJ is on the air, to see how far we can push them before they mess up – if they're really good, the listener will not notice any interruption. I poured a half a bottle of ice cold water down Jordan Cruz's shirt while he was announcing donor thank-you's! He didn't shrug! Quite the pro!
Chris Bray was back in Barrie for the second time that week. We invited him to lead us in a live version of “Shout To The Lord” – the song we always play after announcing the totals. It was an exciting, heartfelt few moments with the entire staff and volunteers in the studio, rejoicing in the moment of achievement while giving God the glory.
This Sharathon was a tough one for me. On Day One depression got the best of me; I went home at 4 o'clock feeling bummed out. I was back for Day Two, only dropping by a couple of times in midday, saving my concentration and stamina for the last 3 hours on Day Two. Also on Day Two, we were served with a letter of intervention against our Toronto FM application by another radio station – very disheartening, and then moments later, our receptionist's husband was laid off his job after 43 years.
The goals were met and God supplied our needs for another year as He promised, and Sharathon 2012 was – truly amazing! The LIFE After Party was thrown privately by a listener – a very blessed night.