Weather with Bob retiring from weekday airings.

After at least 15 years of being our weather guy, Bob Mitsenbeger is retiring from his weekday weather reports with us live at 9 a.m. This has been an incredible service provided by Bob and one that our community has come to love and trust for what comes from the skies. We are so grateful for his years of weather for the station and we will miss his iconic voice bringing us the snow, sleet, rain, and sun forecasts. His last weekly report was Friday, June 16 at 9am with Tonio. You can listen back to it on our archives.

This isn’t a total goodbye to Bob! He will continue to do weather and extended conversation with Alan & Steven on the “Curse of the Golden Turnip” on Sunday mornings at 7am.

You can also call in for his weather daily still via 802-454-7707.

Thanks, Bob for all the weather!

CVCR Board of Director Openings & Application

Central Vermont Community Radio (CVCR), the nonprofit organization that is the FCC licensee for the radio stations of WGDR Plainfield & WGDH Hardwick, is seeking volunteer leaders to join its board of directors. 

CVCR serves the communities of north central VT and beyond by providing a forum for cultivating social change, supporting the independent arts, protecting the environment and celebrating diversity, creativity, and freedom.  More information about CVCR and its mission can be found at: www.wgdr.org

Board members are actively involved in organizational governance and policy development and are expected to attend monthly board meetings, participate on board committees, make personal financial contributions and participate in the organization’s fundraising campaigns.

The board needs a variety of skills, with a strong emphasis on board candidates with accounting, human resource, legal, and media expertise, as well as those connected to the local arts community, cultural organizations, foundations and the underrepresented communities of central Vermont.

The Nominating Committee is accepting applications until July 7th. Those interested in applying for the board can complete an application here. It includes a handful of questions and will take about 15 minutes to complete.

All applications will be reviewed by the Nominating Committee and prospective candidates will be contacted to schedule an interview with the full board via zoom.

For more information, contact the CVCR Board Chair Mark Michaelis via email at: Board@WGDR.org.

Station Update: Your soundtrack to summer.

Friday, May 26, 2023

Friends of WGDR/WGDH -

The beautiful weather is finally upon us (what's a little May snow?) and we're ready to be your soundtrack for summer. We've got a new paid summer intern from UVM who will also be helping to get us out to community events, parades, festivals, farmers' markets, and more this summer to help spread the WGDR/WGDH love. Keep reading to learn more!

TUNE IN TO THE FINISHED NEW SCHEDULE

New voices are on the air at Central Vermont Community Radio. We just completed the biggest schedule change in recent memory and we are feeling really excited about it. Long-time listeners have been excited too, finding new shows to enjoy and we've brought in many, many new listeners too, going from 2,000 streamers before the schedule change to over 3,000 with the new line up. Wow!

This new schedule more than doubles the number of locally made programs, from 23 to 51 shows, with 34 of these local shows live. We also took the schedule from 66 total shows (with lots of reruns) to 103, each with one airtime per week. In addition to the 28 new local shows, you will hear:

• Our overnight transformed into a listening delight with news shows of musically diverse genres of reggae, latin, ambient, and more.
• Our Monday-Friday early mornings are slightly shifted to create a better balance between news and information and creative content.  Starting in June, weekday mornings will feature:
• Thom Hartman Program at 5am, with his analysis of the headlines of the week;
• Background Briefing with Ian Masters at 6am, (its current slot), with his mix of interviews and analysis;
• then at 7am, based on a lot of feedback from listeners, we’ll then take a break from the headlines and analysis and air more creative content with the local show Magpie in the Morning with Delia (music), new syndicated shows Bike Talk and Writers Voice, and two Vermont-made podcasts, Write the Book and Rumblestrip.
• at 8am, you'll hear the live broadcast of Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now, which as aired in this slot for decades.

The Programming Committee (PC) carefully curated program selection, ensuring that we continue to air nearly all of the long-loved national shows like Letters & Politics, Sprouts, UpFront Soul, All Mixed Up, and Democracy Now. They also added quite a few new syndicated shows. We encourage you to explore the new schedule, learn about all the new shows, and rest assured that your favorite long-time-running local and syndicated shows are still on the air, they just may have new airtimes to make room for the new local shows. The PC will continue to take your feedback about the schedule and make tweaks as the year goes on as appropriate. Thank you all for finding more to tune in for.

NEW CVCR SWAG STORE

You've waited long enough for new station swag! Just in time for summer, we launched an online store with t-shirts, sweatshirts, totes, and cups with some beloved past designs and our current station branding. They make great gifts and even better ways to treat yourself. We'll add more designs for the 50th anniversary in the coming months, so if you don't see a design you like, check back soon. The station gets the same return on investment for all the swag you see, as we did when we had to manage and mail all the swag ourselves. So, shop away!

UNDERWRITING & SPONSORING THE STATION

We are seeking new underwriters and sponsors for the station this year. If your business or organization is looking to get the word out about what you do and the services you offer, we encourage you to check out our rates. Underwriting are the on-air mentions you hear before shows. Sponsorships are for our events, like the upcoming 50th party this fall, and our digital outlets like a pre-roll of our live stream and digital ads.

We reach 70,000 households and businesses with our broadcast, with thousands more online each month through our streaming, website, newsletters, and social media. Plus, our listeners are loyal! They are eager to support those who support the station. Learn more today and spread the word. If you are interested in underwriting or sponsoring, email underwriting@WGDR.org.

Kenneth l. Feld music library

In mid-May, we gathered as a station with the Feld family to honor our long-time music programmer Ken Feld by naming our vast music library after him. Ken represented the best of community radio. He was generous with his time to teach new programmers, he lovingly curated his weekly shows for listeners, and he never stopped crate digging for the next tune.

It is our honor to make sure all the hundreds of programmers to come at WGDR/WGDH are able to dig in our stacks and discover new artists the way Ken loved to.

Thank you, Ken, for all the tunes. <3

Final Spring Drive Results

We are all so proud of that Spring Drive. Everyone stepped up to make it our most successful one yet as CVCR. Programmers brought their creativity and energy on the air and listeners came through!

❤️ $9,600 raised ($10,000 goal) (most ever for a drive)

❤️ 132 total donors (most ever for a drive)

❤️ 41+ new donors (50 goal) (most ever for a drive)

❤️ 10 new sustainers (10 goal)

Thank you all so much for the support.

As always, thanks for tuning in,

Llu Mulvaney-Stanak, Station Manager

Llu@WGDR.org, 802-276-0365

WGDR/WGDH broadcasts at 91.1 FM in the greater Plainfield area, 91.7 FM in the hollows and hills of Hardwick and beyond, and at WGDR.org to the whole world. Our studio is located at the Eliot Pratt Center on Goddard College campus at 123 Pitkin Road, Plainfield, VT 05667.

Follow us on social media on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook at @WGDRWGDHVT

Tune in! We Sound So Good

Many of the programmers you are hearing on the new WGDR/WGDH schedule, at our May meeting.

New voices are on the air at Central Vermont Community Radio. We just completed the biggest schedule change in a long time and we are feeling really excited about it. This revamped schedule has returned the schedule to a majority of live and local programming. By June the entire new schedule will be live.

This new schedule more than doubles the number of locally made programs, from 23 to 51 shows, with 34 of these local shows live. We also took the schedule from 66 total shows (with lots of reruns) to 103, each with one airtime per week.

The Programming Committee carefully curated program selection, in addition to approving 27 new shows, they ensured that we continue to air many of the long-loved national shows like Letters & Politics, Sprouts, UpFront Soul, All Mixed Up, Democracy Now, and that we added quite a few new syndicated shows.

Our overnights are now transformed into a listening delight with music shows of diverse genres.

Our Monday-Friday early mornings are now “more awesome in the AM” with a balance between news and information and more creative content. This will begin in June by:

• Starting the morning news/information programs with the Thom Hartman Program from 5-6 am.

• Background Briefing with its mix of interviews and analysis is up next in its current 6-7 am slot.

• We’ll then add new local and Vermont-made creative content, including Rumble Strip and Write the Book, in the 7-8 am slots.

• We’ll finish the start of the day with the live broadcast of Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now from 8 am-9 am. 

  These changes are reflective of the Program Committee’s goal to present favorite national shows as well as prioritizing locally made content. Rumble Strip, produced by Erica Heilman, is a Peabody Award-winning show that features powerful and personal stories from everyday Vermonters. Write the Book by host Shelagh Shapiro offers wide-ranging interviews with authors about their work and their creative process. These morning adjustments were made after the feedback we got from listeners on our previous schedule changes. 

Check Out All the New Shows, Local & Syndicated

New & Returning Locally-Made Programs

Find the airtimes of all shows on our schedule.

• The Immanent Grove w/ Conni Mags - cultural music, traditions, and stories that celebrate diversity and will entertain.

• The Revel Level w/ Emma Manion-Kohr - a music show with a variety of music to make you dance.

• Kaleidoscope w/ Will Ibey - a youth-programmed music show of progressive rock and beyond.

• Blluminations w/ Stefanie Lingenfelter - a talk show focusing on healing, plant medicine, and more through interviews and music.

• *Returning on the air & live! Magpie in the Morning w/ Delia Gillen - a music show with world, folk, cajun, and bluegrass.

• Theme Time Radio w/ Sydonia Axis - themed shows with poems, musings, and music from all parts of the world.

• Gilded Splinters w/ Kevin Titterton - a free-form music show with experimental, obscure psych rock, ambient and global sounds.

• Borderlands w/ Stefan Nickum - dance music, from house to electronic music, celebrating club culture sounds.

• Deep Blues w/ Les Mawson -a music show keeping the love of blues alive.

• All the Crooked Saints w/ DJ Sacramento - A music show featuring covers and educational content on themes and topics of the day.

• Get Fresh with DJ Llu - new music focus, featuring the latest releases in rock, R&B, and RPM each week.

• *Returning live! Woodwarbler’s Jazzgrass Show w/ Brian Aust - jazz, folk, and more muisc.

• Still Life with Club Soda w/ Serena Matt - a variety show of music and talk, focused on community engagement and sharing of resources.

• Still Live with Orange Peel Ada Bowman - a variety show of music and talk, focused on community engagement and sharing of resources.

• *Returning on the air & live! Women Stirred Radio w/ Merry Gangemi - A talk and interview-based show (returning on the air & live!)

• Country Sounds in Modern Music w/ Barry Matthews - a music show focusing on Americana and non-mainstream country.

• Rumblestrip w/ Erica Heilman - A Peabody award-winning Vermont-based podcast, telling the stories of Vermonters everyday lives.

• August’s Show - a youth-programmed variety of music

• Oliva’s Show - a youth-programmed variety of music

• The Jive Turkey Show w/ Turkey Joe - a youth-programmed variety of music

• Barn Dance Bluegrass w/ Daniel & Kellon Menucci - bluegrass music featuring traditional and local music

• Write the Book w/ Shelagh Shaprio - a Vermont-based podcast interviewing Vermont authors.

• Bread & Salt w/ Maria Shuman - a story-based show of family oral histories and traditional music.

• Pollinator Report w/ Emily Lanxner - a talk show with interviews and other content focused on Vermonters focused on protecting pollinators in our state.

• Kitchen Permaculture w/ Rebecca Beidler - a talk show about local and seasonal food, cooking, growing food, and more.

• Predictably Unpredictable w/ Chris Buckridge - a music show celebrating creativity and freedom of off-beat expression in genres of rock and beyond.

• The Metal Edge w/ Willis Pratt (returning on the air!) - a music show featuring rock and heavy rock.

• Hoi Polloi w/ Damien Taylor - a variety show of music and talk focusing on activism and the issues of our day.

• The weather with Bob has also returned to its former schedule, Monday-Friday live at 9am and Sundays live at 7am.

Continuing Locally-Made Programs

Find the airtimes of all shows on our schedule.

• Curse of the Golden Turnip w/ Alan LePage and Steven Farnham

• Transformational Listening w/ Dennis Darrah

• Thought Pasture w/ Maura Quinn

• Spanning the Chasm w/ Peter Goreau

• Bon Mot w/ Rick Agran

• Personal & Political w/ Stephanie Fraser

• Trailing Edge w/ David Ferland

• InCommon Sounds w/ Brother B

• Gathering Peace w/ Joseph Gainza (returning live!)

• The Quilting Hour w/ Maura Quinn or Sasha Thayer

• Spawning Stones w/ Ben Bashore

• Music as Art w/ Uku Meri

• Relocalizing Vermont w/ Carl Etnier

• Hittin’ the Note w/ Bill Hahn

• Xav Wax w/ Xav Jimenez

• Flow Eclectic & Heavy Metal Radio w/ DJ Eben Flow

• Magical Mystery Tour w/ Tonio Epstein

• Long and Winding Road w/ Dave Tucker (now 3 hours!)

• Geezer Rock w/ Jeff Lindholm (now 2 hours and back live!)

• The Meltdown w/ KingTone

• Amy’s Kids’ Show w/ Amy Hornblas

• Boxful of Blues w/ John Foster

• Acoustic Harmony w/ Mark Michaelis

• The Beatdown w/ Z-Point

New Syndicated Shows

Find the airtimes of all shows on our schedule.

• Food Sleuth - a national program exploring food systems and challenges in the U.S.

• Green Bubble Tea - a music show focusing on the music of South-Eastern Asia

• Prison Pipeline - a national program about the prison industrial complex

• Train to Skaville - a music show focusing on Jamaican music and the genre of ska

• Rockin’ the Rez - a syndicated music show of Americana and classic rock from KPRI, a station is owned by the Pala Band of Mission Indians.

• Dancehall/Reggae Show - a syndicated music show of dancehall beats and reggaeton.

• Cafe Chill - a syndicated music show of ambient music.

• Soul Star Radio - a syndicated music show of R&B and soul.

• All Things Cage - a syndicated music show featuring the music of and inspired by John Cage.

• Green St. News - a national program about environmental health

• Latin Explosion - a syndicated Latin music show

• Modern Jet Set - a syndicated variety music show

• Adagio - a syndicated variety music show

• Squeakers Sea Castle - a syndicated variety music show

• Bike Talk - a national show all about biking and bike culture

• Writers Voice - a national show featuring interviews with authors

Continuing Syndicated Shows

Find the airtimes of all shows on our schedule.

• Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour

• Big Picture Science Show

• Timeless Oldies Radio Hour

• Short Wave Report

• Rock Sexy

• Out of the Woods

• Thom Hartmann Program (1 hour best of)

• Background Briefing with Ian Masters

• Democracy Now, 8am live show and 6pm daily rerun

• Making Contact

• Economic Update

• Letters & Politics (Monday-Thursday)

• Deep Threes

• Rising Up with Sonali

• Alternative Radio

• The Final Straw

• All Mixed Up

• New Dimensions

• And You Don’t Stop

• Oldies Time Machine

• Indigenous Music

• Afronsonic Taxi

• Upfront Soul

• Baroque and Beyond

• Counterspin

• Law and Disorder

• Peace Talks Radio

• Sprouts

• This Way Out

• TUC Radio

• Radio Free Albany Blues Show

• What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?

• Planetary Radio

• The Children’s Hour

• Full Moon Hacksaw

Syndicated Shows Retiring

• Juke in the Back - Retired due to violation of the DMCA law, a liability we could not risk with broadcasting and streaming the show anymore.

• Moccasin Tracks, Dark Side of the Tune - Retired due to frequent technical and length issues.

• Explorations - Retired due to no longer providing new content.

• Thom Hartmann Programm (3-hour full show, overnights)

• Dark Side of the Tune - retired due to technical issues with our new scheduling system

• For the Wild - retired by Programming Committee decision

• Vets for Peace - retired by Programming Committee decision

• Rock Sexy - show retiring in June, by its producer

Feedback on the Schedule

We know that these changes may not please all listeners. However, we’re confident that once you hear about these new shows, you will enjoy the freshness and diversity that it adds to our schedule. It’s a work in progress, and we’ll continue to adjust as the need arises.

We welcome your feedback about our programming at CVCR. You can send an email to the Station Manager, Llu Mulvaney-Stanak at Llu@WGDR.org and they will pass it on to the Programming Committee.

Thank you for listening.

Shop the CVCR Swag Store

You’ve waited long enough!

We just launched our first CVCR Swag Store to help celebrate 50 years of WGDR. You’ll find designs of the past, CVCR logo swag, and soon, special 50th-anniversary swag.

Shop for t-shirts, sweatshirts, tote bags, and cups. They make great gifts and even better treats for yourself.

This online store allows us to save time and a ton of money upfront in managing a store. Thanks to our supporters covering the shipping and tax, we get the same return on investment in merch we always have. We’ll be adding new designs, created by local artists and designers, throughout 2023 for the 50th, so check back often.

Go ahead and splurge. You’ll look great!

Underwrite or Sponsor WGDR & WGDH

 Underwriting or sponsoring the station is a fantastic way to support the station.

We have a diverse array of over 50 locally-made shows and over 100 shows total that draw in listeners from across Central and Northern Vermont. Along with thousands streaming online each month, we reach at least 70,000 households and businesses in our broadcast area. By underwriting or sponsoring with us, you will reach a loyal base of Vermonters who are eager to support those who support the station.

Our new rates are posted and we have lots of prime schedule slots available on a first come first purchase basis. We offer the most affordable rates, by far, of any media outlet in our area (we checked!). If you are interested in learning more, contact us at Underwriting@WGDR.org or call 802-276-0365.

What is Underwriting?

Underwriting is not advertising. It is a neutral, 15-second mention of your services or entity in exchange for on-air placement. It is a non-tax deductible way to financially support our community-owned station, with a big return for your generosity from our listeners supporting you back.

We welcome businesses, nonprofits, municipalities, schools and colleges, and sole proprietorships to underwrite the station. We offer 6-month or full-year rates, starting at mentions once a week and going up to 5 a week.

We’re the best deal out of any media outlet opportunities in our area (we checked!).

What is Sponsorship?

Sponsorship is a promotion for your entity or services as part of a station event, on our digital outlets, or as a pre-roll recording for our live stream. Sponsorship is far more flexible than FCC rules for underwriting for scripts but also does not include on-air broadcast mentions. Sponsorship packages range in options depending on if they are connected to an event or digital packages.

Learn more about underwriting and sponsorship and see who already supports us.