Kim Anderson, of Medicine Hat, is a devoted monthly donor. Her dedication stems from her great love of CKUA – she’s an all-waking-hours kind of listener.
It also comes from experiencing something really bad. Kim was an avid listener in 1997 when CKUA went off the air due to inadequate funding and other issues.
“I never want that to ever happen again,” she says adamantly. “It was one of the most depressing times of my life. That’s when I became a monthly donor.”
Now she encourages everyone to become a monthly donor. In the dark days of 1997, staff and volunteers launched the first-ever fundraising campaign. One of the themes was “A dollar a day for CKUA.” It’s always stuck with her.
“If you listen even for just an hour per day, for a dollar? That’s nothing! The value for your money is pretty incredible.”
Kim, a retired medical lab assistant, says she loves the incredible range of music played. “Another thing I like about CKUA is that it evolves,” she says. “I love my program hosts from the past, and they’re like old friends, but it’s always interesting to have new programmers.”
“I appreciate that CKUA seems to have its finger on the pulse, and it’s always switching things up a bit.”
Her favourite switch-up of late is OnDemand, CKUA’s listen-when-you-like feature. It launched last year. “It’s CKUA’s best innovation in ages. I just think it’s the cat’s meow.”
Beyond the music, Kim loves the sense of connection CKUA gives her. “I have so many friends who listen to CKUA. It just makes me happy knowing that we’re listening to the same music at the same time, even as we’re doing our own thing.”
CKUA has also been company during rough times. She’s been immobilized with broken bones three times in the past six years. “CKUA was my connection to the outside world for weeks at a time. I think many people who were trapped at home during COVID felt this way. CKUA is always there.”
Kim says she believes in doing her part to keep CKUA thriving. She loves the music and besides, the memory of 1997 has yet to fade. “It was awful. Nobody knew if it was ever coming back. And then it was really exciting when it came back on.”
If you’d like to join Kim and many others who support CKUA, donate today.
Park Power
