Did you know there are still a lot of folks out there who don’t know we exist?
We’ve been so busy running the station, developing programs, training interns, adding equipment and more, that we’ve neglected showing our face. Well – that’s about to change. Huntley Radio is going to be out there with some of our hosts letting you know who we are. Bill Geheren, host of “Two Dudes and the Duchess”, has established a Huntley Radio Events Committee. Plans include a Huntley Radio booth at the September 12 Farmers Market, September 19 at Goebberts Fall Fest, September 25 at the Huntley Fall Fest as well as being there in October and beyond. Hopefully, we’ll finally be recognized. We know all of you who read this column know about us. Please drop by our booth and say “Hi!”
Last year, on October 14, 2014, Huntley Radio received its broadcast license from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). As we approach the end of our first year as a Low Power FM Radio Station, we realized we’ve let you know about our shows, and our continuing need for donations, but also realize that we’ve not told you about our great volunteers or our program hosts. Beginning now, I’m going to salute these great people by telling you a little about them.
So here goes. The idea of Huntley having a Low Power FM Radio station started with Allen Pollack. Allen is Huntley Radio’s Executive Director. He lives in Sun City with his wife, Jackie, and they have two children and three grandchildren. Before retiring, Allen was Director of Project Management at Hewlett Packard. Anyone who knows Allen knows he’s very smart and has a great curiosity about many things. While vacationing in Florida, he learned about the new government program establishing low power radio stations around the country. He was intrigued and asked Dorothy Litwin, another Sun City retiree who had worked in television, if she thought it might be something good for the Huntley community. She did and thus began the journey leading to WHRU-FM. They learned all about the program and began by talking to Sun City, the Village of Huntley, the Huntley Park District, Library Board, Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, Kiwanis and other local groups. Everybody thought it was a good idea, so they began putting a board together and planning how they were going to do it. Joining the board were Sun City residents, Pat Molohon, an attorney, and Jim Carollo, a recently retired Chief Engineer from WGN Radio, Pat took care of all the legal details needed to incorporate, get an IRS 501c3 and more. Regular board meetings were held at Dorothy’s Sun City house. Also helping were Lesley Cowles, Joe Loughlin, Paulette Rusk. The board needed to purchase operating equipment, find a location and begin fundraising. After searching for a space they could afford, Thom Palmer, Executive Director of the Huntley Park District, contacted them and offered to rent them space in Deicke Park. It was everything the station needed and they signed a lease. Dorothy Litwin then offered funds in memory of her late husband and all the equipment was ordered and installed. On October of 2012, WHRU-FM began broadcasting 24/7 through the computer. The FCC granted Huntley Radio an FM license in 2014 and FM broadcasting began on October 24 at 101.5. The station is about to celebrate its first anniversary of broadcasting.
Thanks, Allen, for all you’ve done!
