Post by blackcrowheart on Sept 10, 2006 21:23:13 GMT -5
Indian radio station gets boost By DIRK LAMMERS
Associated Press writer Thursday, September 07, 2006
www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/09/07/news/regional/c8731\
f92b708d6af872571e1006f4fc4.txt
<http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/09/07/news/regional/c873\
1f92b708d6af872571e1006f4fc4.txt> SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) --
An American Indian radio station that has been off the air for nearly
five months has been awarded a $46,000 state grant to help repair its
transmission tower.
KILI-FM, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, has been silent since an
April 15 lightning strike.
Tom Casey, KILI's business manager and development director, said the
station had to finalize its funding before ordering the new equipment,
so the earliest it could return to the airwaves would be the end of
October or early November.
"If you ask our listeners, they want it done tomorrow," Casey said
Wednesday.
KILI requested a $201,000 emergency grant from the Public
Telecommunications Facilities Program at the Department of Commerce in
Washington to help replace its antenna, transmission line and
transmitter, and install a grounding system.
The state funds cover the 25-percent match required for the federal
grant.
Gov. Mike Rounds said that without KILI, state officials have no way of
letting Pine Ridge residents know about impending danger.
"KILI is the only dependable means the state, or anyone else, has of
communicating to the public on the Pine Ridge reservation during an
emergency or disaster situation," Rounds said in a release.
The station had been raising funds to cover the match. Casey said that
money will now be used to pay for additional costs for an upgraded
antenna that uses less electricity and to help cover matching funds for
a $125,000 Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant KILI won to help
the station go digital.
The Center for Native American Radio, which offers 33 radio stations
that serve Indians assistance with programming, accounting, engineering
and fundraising, has been helping KILI with its grant proposals.
CNAPR is overseen by the National Federation of Community Broadcasters
in Oakland, Calif., and was established with a $1.5 million grant from
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
America's 4.2 million Indians often live on reservations located far
from each other, increasing the sense of isolation for some of the
nation's poorest, most vulnerable groups. Radio stations that cater to
Indian interests could help boost morale, provide networking
opportunities and give them a sense that they aren't alone, proponents
say.
CNAPR referred the station to a consultant who knows how to write
proposals, Casey said.
"With that expertise, it really helped," he said. "It gave us a leg up
on getting that done."
KILI is the largest Indian-owned and operated public radio station in
the United States, according to state officials. Its 10,000-square-mile
listening area covers parts of the Cheyenne River, Pine Ridge and
Rosebud reservations.
When the station starts broadcasting again, Rapid City residents will be
able to listen in at 88.7 on their FM dial.
Casey said the station's goal is to reflect the community it serves and
highlight positive events going on in Indian Country.
In addition to sharing memorial and birth announcements, the station
typically broadcasts live from events such as the Oglala Lakota College
graduation.
Casey said he's heard from a lot of people who say KILI is a big part of
their daily lives.
"We connect this community," he said.
Associated Press writer Thursday, September 07, 2006
www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/09/07/news/regional/c8731\
f92b708d6af872571e1006f4fc4.txt
<http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/09/07/news/regional/c873\
1f92b708d6af872571e1006f4fc4.txt> SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) --
An American Indian radio station that has been off the air for nearly
five months has been awarded a $46,000 state grant to help repair its
transmission tower.
KILI-FM, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, has been silent since an
April 15 lightning strike.
Tom Casey, KILI's business manager and development director, said the
station had to finalize its funding before ordering the new equipment,
so the earliest it could return to the airwaves would be the end of
October or early November.
"If you ask our listeners, they want it done tomorrow," Casey said
Wednesday.
KILI requested a $201,000 emergency grant from the Public
Telecommunications Facilities Program at the Department of Commerce in
Washington to help replace its antenna, transmission line and
transmitter, and install a grounding system.
The state funds cover the 25-percent match required for the federal
grant.
Gov. Mike Rounds said that without KILI, state officials have no way of
letting Pine Ridge residents know about impending danger.
"KILI is the only dependable means the state, or anyone else, has of
communicating to the public on the Pine Ridge reservation during an
emergency or disaster situation," Rounds said in a release.
The station had been raising funds to cover the match. Casey said that
money will now be used to pay for additional costs for an upgraded
antenna that uses less electricity and to help cover matching funds for
a $125,000 Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant KILI won to help
the station go digital.
The Center for Native American Radio, which offers 33 radio stations
that serve Indians assistance with programming, accounting, engineering
and fundraising, has been helping KILI with its grant proposals.
CNAPR is overseen by the National Federation of Community Broadcasters
in Oakland, Calif., and was established with a $1.5 million grant from
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
America's 4.2 million Indians often live on reservations located far
from each other, increasing the sense of isolation for some of the
nation's poorest, most vulnerable groups. Radio stations that cater to
Indian interests could help boost morale, provide networking
opportunities and give them a sense that they aren't alone, proponents
say.
CNAPR referred the station to a consultant who knows how to write
proposals, Casey said.
"With that expertise, it really helped," he said. "It gave us a leg up
on getting that done."
KILI is the largest Indian-owned and operated public radio station in
the United States, according to state officials. Its 10,000-square-mile
listening area covers parts of the Cheyenne River, Pine Ridge and
Rosebud reservations.
When the station starts broadcasting again, Rapid City residents will be
able to listen in at 88.7 on their FM dial.
Casey said the station's goal is to reflect the community it serves and
highlight positive events going on in Indian Country.
In addition to sharing memorial and birth announcements, the station
typically broadcasts live from events such as the Oglala Lakota College
graduation.
Casey said he's heard from a lot of people who say KILI is a big part of
their daily lives.
"We connect this community," he said.