UMass Boston - Winter/Spring 2007-2008 - (Page 19)

globAl impACt, oNe perSoN At A time Sometimes Monteith will step back, look at pins on the map representing 50 states and 93 countries, and marvel at the fact that 70,000 people tune in per week. But listeners continue to remind her of the station’s impact on an individual level. There’s the woman from New Mexico who credits WUMB for being her companion in a Boston hospital during chemotherapy. And then there’s the local listener who found WUMB on his car radio while living in his car. The words to the songs he heard inspired and encouraged him, an alcoholic, to turn his life around. For the past 20 or so years he has handed Monteith a check for $1,000 in gratitude. “Last year he said he was able to take care of his parents in their last days only because he was sober,” she says. “And he credits us for that.” Global reach notwithstanding, WUMB’s success comes from its intimacy. And the heart and soul of that intimacy emanate from Monteith. Klose recalls a WUMB staff picnic he attended several years ago: open tents set next to the harbor on a sparkling day. But what he particularly recalls is this: “The quality of the connections, and the delight Pat took with everybody who was there, seemed to me very, very special. It was so specifically about her spirit and the spirit of her station.” Leslie Limon is a freelance writer who lives in Salem, Massachusetts. Folk Music—It Makes a Difference in Dollars Too it’s increasingly recognized that cultural activities contribute not only to the quality of life in a region, but also to its economic vitality. As an engine for productivity and growth, the “creative economy” is particularly important in massachusetts—and folk music is an important part of the creative economy. that was made clear when Wumb recently asked Walthambased moryl enterprises to survey folk music artists, performance venues, festivals, and businesses, as well as the station itself, and to estimate the economic impact (direct and indirect) of these people and organizations. the revealing results are as follows: resident artists $1,500,000 Coffeehouses and other venues 918,000 Festivals (excluding boston Folk Festival) 545,000 businesses 9,300,000 Wumb radio 2,270,000 Wumb’s boston Folk Festival 1,270,000 Annual contribution to Massachusetts economy $,0,000 1994 WBPR-FM in Worcester begins to broadcast on 91.9. 1997 First Boston Folk Festival. First Summer Acoustic Music Week. 2002 WNEF-FM in Newburyport begins to broadcast on 91.7. Online archives for members established. 2005 Folk Radio in the mornings becomes The Morning Express with Dick Pleasants. 1995 WFPB-FM in Falmouth begins to broadcast on 91.9. 1998 WFPB-AM in Orleans begins to broadcast on 1170. Falmouth increases power to 6,000 watts. WUMB launches its website. 2000 WUMB begins live Internet streaming and all-folk broadcasting. 2004 WUMB is first public radio station in Northeast to add HD digital signal. 2007 WUMB-FM celebrates 25th anniversary. 2006 WUMB holds symposium on history of folk music in Boston. umass boston n

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of UMass Boston - Winter/Spring 2007-2008

UMass Boston - Winter/Spring 2007-2008 Contents U News Values and Vision, Bricks and Mortar An Inauguration to Remember An Expedition to Iceland An American Original Reciprocal Dedication About Alumni Alumni Calendar A Report on Private Giving Generous Friends

UMass Boston - Winter/Spring 2007-2008

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