KVMR seems to be blessed with a Phoenix-like ability to turn a seemingly disastrous situation into a magical opportunity. I've had the honor to witness this phenomena on many occasions but one stands out in relief.

By mid-1998, we had overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles to replace our failing transmission facility on Banner Mountain. We had secured a federal grant, successfully raised our matching share, been granted a new FCC permit for the project, filed all of the necessary county paperwork, and withstood contentious public hearings. Everything appeared to be in order.

As we were filing the final papers, we discovered that because of our proximity to the local airport, we would have to have a beacon light on the top of our new tower, a condition that was specifically forbidden by Nevada County. We explored every possible mitigation measure imaginable and there was no way around it. Our project was stalled. Our team had worked for over a year to be cut off just steps short of the finish line. We were devastated and broken.

I had called the office of the Federal Aviation Administration - the folks who require beacons - no fewer than a dozen times over many months. I can't remember why I phoned them that last time; we had pretty much conceded defeat. But one morning, I got the right person on the phone, she was in a good mood, I said things the right way, she saw things in a slightly different perspective than before, we figured out a way to process the forms that might allow things to go differently. . . and by the time I hung up the phone, we had our final approval.

The transmitter replacement project yielded, and continues to yield, a wealth of memories for the KVMR treasure chest. I remember standing on Banner summit in December 1998--the day before my birthday--when the backhoe broke ground for our new tower. I remember watching Eric Rice, Richard Tewes, Michael Keene, Thomas Greener, and Dan Bertsch working together to build our new transmitter shack. And of course, the day we threw the switch and changed the course of history at KVMR--effectively doubling our signal area in one minute. They're all such colorful memories. But for me, it goes back to a chance morning when those magical forces that work in mysterious ways at KVMR, leveraged a phone call that made all those other memories possible.
by Brian Terhorst,
Station Manager

In November of 1979, The Mountain Messenger did a cover story on KVMR--"The 10-Watt Station with 2000-Watt Ideas."

We thought you'd enjoy a look back there as well as stories and memories of our past and present KVMR folks.

Here are some of the photos that ran with that 1979 story;

Lee Amundsen, KVMR Founder

by Laura Miller

KVMR's founder, Lee Amundsen, is a dreamer. He's always coming up with ideas and then takes action to make things happen. Lee's vision for a radio station started in the mid-70s. His plan to start a radio station was born out of necessity, simply because there was no radio station in Nevada City. His original intent was to start a commercial radio station. A local realtor, Leonard Carey, introduced Amundsen to David Osborne and Charles Woods, founders of the American Victorian Museum in Nevada City. This meeting shifted the focus of the radio station to a non-commercial, community station. Since a non-profit status was needed to hold the FCC license, the American Victorian Museum became the original licensee of KVMR. The first choice for call letters was KAVM, but those call letters were not available, so KVMR was selected (it has a better ring to it).

After KVMR signed on in July, 1978, Amundsen had little to do with the day-to-day operations of the radio station. Although he owned property in Nevada County, he resided in Sacramento throughout KVMR's formative years. Lee recently left his business, Midtown Photo in downtown Sacramento, to pursue another dream. He's now in Hawthorne, Nevada where he is starting another community radio station, KQMC at 90.1 FM.

What would life be without all of the idea people?

Dear KVMR Friends,

"I had totally forgotten Lee's name, or would have included his story of having Kriananda appear at the foot of his bed instructing Lee to start a community radio station in Nevada City. Shortly after I began as GM Lee came up from Sac and we had one of the surreal strolls down the old Downieville Highway, which I hope remains a meeting locale you utilize now and then..."

I sit here behind my desk as the General Manager of KBCS-FM, a terrific little community radio station, operated by Bellevue Community College.

We're celebrating our 30th Anniversary this year. I came back home to the Pacific Northwest to take this job in 2000, after a short, 17 year detour for college, kids and community building in Nevada City.

At this specific moment, I'm listening to one of our folk dj's play a track from the latest record by Paul Kamm and Eleanor MacDonald. Life is full of circles, the trick is to recognize and honor where those circles cross...

I've been asked to share some memories of KVMR on the occasion of its 25th Anniversary. Although I wasn't there from the beginning days on Banner Mountain, I was pretty intimately involved in some of the most historic milestones in the history of the station, starting as an on-air volunteer in 1984 and continuing more or less through every paid position available, and then back to volunteering until my departure to the Seattle area in 2000.

The very fact that I remain involved in the world of community radio speaks volumes about KVMR and its culture and environment. I wouldn't be here today were it not for my days spent at KVMR. So please indulge me for a bit and let me shine some light on some people and several moments in time that deserve to be remembered.

Jeff Kobrock, who managed the station through the transition from being governed by the American Victorian Museum to its current structure under the Nevada City Community Broadcast Group. Jeff came to Nevada City from Blue Hill Falls and WERU in Maine. In many ways, Jeff was ill-suited to life in California. Shy, quiet, and totally without artifice, Jeff nevertheless lead KVMR through the incredible process of independence. He didn't last long after that milestone in 1989, but his contributions to the current state of the station should not be underestimated.

Cherilyn Naughton, whose artistic eye and fierce commitment to KVMR was inspiring. Cherilyn edited the program guide which she called "Air Notes." It included horoscopes, fiction, recipes, cartoons and other quirky bits that shouldn't have belonged in that publication, but were perfect. She also was the vision and driving force behind the legendary Fright Night, at the American Victorian Museum, which later became Miners Foundry. Her "Space-Time Continuum" remains one of my lasting memories of the Foundry. T.J. Meekins, late of "Hillbilly Jukebox" also deserves mention for her work with Fright Night. It was never the same after those courageously artistic women backed away.

Gary Hudson, with whom I worked alongside raising money for the 1989 Capital Campaign which gave KVMR its independence. The modern day KVMR would not be possible without the work Gary accomplished. He passed away too soon as well...

George Parsons, who I hired as music director in 1992. George was first and foremost, an artist. An enigmatic and elusive personality, George also had a mercurial way of doing radio. "Black Vinyl" was his show that I remember most fondly, and he'd weave threads and artists and albums and themes as seamlessly as anyone I've ever heard on the radio anywhere.

Charles Woods and David Osborne, the directors of the American Victorian Museum and the original holders of KVMR's FCC broadcast license. They let go of the station at precisely the correct time and did so as graciously as possible. Nevada City itself owes Charles and David a tremendous debt for their efforts in starting KVMR, in establishing the town as an historic destination, and for establishing the vision necessary to begin turning a run down building into a community resource.

Cheryl Dachtler, Board President, who worked closely with me during the darkest days of the "debt" and whose upbeat and persistent efforts kept the entire organization on track when KVMR could have easily fallen into bankruptcy.

Cowboy Wally, who quietly worked with all of his character and effort into making the world a bit better and who truly lives his life in the "way of the cowboy..."

Michael Tigue, who sat on the Board as Treasurer during the most tumultuous time in its history. He also hosted an almost perfect Friday Night program on KVMR, as Miguel Seque.

Michael Keene, who became and remains one of my very dearest friends. His love for his hometown and for KVMR can never be repaid.

Rich Shipley, who took over my very favorite timeslot (I had to give up to go to night school), and ended up taking that Island Clipper all the way to Maui, thanks initially to hearing me play Hawaiian music on KVMR.

A special note of recognition needs to go to my wife, life partner and mother of my children, Marti Dimock, who was hired in 1989 as the first Executive Director of Miners Foundry, essentially becoming my lover and my landlord. This life can be overflowing with irony at times... however, the partnership between the two fledgling organizations, Miners Foundry and the Nevada City Community Broadcast Group was something that sustained each in those early years. Marti had a huge part in turning the Foundry into that community resource that Charles and David envisioned. The credit for the establishment of Miners Foundry directly goes to the Board of the Nevada City Winery, and Alan Haley specifically. These visionary community members saw the possibilities present in this space and sacrificed their business affairs for several years in order to make the Foundry, and KVMR's role there, a reality.

Others who will never leave my circle of thanks and gratitude for their inspiration, kind words and support over the years- Sweet Angel Dawn Fischer (of course); Nicki and Nushie, my film reviewing pal; Greg Gavin; Arthur Cohen; Phyllis Kunin; Jima Abbott; Allison Miller; Bobby Angel; Karen Carchidi; Bob Bione; Annie O'Dea Hestbeck; Hap Hazard; Richard Tewes and Erica Randall; Bette Worth; John Deaderick; Alice MacAllister; Mikail Graham; Eric Rice; Francisco Lovato; Brian Terhorst; C. Crane; Steve Baker, (who I recall first meeting in the lobby of the Foundry with his then-wife, and baby Molly in the stroller); Cindy Wetzel; Jody Fenimore; Laura Miller (who gave me my first air shift, Thanksgiving day in 1984); and the thousands of listeners who loved KVMR enough over the years to call me in the office, on the air, or come up to me at public events and introduce themselves--(even that knucklehead who called me on-air with a bomb threat during Gulf War I when I had the audacity to play Iraqi music on the Music Magazine).

Youssou N'Dour at Miners Foundry in 1992. After producing several hundred concerts over the years, I still dream of this one Sunday night.

3 Mustaphas 3 at Miners Foundry. The poster hangs on the wall in my office. From Szegerely to Nevada City, from Sacramento to Argumento... "take it to the fridge!"

The Acoustic Music Festival at the Nevada County Fairgrounds. This one time event should have lasted longer than one year, but KVMR lacked the testicular fortitude to proceed. Greg Brown, Maura O'Connell and Tish Hinojosa, along with several dozen others over 2 days. I don't care what anybody says, this was a great event.

Louise Jones had the inspiration and she and I cooked up a quirky and fun-filled baseball trivia show that, while only actually on the air about 12-15 times, remains firmly imbedded in many memories. Little known fact: the official minor league team of KVMR's Talkin' Baseball--the Albany Polecats, whose 1990 schedule is still on my fridge at home.

I was present in Charlotteville VA in April 2002, the day KVMR was honored with the community service award for the year by the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. The station was recognized for its work immediately following the shootings in January of that year. My family first moved to Nevada County in 1984 and quickly became close friends with Nick and Amanda Wilcox, and their children Laura, Caleb and Nathan. Laura taught my son Evan to jump into the "deep end" of their pool, and Nick taught both of my sons to ride the bike. Don't ever forget that the boundaries of your community stretch as far as you can make them stretch. I remain heartbroken that such a great family was turned upside down, and such a tremendous young person was lost that terrible day; yet I remain proud that KVMR was there to make some sense of something that was senseless. That's what community radio at its very best, can do...

Finally, a few words about honoring history. We can, and will all be replaced someday by someone with more energy, better ideas, someone who is younger, prettier, more handsome, in better shape, wealthier, better connected... you get the idea. What can't be forgotten are those whose hard work, sweat, toil and efforts have made the world we live in what it is today. Jima Abbott once characterized KVMR as a huge bicycle with a hundred seats, all with individual pedals, each connected to that one chain turning the wheels. Over the course of 25 years, thousands of people have jumped on and pedaled furiously for however long they could. These folks would eventually leave (or not, in Mikails' case...!) for whatever reasons, and their still-warm seat would be immediately occupied by somebody else who'd jump aboard and start pedaling again. I'm grateful and honored to have occupied a seat on that bike, and I know that whoever took my seat, did so in the spirit of making KVMR a better place. And that is as it should be..

I hope you'll tune into to my current station if your travels ever take to you to Seattle. I hope that if you do, you might hear a little bit of KVMR here in the Pacific Northwest. Call me or stop by and say hello. I'll always have time for someone from KVMR. No better tribute can be made. Happy 25th Anniversary KVMR!
by Steve Ramsey,
KBSC-fm General Manager

Our most poignant memory is of John Nichols' funeral held at Pioneer Park several years ago. The love and support of the KVMR family was strongly felt by all. We remember John's partner sharing with us how she learned to make tea the "correct way", the English way, in other words, John's way and we'll never forget the beautiful but sorrowful dirge by the Scottish bagpiper at the end of this memorial. We will always remember John and all he gave to KVMR.

CHERYL DACHTLER........ When KVMR was in serious financial trouble and going down for the third time years ago, this angel single-handedly turned the situation around through her creativity, energy and persistence. As a result of her efforts, the deep financial deficit that the station had incurred, was eradicated. Thanks again, Cheryl!
by Walt Fraser and Dianne Marie Anderson

A pregnant Carolyn Crane was hosting a morning show and training a new broadcaster when suddenly she didn't feel well. She apparently went into full labor, and the nervous trainee had to take over until I could run to the studio and bring a sense of calm to the scene. Carolyn gave birth in the record library about a half hour later, as I answered a frantic string of phone calls.

The date was April 1, 1997, four months before Carolyn's son actually arrived. It was, after all, one of the most convincing April Fools jokes ever played on KVMR listeners.
by Steve Baker, Program Director

Somewhere in the '80s ('87?) Debbie Tigue, Dennis Bond, TJ Meekins and I got together and did a 'live oldies' show. We rehearsed a few times at Debbie's house. Our only instrumentation was a guitar, bongos, and Beverly Marks' violin (for the solo in 'Will you still love me tomorrow'). It was during a pledge drive, and we lasted the full 3 hours without someone turning a water hose on us. I remember listening to a tape of it afterwards; it wasn't too bad, but I buried the tape anyway. It was almost the most fun I ever had, and certainly the last time I played guitar in public. I miss KVMR being open to that kind of craziness.
by Len Gorsky

KVMR, from its inception has always broadcast superb music. But spoken word programming on KVMR is rather recent. in fact it wasn't until Paul Emery became program director that proponents of spoken word shows had anyone on staff to champion their cause. Paul believed spoken word shows had a place in our broadcast spectrum, and in spite of the fears of the music only crowd, created an effective balance between music and spoken word shows. So my favorite moment has to be when I learned that KVMR finally had a program director who believed in the value of spoken word. And after 4+ years of being turned down for every time slot I applied for, I finally got my chance to do the kind of show I had originally become a broadcaster to do.
by Chamba Lane

When I started Rockin-N-Stompin in '90 Dave Chafin came on after my show at 4 p.m. Driving up from Sacramento, he was notorious for calling me on his cell phone somewhere between Auburn and Nevada City to explain that he was running late and to request that I cover for the beginning of his show. Somewhere along the way I got the idea of keeping a cassette tape cued up to an air-check that featured the beginning of his show--just waiting for the next time that he called me. Sure enough on another given Sat., he called me and asked me to cover for him and as usual my reply was "no problem". Once my final song ended at 4 p.m. I started the cassette that had Dave's opening song---Van Morrison's Wavelength-- start followed by his voice coming on after the track saying his normal goodbyes to Denny Axel (Original co-host of Rockin-N-Stompin) and I. It was at this point that Dave called me back and laughingly he said that it sounded like I had everything under control and he really didn't need to come in!!! He did show up and continued the set I started and when he finally came on to back announce (approx. 4:30 p.m.) he said he didn't want to say anything except sometimes that Wesley is a very clever guy.
by Wesley Robertson

I have so many memories that come to mind after only 11 years, it's hard to choose just one. But, the first one that comes up is my earliest memory and brings a smile to my face every time.

I was but a green broadcaster back in the spring of '92, freshly certified, when I volunteered for the first of many pledge drives. The little table sitting in the lobby of the foundry (our old home), had only two phones on it (I think they were old rotary phones if memory serves). Brian Terhorst, another class of '92 alumni, and I, were answering phones for none other than John Nichols and Annie O'Dea Hestbeck during John's Saturday Morning Wireless program.

Listening to those two on mike was a treat in itself, but to hear those two off mike was another form of entertainment all together. At one point, as I was walking in the studio to hand John and Annie a newly taken pledge, John was obviously waiting for Annie to get another cut qued up. As time was quickly running out to get one on in time, John, obviously rather anxious about it said to Annie, "We've only got 30 bloody seconds!", to which Annie replied calmly, "Jesus, Mary and Joseph, John, that's plenty of time!"

**sigh** We miss you John.

Footnote: The first time I ever heard KVMR, was during a pledge drive in 1988. It was that same dynamic duo, John and Annie.
by Jenny Michaels

My first memory of KVMR is the friends I have made. To me they are like family. Sharing a pleasant conversation and a joke or two has been a highlight of every week. I looked forward to doing my show because I knew I would see many of my friends.

My shows. From Tuesday mornings 1-4 a.m. then Thursday mornings 4-7 a.m. And finally alternate Wednesdays 2-4 p.m. The music and interviews have been fun and rewarding. But the phone calls and mail (real and electronic) have been extra special. People taking time from busy lives to express how much they like the music. One lady's letter told how as a child her father sang her to sleep to the "Cattle Call." A letter from a trucker told about turning his radio on in Woodland, and listening until he lost us just outside Red Bluff. Thinking back on it certainly brings a rush.

My first year co-producing the fair broadcast was amazing. Organizing the jobs with Tracy Corris. Then recruiting the people who would don various hats, and make everything happen. They worked with eagerness and enthusiasm. Any problems or gremlins were met head on and quickly dispatched. I will never forget how people at the fair took to KVMR. So many of them had never heard of us. When the fair was over we had conducted more than two hundred interviews, and people had taken well over fifteen hundred program guides. Walking among the fair goers we heard comments like, "that KVMR is pretty cool," "how long has KVMR been around," and

"I can't believe I've never heard them."

Of all the many memories, friends are at the top of the list. And at the top of that list is my special Tuesday pal, Phil Givant.
by Jim Diffey

There are so many memories but two particularly stand out. Brian Terhorst, our General Manager required long term hospitalization with a severe case of pneumonia. Glen Farr, Board Chairman; and Dawn Fischer, Board Secretary; volunteered their time, and along with Erica Randall, formed a management triumvirate that kept the station running smoothly for several months.

Secondly several years ago during our live Saturday broadcast from the County Fair, a truck knocked down the phone lines, breaking our communication link to the station. After a number of vain attempts to wade through the phone company bureaucracy on a weekend, Eric Rice climbed the pole, sorted out the wire and made the splice and put us back on the air. Another exhibit of the can do leadership that got our new tower in the air.
by John Rumsey

Just a couple memories worth mentioning, from the Ragged But Right dude:

1. Moving day, from the Miner's Foundry, to the Bridge Building. The discovery that the new record (LPs) room floor would not support the anticipated load. Several broadcaster/carpenters, led by Paul Dahms & myself, installed a support beam, under the floor. This was on the day that we were moving into the Bridge Building at 401 Spring Street. Ragged But Right show was one of the last shows broadcast from the Miners Foundry location on that Saturday. The Outro Song at 2 p.m. was "Packin' Up" by Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee. It was learned much later, that the same song, by the same artists, was the last song that KFAT broadcast, prior to going off the air, in January, 1983. Sounds kinda cosmic, to me.

2. The Saturday that Richard Tewes, Michael Keene, Dan Bertsch, Che Greenwood and myself, built the new transmitter shack on Banner Mountain. With a lot of hammering, sawing, grunting, cussing, etc, all the while listening to bluegrass music. The shed got up in spite of the bluegrass music.

Michael Keene was using a nail-gun to fasten the roof sections together, when he quietly and calmly asked Che to pass up a "nail puller." Che asked "why did he need it," and Michael quietly replied, "I need it to pull the nail out of my finger, that I just shot down with the nail gun." I believe it was harder on those of us around him, than Michael--those Hawaiian broadcasters are a tough bunch. When Eric Rice showed up after the Bluegrass Show to help, I believe we tried to blame the accident on "banjo music." Somehow, it did seem reasonable.
by Thomas Greener