KPR wraps up fall membership drive with more than $281K in pledges



LAWRENCE – Kansas Public Radio ended a successful fall membership drive with 1,750 listener pledges.

KPR’s 10-day fundraising campaign, which began Sept. 12, brought in $281,445 that will go directly toward providing programming for KPR’s 100,000 listeners.

In addition to listener pledges, KPR received $59,200 in challenge grants, which are provided by an individual, company or foundation that challenges listeners to match their gift of a specific amount within a certain timeframe.

This fall, Kansas Public Radio came up with several new ideas to make the drive more interesting to listeners, including a presence at the Lawrence Farmers’ Market and special promotions during “This American Life” and “Live from Here.” The station also devoted Sept. 16 to encouraging listeners to become sustaining members or increase their sustaining membership (a sustaining membership is a monthly gift without an end date). By 7 p.m., the station had added 150 new or increasing sustaining members, and it had met a $10,000 challenge put forth by a generous listener.

During each membership drive, the regularly scheduled programming is interrupted for about 15 minutes out of every hour while KPR’s on-air hosts and community guests ask listeners to support the station.

All donations during membership drives directly support KPR’s local and national programming. KPR must now raise over 72% of its operating budget from private support, making pledge drives more important than ever.

More than 50 volunteers answered phones from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. during the drive. Area restaurants donated meals and beverages for volunteers’ breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks.

Although the drive has concluded, listeners can still donate online at kansaspublicradio.org.

KPR, an 18-time Kansas Association of Broadcasters Station of the Year, licensed to the University of Kansas, broadcasts on 91.5 FM and 96.1 FM in Lawrence, 89.7 FM in Emporia, 91.3 FM in Olsburg-Junction City, 89.9 FM in Atchison, 90.3 FM in Chanute, and 99.5 FM and 97.9 FM in Manhattan. KPR can be heard online at kansaspublicradio.org. KPR also operates KPR2, a news-talk programming stream, which can be heard on an HD receiver or on KPR’s website, and on 96.1 in Lawrence and 97.9 in Manhattan.

Mon, 09/30/2019

author

Bobbi Washechek

Media Contacts

Bobbi Washechek

Kansas Public Radio

785-864-7853