Photo by Michele Jansen, KBEM Kelvin Quarles, General Manager of KMOJ in Minneapolis, chair of the AMPERS nominations committee, presents the AMPERS Broadcaster of the Year award to WTIP’s Deb Benedict.
WTIP North Shore Community Radio is the recipient of two awards.
Deb Benedict, the station’s director, has been selected as Broadcaster of the Year by the Independent Public Radio network, AMPERS. The station was also recognized for its work during the Ham Lake fire.
AMPERS is an organization of 12 independently licensed and managed, locally responsive, community-based public radio stations in Minnesota. The network covers nine-tenths of the state’s area and 92 percent of the state’s population with signals from its member stations.
For the second year in a row, AMPERS held its annual meeting in Grand Marais earlier this month. More than 25 people came to Grand Marais to participate in the annual meeting, which was held at the Johnson Heritage Post.
As part of the annual meeting, the AMPERS organization recognizes the work of select individuals associated with an AMPERS station who demonstrate excellence in production, engineering, development, promotion, and/or community involvement. This year AMPERS chose Benedict as Broadcaster of the Year.
“I was thrilled and surprised by the award from my peers,” says Benedict. “It is a credit to the staff, the volunteers, and the board of directors for all we have done in the past couple years.”
AMPERS President Jim Gullickson said the award is a great honor for Benedict and the community: “Deb has done such a remarkable job with WTIP in what is really a short period of time. The station has moved from having a great deal of programming shared with KUMD in Duluth to now really doing everything independently. That comes with no small price tag when it comes to her time, energy and efforts. Certainly she’s had a great crew working with her but having that crew also required a lot of work on Deb’s part in terms of getting funding from CPB. She’s done such a remarkable job. We’re so proud of what’s transpired at that radio station and how that station has become so part of the fabric of the community up there.”
The station was also selected by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for a 2009 My Source Community Impact Award for Engagement for the station’s work related to coverage during the Ham Lake Fire.
Benedict said it is a great honor. “I’m very pleased to have the station chosen for such a prestigious award,” she says. “Our focus has always been on serving the community and being a resource to people connected to this region. I am thrilled to have the station’s work recognized on a national level.”
The My Source Community Impact Award For Engagement was created by CPB to give recognition to stations for their commitment and responsiveness to their communities, providing innovative services that have measurable results.
Cook County Sheriff Mark Falk and Gunflint Trail resident Dave Seaton provided testimonials for their experience of WTIP’s efforts during the Ham Lake Fire. Their testimonials can be heard on the WTIP website at www.wtip.org.
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