Radio station makes a focused appeal

Tuning in to KRCU on Wednesday morning I expected to hear the usual Morning Edition program and spend an hour or so with all my faceless friends on the radio.

Instead, I heard station staff reporting membership numbers and repeating phone numbers, and I realized they've been very lenient. The staff at the public radio station only spent 28 1/2 hours interjecting funding pleas into our programming in April as opposed to the usual 12 hours a day for a week. I liked it. Apparently others did, too. The station raised $27,668 as of Wednesday.

They chose one day for each section of programming -- morning news, Saturday programming, local programming, etc. -- and asked people listening at that time to donate. The result: more focused appeals and fewer interruptions.

Listening to the local station personalities Wednesday as they counted down the hours to the end of the membership drive and counted up the remaining amounts needed, I didn't feel compelled to change the station or click the radio off. I hadn't been subjected to listening to it non-stop for a full week I wanted an update. I wanted to know if we'd made it.

The goal was $30,000, and by the time the on-air membership month drive closed they were almost there.

They might be off-air, but they accept donations online all year. National statistics report that one in 10 listeners are contributors. Here's your chance to be in the top 10 percent.