A very incomplete history of WGDR, Plainfield

A programmer in the original WGDR studio, circa late 1970s.

• June 18, 1973 WGDR, Plainfield went live for the first time. Kirk Gardner is the first station manager, after being a faculty member to help a class apply to the FCC, build a simple studio, and go on the air.

• In 1981, Goddard College threatened to close the station, including locking station volunteers, students, and staff out. Programmers commit to staying on the air, doing shows 24 hours a day for two weeks to get the word out to save the station. Up until this point, and for years to come, regular broadcast during the day was limited to just a handful of hours. This is one of many examples of just how dedicated the community has always been to WGDR’s success. Funding and Goddard support of the station would continue to be a major issue for the next 40 years.

• In the mid 1980s, Patti McGill becomes the station manager, building systems, training hundreds of programmers over her tenure, and strengthening the station. Patti recently passed away in April, 2024. Thank you Patti for your critical leadership early on for WGDR.

• Early in the 1990s, Stu Bautz takes over as station manager, leading a number of station technical upgrades, programming expansion, and creative fundraising efforts with pledge drives, bringing renewed energy to the station. Here a bit from Stu and others in one of our WGDR history shows from the birthday weekend.

• Early in the 2000s, Carlos Haas takes over as station manager. A couple of years later, Amanda Gustafson takes on the role, of overseeing a total studio rebuild.

• In 2005, Bon Kelly was hired station manager. In his year in the role he lined up the funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) that would expand the station budget and staffing for the next 15 years. Bon also started the Chocolate Lover’s event and the exploring the creation of WGDH in Hardwick. Hear from Bon and other station managers in a special history show on WGDR from our birthday weekend, from Magical Mystery Tour.

• In 2006, Greg Hooker becomes station manager, overseeing the application and launch of WGDH, Hardwick at 91.7 FM for rural, northern Vermont.

• In 2010, Kris Gruen became station manager, overseeing an educational focus in programming, through CPB funding support and other sources, that help local shows become syndicated nationally, created the youth program, “Indie Kingdom,” and begins and sees through the long process of Goddard gifting the station the community during the covid pandemic.

• On May 18, 2021, WGDR and WGDH’s licenses were transferred from Goddard College to the newly formed Central VT Community Radio!

• In fall of 2021, Llu Mulvaney-Stanak, a former programmer at age 13 in the 1990s, his hired as station manager - our first under community ownership. They are overseeing the emergence of the station out of covid, expanding local programming from 23 shows to over 50, right-sizing the station budget and diversifying the fundraising to make the station sustainable, and renewing a sense of connection and joy as a culture of the station, in the studio, and out in the community.

• We’ve had many other staff roles too – overseeing programming, training, underwriting, music directing and more. In the hey days of the work study program at Goddard and again under Corporation for Public Broadcasting support, there were many folks getting paid – a great achievement! - to support the station’s success.

• There have been hundreds and hundreds of programmers who have been on the air and gone on to do bigger things further afield or very meaningful things right here in Vermont. Some of our programmers have been around for decades, others are just celebrating their first year on the air. In any given year, tuning into WGDR and WGDH is always guaranteed to surprise, delight, and inform.

• We’ve had many volunteers over the years, on the community advisory board, and in various other roles, who have helped guide the station in decision-making and community accountability.

• We’ve proudly broadcast national and international programs that couldn’t be heard anywhere else in Vermont – the first to air Democracy Now, years bringing Al Jazzar on the air, and many fantastic community radio shows from around the country via the Pacifica Network.

• WGDR’s long time home at the Pratt Center and the future of campus is unknown going into the summer of 2024. However, the future of the station is very clear --- with the community’s continued generous support --- we will rise to any challenge that comes when and if our lease expires under new campus ownership in 2027. As we always say, stay tuned!

All the WGDR archives are now housed at the Vermont Historical Society and these names, recordings from the analog years, and more will be available to the public soon. Listen to some of what is in these archives in on the Predictably Unpredictable show from WGDR’s birthday weekend.