Uplift Washington - Christian Science Broadcasts in Washington

Board Report for 2008 Annual Meeting of Washington State Broadcast Committee

Chair Report
It is with great pleasure that I present, as Chair, the work of your Washington State Broadcast Committee (WSBC). As you are aware, the purpose of this Committee is to promote, educate and expand broadcast opportunities for Christian Science in the State of Washington; in other words, “to spread the word” through broadcast media. And this year we started a process of modernization. I will outline in this short report methods employed, results achieved within budgetary constraints, and value of the reach achieved with the CS Message.

First off, our methods employed are sound industry standards that not only meet media objectives but also adhere to our Mission Statement. This statement is currently being studied for possible future revision to take into account the evolution of the media industry. A number of media methods were employed this year:

1) Special Events (TV). Last August with very short lead time, we clocked 85 hours on the Scott Peterson event. We voted to buy radio time to promote this event. And a branch church stepped up and covered the cost of a 2nd radio buy. Special thanks to Issaquah for that additional radio station buy. More about the Peterson Event comes later in this report.

Another Special Event was the Marta Greenwood series in January. This took an additional amount of effort (approximately 150 hours plus), covering 7 unique lectures in a short time span. Through our Fisher media rep, we also received a bonus radio station not part of the Fisher family, KKOL, which added substantial coverage on the eastside. This better suited geographically the audience for those Puget Sound events along the 405-corridor. Specific branch church events ran each week.

As a consequence of the effort required for this special event, there is now a volunteer regional lecture committee meeting to share the effort required for promoting such special events in the future. Please note, the WSBC deadlines of 4-5 weeks prior notice is necessary for best results.

2) Use of an Arbitron-rated Radio Station (Radio Reach) Fisher Broadcasting, has evolved into a dynamic strategic partner with us in broadcasting this year. As you know, Fisher Broadcasting theme line actually embodies all its media outlets. That line is “Working for you.” And they certainly have been ‘working for us’. No false promises. With KVI, I know they deliver on that promise: working for you!

Fisher gave us added value both quantitatively and qualitatively. As we are in the 13th largest media market in the US with Fisher, they brought a large existing audience of loyal listeners who now can hear our message. In the business, this is referred to as Reach. Reach is very important. Current audience data confirms we are reaching thousands of people each week with our radio schedule in our prime demographic, Adults 18+. Think young people; think Sunday School candidates and college coeds. Think young professionals and young families. Think highly educated.

Much of KVI’s goodwill comes in the form of bonus features such as no production costs; excellent service and if needed, turn-on-a-dime programming changes per Boston. The cost of these could easily run us close to $70,000 a year, in my professional estimate.

In addition to the above when we first aired on KVI, we received 83 :10 secs promotional announcements. The schedule included a series of :10 sec drop-ins promoting our program in our first year. These are scheduled on an as available basis. This year, not requested but gifted to us, we got a “bonus” from KVI. Our home station ran us in “Sponsors Spotlight.” The sixty second feature include 3 non-competitive advertisers. Each advertise receives a 15-second commercial plus an opening and closing billboard. The feature runs Monday-Sunday, 5 AM – 12 Midnight.

This past year on two different occasions, 9 attended by special invitation an exclusive media presentation at Fisher Plaza called TOMA, which introduces radio industry’s proven strengths across the business spectrum. TOMA stands for Top of Mind Awareness.

Now you see how Fisher proves itself time and again to be an excellent strategic partner.

Besides the paid advertising for the Scott Peterson event at the downtown library in the Microsoft Auditorium, we benefited in other ways. Kudos to the photography team: McCanless from Olympia, who dropped everything on very short notice and joyfully shot professional still photos discreetly during Scott Peterson’s talk. Please see website Upliftwashington.org.

The level of production value that the Fisher pros put into this spot, less than 24 hours before airtime, rivaled Madison Avenue hot shots. And I’m not exaggerating!

More importantly, Scott Peterson also made hard news on KOMO4 at 4:30 p.m. with anchor Mary Nam prior to the event. Again, this underscores how Fisher is a terrific strategic partner. Normally, for something like this to occur, public relations departments work their contacts and design costly campaigns. It was our working relationship with Fisher Broadcasting that produced this bonus with perfect timing. A very rare situation indeed!

3) Intro Ad Campaign. Earlier this calendar year, we ran in a very limited run (due to budget constraints) “Wake up, Wake Up”. We would like this spot aired on a regular schedule to build on our audience base and awareness of our time slot.

We are currently seeking additional funding so that the regular Monday-Friday KVI audience learns about our half hour of hope and healing.

Additionally, this spot, run on a regular basis, plants the idea to remind the listener to tune us in at 7 am on Sundays. This is the objective of running this spot using the proven technique called “flighting” in the broadcast business. It’s an excellent way to build awareness, increase our audience and watch improving traffic flow into our reading rooms, events and services. This technique works!

4) Internal and external niche marketing. This year we looked at how to promote and educate the listeners to things uniquely Christian Science, such as practitioners, the Christian Science Monitor’s chaplain series, midweek testimonial services, demystifying reading rooms, unique websites, etc. We call out to our neighbors like Native American Indians for the first time at the New Year and all Military listeners. We plan to reach out to new target audiences, like young people, students, foreign-speaking listeners.

5) Revamping our Website. New & Improved. That’s what we are going for on our Upliftwashington.org website. During the past year this committee has made progress in several ways: first by embracing Special Events; broadening into New Media (currently under construction); finally, enhancing our core competencies.

6) Internet Streaming. Every week Fisher simultaneously streams our show. See Copy ‘Neah Bay” :30. That means that anyone away from our radio signal can still pick up our program at 7 am on Sundays on their computer. Imagine a loyal listener on a business trip. Or someone in uniform halfway around the world. In fact, at one local lecture, our committee gave a visiting Kenyan Christian Scientist our bookmark with our KVI.com site and the smile of enthusiasm was remarkable. This is reaching out beyond. Streaming allows us to communicate with our neighbor near and far. Let’s open our thought more to who are neighbor is. Sure it can be someone down the block. But why not on another continent?!

7) Introducing our Lending Library. It’s easier than ever to borrow a previously aired program on CD. Think of it like an audio version of Netflix. And it’s free. We cover the shipping and handling. Go to our website and find the topic. Thank you for helping out to 2nd Bellevue especially for maintaining our inventory. More about this to come.

How to express gratitude 3 ways: Tell a Friend about the radio show. Word-of-mouth works great! Cross promote: at our lecture event the way Linda Lewis, lecture chair of 3rd Church who introduced Ron Ballard at Kane Hall on the U W Campus invited that audience to tune in Sundays at 7 on KVI570AM… cross-promote in your Reading Room the way Kent did (see photos) by thinking of your large window displays as though it was a giant outdoor board. Be creative displaying radio info, Sentinel Radio and our local radio stations in that window; Monetary Gift as an individual the way you may already give to a PBS radio or TV station. Ask your branch church to give us a raise for doing a good job. We haven’t had a raise in a very long time. And we’d like to think that Jesus’ words “freely ye have received, freely give” applies to Sentinel Radio in Washington State.

Unfortunately, individual donations still don’t budge from 3% even after on-air announcements. Let us handle this inertia through prayer.

So let’s look at the value of what your gift could mean. For instance, as an illustration, an individual donation of $75 buys a full 5 minutes of airtime, depending on certain factors. You see radio time fluctuates like any other commodity. Or, a church could ‘sponsor’ a whole show for $750. What a statement for your Church to make in ‘spreading the word’. Or a small band of branch churches could pool their gift and allow us several months to air “Wake Up, Wake Up.” Again, these are some donation suggestions. Be divinely led. Mary Baker Eddy wrote ‘The highest prayer is not one of faith merely; it is demonstration.’

Thank you. My all-volunteer committee members richly deserve not just my appreciation, but yours, too. David Rockabrand, John Olds, Craig McCoy, Frank Voorhees, Bill Bruch, Nancy Krussel, Kathleen Mereweather, Richard Moore, CS are specially recognized for their service contributions during the past year. A special note of appreciation goes to the family of Carolyn Purcer. Her valuable contribution to the committee is missed and the design work of the Peterson poster reflects her sterling taste and dedication. If you feel inspired, bring your talents to our exciting committee. Contact WSBC Secretary David Rockabrand, Issaquah branch church member. We’d love it!

Speak gently, it is better far to rule by love than fear. Speak gently, let no harsh word mar the good we may do here. Speak gently, to the erring ones they must have toiled in vain. Perchance unkindness made them so, oh win them back again. Speak gently, ‘tis a little thing, dropped in the heart’s deep well. The good, the joy that it may bring, eternity shall tell.

We have considered revising our mission statement in the Washington State Broadcast Committee (WSBC) Bylaws. How does does this mission statement relate to the purpose of our Mother Church and Branch Church activities? Mrs. Eddy's piece called Pond and Purpose in Miscellaneous Writings talks to the stages of metaphysical cleansing needed by her followers and in its final paragraph, full of love, invites them to “drink with me the living waters of the spirit of my life-purpose, --- to impress humanity with the genuine recognition of practical, operative Christian Science” (Mis p. 207). She wrote these words in gratitude for a fish pond that her followers had financed for her Pleasant View home in Concord, NH, in 1892. She established the Christian Science Weekly in 1898; renamed the Sentinel the following year.

Let's fast forward a 110 years and we see that her followers (that's us) are still sharing that “life-purpose.” In cooperation with The Christian Science Publishing Society, through the purchase of Sentinel Radio Program media, the WSBC has provided radio publication of testimonies of healing achieved through scientific prayer alone, for over a decade.

Other organizations and branches through out the world and the State of Washington have also been dong the same. An early executive board may have named the WSBC organization to take advantage of THE CHURCH MANUAL's “Article 24 GUARDIANSHIP OF FUNDS ,Section 5 God's Requirement. God requires wisdom, economy, and brotherly love to characterize all the proceedings of the members of The Mother Church, The First Church of Christ, Scientist.” In its truest sense the WSBC empresses God guided State wide “wisdom, economy and brotherhood.”

Before I leave this office this Summer, I would like to express my gratitude and love to the individuals, UW CS College Org, CS Societies, CS branch churches and grantors who have regularly supported the WSBC, both financially and with individual volunteers. Your special, regular donation and grant checks checks have been deposited; the bills have been paid on time, and the Endowment Fund is still growing. In the process I have had needed lessons on humility and carrying a cross. The branches have provided several new skilled executive board members who are spending many hours to direct this ever more complex Committee.. It has been my privileged to work with past and present boards. My thanks also go to Frank Voorhees, my 'thank you' letter secretary. I express special gratitude and love for our current Chairperson, who has contributed her bountiful media skills and special needs monetary support in emergencies. Also I have a feeling of close brotherhood with the preceding Chairman, Jim Stumbaugh, who worked long and hard to help the Committee for 6 long years. More for those two later.

And what of the Committee's future? You need feedback, WSBC needs feedback. When you have good ideas about WSBC, jot them down on an email. Send them to the board. When we have good news or special needs we will contact your representative by email. Expansion or contraction? It is God's call. Let's bear witness to the metaphysical power in TMC Manual article 24 section 5.

In the early 2000's the exec board thought God's requirement for economy meant 'economy of scale' and we expanded up to four, and sometimes five, Sentinel and Heraldo half hour programs and five Bible Lesson programs a week. Well, by the late 2000's we have returned to our nativity of one Sunday morning Sentinel Radio broadcast with simultaneous broadcast (streamed) worldwide on the Internet. Think of it, every week we are helping “to impress humanity with the genuine recognition of practical, operative Christian Science” Let's all support it with the healing prayer of God's balance of supply to need.

Notes: 1 Our rules makes dividends on the Endowment Fund (Balance:$ 40,000+)

One of the abiding values of the WSBC is to encourage and enable participation in its activities. We rely on technology to help us make this value practical and meaningful. From web technology to share information, to teleconferencing to help save travel time, to digital media to spread the word, to online records storage to make committee proceedings accessible throughout the state, technology is a useful tool for us. This includes a telephone number with voice mail. The voice mail is setup to be monitored from anywhere, so we are always within reach.

In February we launched the CD Loan service on our web site, enabling listeners to borrow CD's they have heard on the radio. You can choose from a list of almost 300 programs on our web site, upliftwashington.org, and send in your request on the spot. A printable list is also available for Reading Rooms to have on hand and assist patrons who don't have a computer to order CD's. Only a handful of CD's have been loaned since this service became available, but as word spreads we expect more people to use it... after all, it is free to the borrower.. just ask, and ye shall receive!

The reliance on our web site is growing. Events such as the talks by Scott Peterson and Marta Greenwood were accompanied by information on the web site. Scott's entire talk can be listened to over the web even today, as can the talk given at our annual meeting last year by Don Houge. Over the past year visits to our web site are averaging close to 100 unique visitors each month.

The WSBC is also assisting the development of a statewide online portal for information, access, and networking on Christian Science, to be called cswashington.com. Look forward to more on this in the near future.