Toroa Radio is Dunedin's not-for-profit Community Access Radio Station.
Their goal is to get more people from the community making and broadcasting their own radio shows, communicating with their community. This year, Toroa Radio turns 20 and over the years there have been several changes - in staff, location, even music format.
But 20 years on, their message is still the same - by, for and about the community. The biggest change is yet to come. Over the last couple of years, they have been slowly working their way towards broadcasting on FM.
The benefits to switching from AM to FM are many but most importantly, FM is accessible to more members of the community. All the ground work has been done. They've done the research, they have the technical expertise, they have the license. Now all they need is the funds.
It will cost Toroa Radio $86,200 to make the switch. This is a lot of money for a not-for-profit community group, but they haven't given up.
After applying to several funding bodies and doing fundraising of their own, they have secured around $65,000.
All they need now is an extra $20,000. They are so close, they can almost taste it.
Will you help them? There are several fundraising events coming up over the course of this year - the first being the Toroa Radio Family Fun Day, held in Woodhaugh Gardens from 11am on Saturday 3 April.
During this event, there will be an Easter Egg Hunt for the kiddies, a jam session for the musicians (bring an instrument if you want to join in), face painting, Morris Dancers and more. Most activities cost a $2 donation, and all money raised will go towards getting Toroa Radio on FM.
If you want to help, or find out more, call 471 6161 or head to www.toroaradio.co.nz.
