We’re part of an amazing community in Canton and Plymouth and we can’t say thanks enough for your generosity in supporting our annual 88.1 the Park Thanks for Giving Pledge Drive.

Our community really came together to support 88.1 the Park.  It looked like we would fall short of our goal, but in the final days of the pledge drive you helped us raise over $24,000 through the gifts of listeners, alums and friends of the station.  Over 130 people gave throughout the week, with many of our donors giving for the first time.  Our listeners voiced their appreciation for our mix of Plymouth and Canton’s Hit Music, local news, high school sports and community based broadcasts.  We look forward to bringing you more radio powered by our amazing students.

So. as we head into Thanksgiving we want to take this moment to thank YOU.

The Relentless Care Foundation announced a $10,000 grant to the 88.1 the Park Amplification Capital Campaign.  The money will support the station’s studio expansion project.

The foundation was created by Community Financial Credit Union to magnify equitable systems in Michigan communities.  To achieve this, the Relentless Care Foundation will walk alongside partners, funding what makes housing attainable, strengthens the workforce, and fosters community mobility in their local neighborhoods throughout Michigan.

“We are grateful for the very generous gift of the Relentless Care Foundation towards are upcoming studio expansion,” said Bill Keith, Station Manager.  “The gift will help us increase our coverage of Plymouth and Canton, provide more opportunities for students and better serve the community.”

The station is working to raise $200,000 by December 31, 2026.  When the goal is met, the money will be combined with a $200,000 grant from the Rotary Club of Plymouth.  Additional gifts towards the project can be made through the Canton Community Foundation.

DONATE TO THE AMPLIFICATION CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

“I’m happy to support this upgrade. You guys are really the best. I’m 60 years old and love your music. I feel it spans the generations. Good luck!” – Carol Ann Levis, Canton Michigan

After more than 50 years of operating in essentially the same space, 88.1 the Park is in need of significant upgrades. On May 10^th, 2024, we launched the Amplification Capital Campaign to raise funds to convert a classroom into a series of editing, recording, and interview studios, a staff room, and storage space. The $517,000 estimate for the capital campaign includes architecture fees, construction costs, HVAC considerations, sound attenuation measures, enhanced lighting, security considerations, ADA accessibility, video capabilities, and significant equipment purchases and upgrades resulting in four additional studios.

These upgrades will allow for significantly more student participation and more than double our current studio space, allowing for more on-air content, recorded news/programming, and edited news podcasts. These upgrades will put the broadcasting environment at 88.1 the Park on par with professional studio space—helping to maintain our award-winning broadcasting quality, while creating a more professional experience for students and studio guests.

In recognition of the Rotary Club of Plymouth’s centennial (the Club was founded in 1924), the Club’s Foundation has granted $200,000 to the capital campaign. This is a last-in grant: we must raise $200,000 first in order to receive the grant. Our fundraising horizon is December 31, 2026, but we hope to have the money raised by the end of 2025.

Help Us Reach Our Goal!

DONATE TO THE AMPLIFICATION CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

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88.1 the Park will honor three deserving alums when the station presents the Dr. Andrew Melin WSDP Distinguished Alumni Award on Wednesday June 5, at 7:00 p.m. at Fox Hills Golf and Banquet Center in Plymouth.  The honor will be presented at the station’s annual banquet.

This year’s honorees are Paul Trinka, Plymouth ’74, Lisa Preddy, Plymouth-Salem ’83, and Brian Stackpoole, Plymouth-Salem ’94.

The award was created in the Spring of 2017 in honor of former WSDP Station Manager, Andrew Melin.  The purpose of the award is to recognize WSDP Alums that have used their experience at the station to further the mission of WSDP by achieving success in their chosen career field; investing in the lives of young people; or supporting their local community. It is the hope of the station’s management that the honorees will serve as role models for future students at 88.1.

Paul Trinka joined WSDP as the station was getting ready to launch. He served as the station’s first Sports Director. From the first basketball game broadcast from the Salem gym to football for Salem and Canton High Schools, Paul enjoyed being on the air with a variety of color analysts.   He attended Schoolcraft College and then Michigan Technological University, earning a degree in forestry.

Paul launched a career in land surveying in Kalamazoo.  With surveying work slow, he applied for a firefighter’s position with the City of Sturgis in 1982.  Six years later he was promoted to Fire Chief, a rank he held for 12 years.  Paul was also the City Tax Assessor as well as the Director of Information Technology. In 2000 his family moved to Adrian, where he served as Fire Chief for another 16 years, and  ended up as the Information Technology Director until retirement in 2016. He taught at several southern Michigan community colleges in their fire science programs.  During his 28 years as a fire chief, Paul was able to serve beyond the community on various boards and commissions. He also led efforts for the Salvation Army’s recovery team at Ground Zero in New York City.  Paul and his wife Peggy now live in Vicksburg Michigan.  They enjoy spending time with their three children and their spouses, eight grandchildren, volunteer work, attending Adrian College Hockey games and their pontoon boat.  They love to travel and have worked on 10 mission trips in various parts of the world building churches as well as traveling for recreation.

Lisa Preddy is a 1983 graduate of Plymouth Salem High School where she was active at WSDP, serving as the Community Notes Director and co-Program Director, with Jim Heller, her senior year.  Lisa attended Michigan State University and graduated from the Honors College with with a degree in Communication.  She then received a JD from Washington University in St. Louis.  Lisa spent 27 years as a trial attorney with the Missouri State Public Defender System where she served as the District Defender of the Union trial office and trained lawyers throughout Missouri.  In 2011 Lisa was named MSPD’s Defender of Distinction.

She is a past president of the 20th Judicial Circuit Bar Association, a member of the Sentencing Advisory Commission’s Prosecutor and Public Defender Advisory Group, and a speaker and presenter at local bar association and civic meetings.  An article in the Missourian shared, “at a young age Lisa Preddy’s mother knew she would be a lawyer. While she was just 3 or 4 years old, during disagreements with her mother, Preddy would exclaim, ‘I have rights.’”

Brian Stackpoole joined the 88.1 staff as a Junior and served as Sports Director during his Senior year.  He is an esteemed educator, serving as the TV Production teacher at Grosse Pointe North High School. With a dedicated career spanning a quarter-century within the district, Brian is deeply committed to fostering creativity and skill development in his students. His passion for education extends beyond the classroom as he led the career and technical education program for Grosse Pointe Public Schools. Under his leadership the district has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the state of Michigan to improve not only their TV production programs but business and culinary programs as well.  Brian is married to his wife, Michelle, and they have two boys Jack and Henry.  Brian‘s  role as an educator, innovator, and family man exemplifies his unwavering dedication to both his profession and his loved ones.

PAST HONOREES
2017 – June Kirchgatter, Plymouth-Salem ’83
2018 – Rob Milford, Plymouth ’73, and Glenn Bar, Plymouth-Canton ’82
2019 – Mike Schulte, Plymouth-Salem ’78, Scott Herrold Plymouth-Salem ’98, and Jake Bugeja, Starkweather ’02
2020 – David Snyder, Plymouth-Salem ’82 and Patty Williamson, Plymouth Salem ’88
2021 – Paul Sincock, Plymouth-Salem ’75, Todd Chatman, Plymouth-Salem ’83, and Greg Angel, Salem ‘03
2022 – Tim McGuire, Plymouth-Salem ’84, Brook Eddy, Plymouth-Canton ’92, Denny Kapp, Catholic Central ’98
2023 – Kara McGuire, Plymouth-Canton ’94, Chris Sample, Plymouth-Canton ’96, and Becky Lobenherz, Plymouth Salem ’02

88.1 the Park’s latest newsletter includes a preview of the 88.1 the Park Auction and looks at some of the biggest hits on the station. We also spotlight Plymouth Salem ’89 alum, Chris Butzlaff and share points of pride about our amazing alumni.
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For the staff at P-CCS’ student-run radio station 88.1 the Park, serving the Plymouth-Canton community while they learn broadcasting skills is more than an after school activity, it’s the chance to serve as the stewards of a community resource with a half-century old tradition of broadcast excellence. 

That tradition was recognized by the Michigan Association of Broadcasters again this year, when it named 88.1 Michigan’s High School Station of the Year at its Student Broadcast Awards celebration on March 18. 

This year’s honor is the seventh straight year (13th overall) that 88.1 has been named Michigan’s top high school radio station. It also represents the tenth consecutive year that the station has been named either a finalist for the National Association of Broadcasters’ Marconi awards, or the MAB High School Station of the Year

88.1’s students dominated this year’s Student Broadcast Awards. P-CEP students received 21 of the 45 total awards presented in the high school radio category, including six first place awards out of 15 categories. The station also swept two categories, taking all three places in both live sports coverage and a category highlighting anti-vaping public service announcements. The competition is judged by radio industry professionals from commercial stations and radio networks around the state. This year’s competition was the most competitive in recent years, with numerous high school stations from around Michigan challenging 88.1 for top honors.

“Our success starts with the great work our students produce. We’re thrilled to see them recognized by the MAB again this year,” 88.1 the Park Station Manager Bill Keith said. “The pride they take in their work, and in serving our community deserves to be celebrated, and it’s tremendously gratifying to see that the professional journalists who judge this competition believed as we do that our students produce excellent work. 

88.1 the Park MAB Award Winners: 

Current Events Story 

• PCCS Security Upgrades
  Credit(s): Akshayapriya Saravanan
  Second Place

• Name Image and Likeness in Michigan House.
  Credit(s): Nathaniel Behrens
  Honorable Mention

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88.1 the Park is excited to announce the release of the station’s new iPhone and Android Phone Apps.  The phone apps are available at the iTunes and Google Play stores.  You can search for 88.1 The Park.

“We’ve been working on this release for over a year so it is exciting to release the apps for our listeners in Plymouth and Canton, and throughout the world.  We wanted to make it easier for our listeners to access the station and our digital content,” said Bill Keith, Station Manager.

The apps were created through a partnership with jācapps, a mobile apps development company in Southfield.  They are one of the leading app development companies for radio stations.