88.1 the Park honored three deserving alums when the station presented the Dr. Andrew Melin WSDP Distinguished Alumni Award on Tuesday May 30, at 7:00 p.m. at Fox Hills Golf and Banquet Center in Plymouth.  The honor was presented at the station’s annual banquet.

This year’s honorees are Kara McGuire, Plymouth-Canton ’94, Chris Sample, Plymouth-Canton ’96, and Becky Lobenherz, Plymouth-Salem ’02.

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.

Kara Fiegenschuh McGuire worked at WSDP throughout high school and has experience in most areas of the station’s operation including news, Community Focus and hosting a radio show. Kara was also a director at the station. She graduated from Macalester College, where she continued her radio journey as host, Program Director and General Manager. After college, she was a producer on local and national public radio programs for Minnesota Public Radio and American Public Media including Marketplace Money. From there, she moved to print journalism as a columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune writing about personal finance. She has also authored books on personal finance for kids and teens. She shifted gears and is now the Managing Vice President of Sales Practice for Gartner, a research and advisory firm that equips business leaders with insights, advice and tools to solve their biggest challenges. Kara lives in St. Paul, Minnesota with her three kids, husband and two dogs.

Chris Sample and his wife Kelly Honecker met at WSDP and co-hosted one of the station’s most popular specialty music shows, Open Up and Say Ska. His biggest accomplishment during that time was bringing the music – literally – to the Plymouth Canton community. This was back in the mid-90’s, with the 3rd wave of Ska leading to a huge resurgence of interest in the genre. He helped bring bands to the WSDP Dance and into the studio for live performances. He joined the staff as a Junior and participated in News, did some football play-by-play, and supported fundraising and promotions. He also hosted a short talk show called What’s Up With That. Chris went to college at Michigan State – with a brief detour to study engineering at Wisconsin – and graduated with a degree in Telecommunications, Film & TV Production. He had hoped to work in film and had some opportunities in the industry, including working on some major films like Pirates of the Caribbean. He transitioned back to business full time and in 2018 he joined Jacobs Engineering as the Director of Category Management, and is now Jacobs’ Global Procurement Lead. Chris is also a member of the 88.1 the Park Alumni Advisory Board and leads the board’s Fundraising Subcommittee.

Becky Lobenherz was involved at the station for all four years of high school. For her senior show she co-hosted an all Spanish Language show. As a Senior she was WSDP’s News Director and she learned quite a bit about motivating other people. Following high school Becky went on to study political science at the University of Michigan and law at Harvard Law School. After law school, she settled in Washington, D.C., where she worked at law firms specializing in consumer financial services regulatory law. Currently, Becky is a Deputy General Counsel at Fannie Mae. When not working, Becky enjoys gardening, visiting escape rooms, and raking in money at the poker table. She still uses her past as a DJ for 88-1 as a fun story when she wants to sound cool at parties.

BID # 734-582-6854

Auction Items 2023 Half Hour Boards
Auction Items 2023 Dream Board

Community Financial Credit Union will present the 88.1 the Park Auction on Saturday May 20, from 9am to 9pm.  Every half-hour you can bid on great items donated by local businesses including restaurant gift cards, sports memorabilia, golf outings and much more.

We’ll also have a Dream Board of special items available for bidding all day long.

Local businesses and residents still have time to support the student radio station by donating items. Businesses that donate can benefit from the exposure they will receive on 88.1 The Park. Most importantly, they will be helping a program that has impacted the lives of students and served the Plymouth-Canton community for 51 years. You can get more information by contacting Station Manager Bill Keith at 734-416-7732.

Help us make a difference in the Plymouth-Canton Community through your bids.  Mark your calendar for Saturday May 20, and make plans to listen and bid during the 88-1 The Park Auction.

This year’s auction is brought to you by Community Financial Credit Union.

Alumni Matches
88.1 the Park’s generous alums are matching each half hour of the auction. We appreciate their generous support which is allowing us to quadruple nearly every half hour of the auction.

9:00 a.m. John Drauss, Joe Koenig, Brook Eddy

9:30 a.m. Monisha Blair, The Juniper Group (June Kirchgatter), Bhakti Chai

10:00 a.m. Jeff Murray, Jim Heller, Dennis Hartford

10:30 a.m. Bethann Krumm, Andy Melin, Dennis Hartford

11:00 a.m. Mel Gutherie, Jon Keller, Kitty Underwood

11:30 a.m. Mel Gutherie, Bill Collins, Melissa Horste

12:00 Noon Rodney Harris, Bill Gutherie, Alex Aresco

12:30 p.m. Jessica Dumas, Bradd Rigoni, Beth Eckerty

1:00 p.m. Mary Jenkins, Bradd Rigoni, Patty Williamson

1:30 p.m. Kara McGuire, Steve Johnston, Woodruff Family

2:00 p.m. Steve Simpson, Jacquelyn Bodine, Jessica Read

2:30 p.m. Jeff Cassin, Erin Bodine, Third Monk Brewing Company (South Lyon)

3:00 p.m. Kevin Nothnagel, Becky Lobenherz, Rob Miller

3:30 p.m. Kathryn Farrell, Greg Angel, Rob Milford

4:00 p.m. Joe Zylka, Bill Smola, Scott Eddy

4:30 p.m. David Callahan, Saloni Janveja, Mel Gutherie

5:00 p.m. David Callahan, Stacy Thomson, Mel Gutherie

5:30 p.m. Chris Sample and Kelly Honecker, Tim McGuire, Kevin Carlson

6:00 p.m. Chris Sample and Kelly Honecker, Ryan Tomaszycki, Adzima Family

6:30 p.m. Annie Wellman, Badger, Suzanne DeVenny

7:00 p.m. Scott Shay –Berkshire Hathaway, Skye Monahan, Jake Burnstein

7:30 p.m. Eric Eisen, Lisa Preddy

8:00 p.m. Denny Kapp, Caitlin Flora

88.1 The Park invests in the lives of young people and serves the Plymouth-Canton Community. Some are surprised to find out that 88-1 is located at Salem High School and is run by students at Plymouth-Canton Educational Park.

We know that the students of Canton, Plymouth and Salem High School are fortunate, because not every school has a radio station. We’re joining with other high school stations to celebrate High School Radio Day on Wednesday April 26th. Join us as we shine a light on the great things happening at 88-1, as well as high school stations throughout the country.

88.1 the Park is pleased to be a title sponsor of this year’s SJ5K.  The annual run/walk will take place on Sunday May 7, at the Plymouth-Canton Educational Park Varsity Football Stadium.

We will be spotlighting the families each Friday leading up to the run.  Listen as our Program Director, Mady Bajorek, interviews the families and shares some of their favorite music.

The family preview shows will air on Friday from 5:00 to 5:30 p.m.

April 7 – Hudson Gazsi –

April 14 – Jason Garland –

April 21 – Jeff Fehlig –

April 28 – Michael Fisher –

May 5 – Cillian Buster –

88.1 the Park will be live at the SJ5K as we provide the musical soundtrack for the run.  Stop by our tent and say hi.

88.1 the Park was named the 2023 MAB High School Station of the Year during a luncheon at the Great Lakes Media Show on Wednesday March 15, in Lansing. This is the sixth year in-a-row that the station has received the award. WSDP has been recognized as the High School Station of the Year 12 times since 2001.

The student staff also received 16 of the 29 individual awards in the high school audio competition. This included sweeping the On Air Personality of Team and Sports Play-by-Play categories. The students received seven First Place awards.

Student Awards include

Current Event Story
First Place – Anuya Shetty (Canton Junior)
Second Place – Emma Johnston (Plymouth 2022 graduate)

Daily Newscast/News Feature
First Place – Anuya Shetty (Canton Junior), Avneet Pandher (Salem Junior) and Leo Popp (Salem Sophomore)

On Air Personality or Team
First Place – Anuya Shetty (Canton Junior) and Avneet Pandher (Salem Junior)
Second Place – Emma Johnston (Plymouth 2022 graduate)
Honorable Mention – Ariel Ooms (Plymouth Senior)

Promotional Announcement
Second Place – Daniel Schoenherr (Salem 2022 graduate) and Emma Johnson (Plymouth 2022 graduate)
Honorable Mention – Ariel Ooms (Plymouth Senior)

Public Service Announcement
First Place – Simon Oszust (Plymouth Senior) and Nadia Halim (Plymouth Junior)
Second Place – Simon Oszust (Plymouth Senior)

Public Service Announcement OK2SAY
First Place – Nadia Halim (Plymouth Junior), Nathaniel Behrens (Plymouth Sophomore) and Akshayapriya Saravanan (Plymouth Junior)

Sports Public Service Announcement
Second Place – Simon Oszust (Plymouth Senior), Mady Bajorek (Salem Senior) and Ariel Ooms (Plymouth Senior)

Sports Announcing Team
First Place – Andy McLaren (Plymouth Junior) and Leo Popp (Salem Sophomore)
Second Place – Andy McLaren (Plymouth Junior) and Brody Klein (Plymouth Junior)
Honorable Mention – Ben Vertin (Plymouth 2022 graduate) and Andy McLaren (Plymouth Junior)

Use of Social Media
First Place – Mady Bajorek (Salem Senior), Alia Mulbagal (Salem Junior) and Simon Oszust (Plymouth Senior)