Thanks West Michigan For Filling The Basket With $130,000

979 GRD and the Free Beer and Hot Wings show kicked off the first annual "Fill the Basket" radiothon to raise money to help start the school year for Kids Food Basket.

Fill The Basket Radiothon 5 Years in the Making

When I arrived in West Michigan, one of the first things I asked Free Beer and Hot Wings was, "If you can partner with one charity who would it be?" Both Gregg (Free Beer) and Chris (Hot Wings) said, "Kids Food Basket."

Being new at WGRD, I thought it was important to go around the block once (work 1 calendar year) and figure out where and when a charity event could be placed into the station calendar.

After researching the Kids Food Basket for a year in 2019 and 2020 we attempted to do a radiothon that would have been held at Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids. After scheduling conflicts with the City of Grand Rapids we could not secure the park on the days needed for the event. Then the pandemic landed and put the idea on ice for two years. In 2023 the workload given to me made it impossible to build a radiothon but before the end of that year, I announced to the programming staff we are doing this no matter what in 2024.

Thanks, West Michigan for Filling the Basket With $130,000

Fast forward to 2024, after meeting with the Kids Food Basket, the Free Beer and Hot Wings Show, and staff at 979 GRD, a plan was put in place and the work began building the Fill the Basket radiothon.

The people who run the Kids Food Basket are a highly organized and energized group that helped make the event easier and better. The organization hand-picked volunteers, former recipients, staff members, and others in the community who knew the impact Kids Food Basket has made. My job was to cut it all up and find ways to make it work on the radio. Plus, all the folks who came into the studio the day of the event and shared their stories and connections to the Kids Food Basket.

There were a lot of other important factors that made the day even better. GRD sales rep. Erin Harmon worked with Rowerdink Incorporated and AC Delco to allow WGRD to be commercial-free and dedicate 12 hours to getting the message on why it's important to help the Kids Food Basket. Our market president Jeff Luckoff and sales manager Sarah McHugh had a huge hand in the commercial-free aspect of the radiothon.

The day before the radiothon our friends from Hastings came to visit us and generously offered to create a match of up to $37,000 that shocked and excited the Free Beer and Hot Wings Show and myself. This "bomb" of generosity became the catalyst that drove this event and encouraged others to dig down and make a donation. Not only did these fine folks change the trajectory of this event but upped their match by another $3,000 giving the event a huge boost.

Read More: Free Beer & Hot Wings Show & 979 GRD Volunteer @ Kids Food Basket 

Another friend Karin Kay and the folks at Sable Homes offered a $5,000 match halfway into the day that helped donations skyrocket. Sable Homes didn't stop there and offered another $5,000 match in the last 1.5 hours of the event which helped the event well over the finish line getting an additional $15,000 in the home stretch.

Free Beer, Hot Wings, Steve, and Kelly were absolute troopers by staying on the air for the entire 12 hours of the radiothon. Their passion, enthusiasm, creativity, and their joy of helping others were unmatched by anyone with their performance and professionalism. Not only did the show do an amazing job but it also made donations from their own charity "Idiots For Underdogs", $2,500 twice during the event giving the audience some motivation to match those funds.

GRD mid-day host Janna was in the studio all day having fun with the Free Beer and Hot Wings show lending her voice along with their antics making the radiothon a lot of fun. In the digital department, Wendy Reed was in the studio on the air alongside Janna while updating the social media, and website, and sending out text messaging throughout the event.

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The most important thank you goes to all the fine folks in West Michigan who took their hard-earned money and donated to help kids they didn't even know to be able to obtain food security. Let's not forget about the Free Beer and Hot Wings Show fanbase scattered all over the country who listened in and made donations from far away. Your generosity and support enabled us to gather $130,000 to start the school year for the Kids Food Basket. On behalf of the entire staff at WGRD, I say THANK YOU! Without you, we never could have done this.

Take a Look at Below at Behind the Scenes Photos From Fill the Basket