NABEF Announces 2017 Service to America Awards

RADIO ONLINE | Thursday, April 13, 2017

The National Association of Broadcasters Education Foundation (NABEF) has announced the winners of the 2017 Celebration of Service to America Awards, recognizing outstanding community service by local broadcasters. Winners will be honored at the Celebration of Service to America dinner, held Tuesday, June 20, in Washington, DC.

"America's broadcasters play a unique role serving local communities with quality news, the most popular entertainment and lifeline information in times of emergency," said NABEF President Marcellus Alexander. "The collective efforts of this year's STA winners reflect a remarkable commitment to addressing public health crises, investigative journalism and community service."

The 2017 Service to America Awards will honor the following broadcasters:

Service To Children Awards
These awards spotlight radio and television stations for outstanding programs, campaigns and public service announcements produced for the benefit of children.

WEDR-FM Hollywood, FL
Cox Media Group

Every year, WEDR/99 JAMZ prepares children to go back to school through a four-week "Back to School Backpack Tour." In 2016, WEDR partnered with several local organizations to provide 5,000 backpacks filled with school supplies for underprivileged children in Kindergarten through eighth grade. The station also provides an after-school program called "Fore-Life," which teaches children to golf, as well as disciplinary and math skills. Through the "99 JAMZ Student of the Week" contest, WEDR encourages students to perform well academically. Students with a GPA of 3.5 and above were eligible to enter the student of the week contest. The winner gets to co-host the Wednesday night show's "Top 8@8 Countdown" and also receives $100 and 99 JAMZ gear.

Category Finalist:
KTAR/KMVP Phoenix, Bonneville International Corp.

Service To Community Awards This category honors radio and television broadcasters for individual campaigns, projects or programs that serve the public good or otherwise provide exemplary service to their local communities.

KZLV-FM San Antonio, TX
K-LOVE and Air 1 Media

The KZLV "Share the Love" campaign engaged listeners in thanking and assisting those who serve in their community, as well as increasing their own levels of service. The campaign activated hundreds of volunteers for numerous organizations including the San Antonio's Parks Department, St. PJ's Children's Home, Haven for Hope homeless shelter, and many others. The station helped provide 2,000 families with packs containing enough food to feed a family of four for a week. The K-LOVE Crisis Response Care program was developed to support first responders and assist with their emotional needs. The program included critical incident stress management training for first responders and community volunteers. KZLV further served their community during their random acts of appreciation and gratitude campaign in February.

Category Finalists:
Illinois Broadcast Association
KGBX-FM Springfield, MO, iHeartMedia
KSHE-FM St. Louis, MO, Emmis Communications Corp.
KSOS-FM Las Vegas, NV, Faith Communications Corp.
WFEZ-FM Hollywood, FL, Cox Media Group
WTAM-AM Cleveland, OH, iHeartMedia

The Celebration of Service to America Awards are sponsored and produced by NABEF with major support from the National Association of Broadcasters. Details about the Celebration of Service to America Awards are available at www.nabef.org/events/sta/.