iHR, 19 News, Cavs Raises Over $153,000 Covid 19 Victims
| RADIO ONLINE | Tuesday, April 7, 2020 |
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 WOIO-TV, WUAB-TV, iHeartRadio |
Northeast Ohio responded to the call for help by contributing more than $150,000 to two local non-profits. After the pandemic and orders from Ohio's Governor shut down schools, businesses and more, families in the Cleveland area are relying more on services provided by the United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. iHeartRadio, 19 News and the Cleveland Cavaliers joined forces for "All For The Land: COVID-19 Relief Live" on April 4.
The three-and-a-half-hour live telethon aired simultaneously on WTAM-AM, WMMS-FM, WOIO (CBS 19) and WUAB (CW 43). The telethon raised over $153,251.60 as of Monday morning. Online donations are still being accepted until 11:59pm April 7. A link to contribute is on cleveland19.com.
"This may have been the absolute worst time ever to ask people for money," said WOIO/WUAB Vice President and General Manager Erik Schrader. "Unemployment is soaring, and people are scared for their families. And yet the phones rang off the hook. We had nearly 2,000 different donors. To put this together in roughly nine days is a credit to having partners like the Cleveland Cavaliers, iHeartRadio, Live Nation, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I'm also really proud of the employees at our station, who tackled one of the most challenging live broadcasts anyone could imagine in this new reality of social distancing."
The telethon featured live and taped interviews and performances via FaceTime and Zoom, to minimize live camera shots and personnel to safely distance. Guests included Cleveland comedy legend Drew Carey, Cleveland Cavaliers stars Kevin Love, Larry Nance Jr., and Matthew Dellavedova, Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, renowned Iron Chef Michael Symon, chart-topping country music star Chris Janson, Geraldo Rivera, Cleveland Indians Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Thome, Browns legend Bernie Kosar, singer/songwriter Jim Brickman, musical acts from Cleveland International Records, CBS Network stars, Cleveland Cavaliers broadcast announcers, iHeartRadio and 19 News personalities.
