By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
South Bend, Ind.-based LeSEA Broadcasting Corp. is buying Dowagiac's radio station.
WDOW 92.1 FM will join LeSEA's WHPZ 96.9 and the Pulse FM format as a contemporary Christian music station reaching the Michiana community.
The addition of WDOW "is an exciting step for Pulse FM, adding potentially thousands of people around Michiana under the scope of LeSEA Broadcasting Corp.," President Pete Sumrall writes in a letter dated Dec. 1.
Pulse FM continually serves its community through food drives, Salvation Army's adopt-a-family program, the Bears that Care program and other local events.
By partnering with local businesses, Pulse FM has had the opportunity to sponsor giveaway promotions of trips, cars and merchandise valued at thousands of dollars, resulting in listener loyalty.
The LeSEA Broadcasting network includes 13 U.S. television stations, including WHME TV-46 in South Bend, World Harvest Television on DIRECTV Channel 321, the international shortwave network World Harvest Radio, local radio station WHPZ (Pulse FM), WHME Harvest FM, a full-service tour agency specializing in pilgrimages to Israel, LeSEA Tours, World Pulse Festival, the annual one-day Christian music festival, and two overseas satellite television stations, METV and FETV, covering Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and parts of Australia.
LeSEA is based on Ironwood Road in South Bend.
Reached in Chicago Wednesday evening, WDOW's owner for the past 5 1/2 years, Joe Jason (Urbanski), said, "I'm happy it's them. It's a neat opportunity for the radio station and Cass County. It's great for Dowagiac that a group is buying it with such tremendous resources."
Jason said there will be a "long goodbye," as it will take four months for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to transfer the license.
Jason acquired WDOW in mid-1999 from Doug Hawkes of Van Hawke Communications.
The Grand Rapids native had been the voice of Cosy Radio (WCSY) in South Haven for 12 years.
When he came to town he already knew Superintendent of Schools Larry Crandall, a Bangor native, from the years Crandall officiated sports that Jason broadcast.
Jason began his career at WGRD in Grand Rapids from 1979 to 1984.
From 1984 until late 1995 he served as vice president of Cosy and Dunes Broadcasting Inc.
During that time he hosted the Cosy Morning Show, was in charge of all station operations, commercial production, special events and promotions and served as program director.
From 1995 to 1997, Jason worked at Wood Radio in Grand Rapids and with TCI Media Services starting in 1997, selling television commercials.