Step right up... come one, come all...

Dear Listener,

If you’ve been following WMMT for a while, you know we’ve been running a road operation since the 2022 Kentucky floods—operating our community radio station out of a completely redesigned RV, which we’ve lovingly called The Possum Den. This mobile studio has kept us on air after our studio was flooded and allowed us to take action in the event of inclement weather. Although it is a makeshift studio, it has been reliable and treated us well.

But today, I took a walk around our new studio space, located at 253 E. Main Street in Whitesburg. I couldn’t help but think about all the possibilities in our new home. I see live acts performing in our production space and podcasts being recorded, DJs honing their craft and preparing for their next shows, and of course, the legends to be made (and told) in the on-air studio room. Ain’t she a beaut? We’ve been constructing the space to meet our needs, painting the walls, and carefully installing equipment so that you don’t miss a minute of our broadcast. It hasn’t been easy, but we’re happy to be able to share this space with you at long last.

Our work isn’t done, and we need your support. This is only Phase 1 of construction—there is more to do, and the need to make Possum Radio financially stable is more evident than ever. We’re hoping all of our supporters Step Right Up and Come One, Come All, because this year’s appeal is a rootin’ tootin’, high-flying, Possum Palooza Spring Fund Drive! From March 27–April 9, we’ll put the circus in media circus—with special guests, musical performers, community partners, and friends taking over the airwaves, and we’ll close out the drive on Wednesday, April 9, with a bazaar and live performances! The best way to stay on top of all the events during the drive is to RSVP to the Facebook event via our Facebook page. Fill out the form below to make your tax-deductible one-time donation, or join the Possum Club with a monthly recurring donation. Big, little, or in-the-middle, we appreciate your support! This is our most ambitious fund drive yet—we are asking for your support in raising $50,000. We’re raising the stakes this drive because uncertainty with future federal funding from the CPB means we are relying on individual donations more than ever. This money will not only support our studio buildout and staff time to keep this little radio station going, but also allows us to:

• Improve our stream with a new streaming computer and paid stream hosting
• Adequately prepare for emergencies, including maintenance on the Possum Den and purchasing a generator
• Further invest in having the best DJs and producers we possibly can—Phase I of the new studio space gives better resources to our DJs overall, but we’d like to provide more equipment for even better programming! Phase II of our buildout will include another production space outfitted for podcast recording, office space, and an engineering room.

As we continue our construction, we want to make space for our friends. That’s why we’re allowing donors to name items in our studio. For all donations between $150 and $750, you will be able to sponsor equipment, furniture, and studio rooms—we’ll even include a dedication. Whether it’s your name, or your best friend’s name, or your mamaw’s name, it will be in our studio forever. Visit appalshop.org/WMMTstudio for more information.

And what’s a carnival without prizes? We’ve got some exclusive gifts for those who support us during this drive. Any donation over $5 will get you a circus possum sticker sheet, while higher levels will get you a t-shirt and bucket hat. Keeping with tradition over the last few years, make a special monthly recurring donation and you’ll receive a special Possum Club–branded bandana! Super shoutout to local artist Tyler Barrett for dreaming up our possum circus design. Thank you for being the best part of Possum Radio, really and truly.

Thank you, 

Teddy Wimer, General Manager 

Jared Hamilton, Programming Coordinator

PS: If you don’t have the means to donate, there is another way you can support us—you can call your representatives and share with them the importance and power of community radio. Let them know why you rely on stations like WMMT, for local news, community events, vital information during weather emergencies, or just good regional music. Your advocacy means everything to stations like ours.