Radio can sound like a boy’s club, with motormouth DJs and bombastic shock jocks crowding the airwaves. But that’s not the case at KZSM 104.1/KZSM.org, where women volunteers participate in everything we do. For March, which is Women’s History Month, we acknowledge their contributions — hosting shows, planning events, creating publicity, maintaining the studio, editing and managing sound files, recording announcements, serving on the Board of Trustees and even writing a column.
Our emphasis on local music and music you won’t hear anywhere else engages women in many different ways — they might perform live in the studio or drop in late Monday night to share a cherished find on “Vinyl Confessions.” Intern Hailey is learning how to collect, edit and broadcast original music from all over the world on “It’s What’s New.” “Celtic Corner” host Limey’s Lass shares the music she grew up with. On “Rise up Reggae,” Lady K celebrates a genre she discovered in college. Patsy Liao explores along with her listeners on “Appreciating Classical Music,” and Lovely Jaycee blends trendy hits with underground tracks and said, “I play it all!”
It’s been said that women contribute the values of caring and nurturing to the workplace. Three of our KZSM show hosts bring decades of experience caring and advocating for our community to the airwaves. On Sundays from 7 to 8 p.m., San Marcos native and community activist Cathy Lara hosts “Raices” [Roots], a bilingual broadcast devoted to preserving the stories of San Marcos’ Hispanic community, collecting oral histories that might otherwise be lost to time.
From 2 to 3 p.m. on the first Thursday of every month, Marianne Reese hosts “Human Interest,” an eclectic interview show that grew out of LifeLong Learning, the organization she founded in 2014 when she recognized that San Marcos offered limited opportunities for adults to continue learning and growing. At first directed at seniors, Marianne’s show has evolved into in-depth discussions of issues of interest to humans of all ages.
From 11:30 a.m. to noon on the second Thursday of the month, “Wonderful World” features environmental activist Dianne Wassenich, founder of the San Marcos River Foundation; The show features conversations with activists, experts and volunteers who carry out the River Foundation’s mission to “preserve and protect the natural beauty, flow and purity of the San Marcos River.”
We salute these women for bringing their advocacy to KZSM, and we celebrate their contributions and those of all our women volunteers.
