Thursday, July 12, 2007

Mater Angelica Catholic Radio Station: a first for Long Island

Home to 2 million Catholics, Long Island is not known as a Catholic evangelization center, and why not? We have more money, better health, longer lives, more education and more leisure time than any Catholics in world history. What are we missing? The answer is catechesis.
We don't appreciate the treasure we have in our Catholic faith, and we are distracted by the pursuit of happiness, which we erroneously assume is in materialism. A bigger home, a better car, etc. How do we call Long Islanders home to their Catholic faith?
The answer, I believe is in the broadcast empire of a Poor Clare cloistered nun, Mother Mary Angelica. Thus, we are naming the radio station we hope, by the grace of God, and the permission of the FCC to open, Mater Angelica, after the little nun who could. We will feature 24 hours of EWTN programming at 91.7 FM. The signal, though small, would cover a large part of the East End, home to the summer playground of the rich and famous, the Hamptons, reaching a potential audience of 50,000 souls for Christ and His Church. We are members of the Catholic Radio Association and represent a trend of a growing number of Catholic radio stations across the nation,
Here's the rub. The applicant, must be a not-for-profitincorporated organization who wants to provide Catholic programming, with 75% of it's board members living within 25 miles of the area covered by the station signal on the East End.
On reflection while looking over my last message about bringing Catholic radio to the Hamptons, I realize I used some language that is not exactly accurate and that may lead someone to a false impression. I should not have described the suggested applicant as some group who would "hold" the FCC permit for Mater Angelica. Whatever group applies for this permit will have all the rights arising from it and will control all programming decisions at any station that results. Mater Angelica is being organized in the hope -- and to plan for all possible contingencies -- such that if a Catholic applicant wins the permit and desires our assistance in building or operating a station, we will be available to offer it. The fact remains that Mater Angelica is looking for a strong applicant under FCC rules who would be likely to secure the FCC permit with an intention to provide Catholic programming in our area." PLEASE, those of you who are interested in applying, please email me leticia77@optonline.net or leave your contact information below, and offer to help. The window of opportunity will soon close, and may not be open for ten more years.
Please help us to save souls, and make this the Lord's Island!