Radio station covers local, national Catholic news
By Amanda Greene, Divine Diva
divine.starnewsonline.com
Bill Hamilton, Joe DeRobertis and Jim Edens started Wilmington Catholic Radio, WBPL-LP 92.7 FM, in 2004 because "we're so far removed from Raleigh that we wanted to show what's going on in Wilmington's Catholic community," Hamilton said. "The reason I started this station is I came to learn about the faith in a much deeper way at age 50, and I wanted to find a way to share that with others."
The low-power radio station, which is on the Relevant Radio Network, now runs downloaded programming 24 hours a day, including Catholic Answers Live and Father John Corapi, along with a local show about Wilmington Catholics with host Judi Paparozzi. That show started last year.
Paparozzi was a lawyer in New Jersey before she moved to Kure Beach with her husband and got into Catholic radio broadcasting.
She's done 10 shows so far about area and regional Catholics and priests. A new show each month is broadcast at 11 a.m. Saturdays and at 6 p.m. Sundays. Her next new show is about Raleigh's diocesan director of vocations, Rev. Ned Shlesinger. He coordinates all the seminarians. That show will run at 11 a.m. April 5 and 6 p.m. April 6.
"I love to interview people and get to know how they view living their faith," Paparozzi said.
Though its all-volunteer staff doesn't know 92.7's listenership quite yet, the station is growing.
Watch this spring for the launch of its Web site at www.wilmingtoncatholicradio.com.
And now the station is getting its own version of The Thistle & Shamrock, a Celtic music show called Feast of Irish Folk by Patrick McDonagh, starting at 11 a.m. today and 6 p.m. Sunday.
Just in time for St. Patrick's Day!
Or send a check to:
Wilmington Catholic Radio
PO Box 12321
Wilmington, NC 28405
Wilmington Catholic Radio is an affiliate of Relevant Radio which is a listener supported non-profit radio network. 90% of the program content of Wilmington Catholic Radio is provided by Relevant Radio. The remaining 10% comes from Catholic Answers or is locally produced.
Wilmington Catholic Radio is an apostolate serving the Catholic Church and consistently operating in accord with the principles and truths of the Catholic Faith as expressed in Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition and the living Magesterium of the Church. Our goal is to always provide the community with solid Catholic teaching so Catholics can have an easy way to learn more about their faith, and for non-Catholics to learn what the Church really teaches. This is our mission.