Support Christian radio in Barbados

Hi there, and thank you for viewing our fundraising campaign! We really hope you will consider supportIng it. Please take the time to read what we have written below, as it will be very important in helping you to decide if you should support this campaign.

We are husband and wife team, Scott & Ann Marie (Annie) Weatherhead, and we live in Barbados in the Caribbean with our teenage son, where we run a Christian radio station called MIX 96.9 FM https://www.instagram.com/mixfmbarbados/ https://www.facebook.com/mix969fm

Today we are seeking your help to restore our FM transmitter systems in Barbados which have been off the air since January 2021.

Some important background........

Our radio ministry broadcasts the absolute best eclectic mix of Christian contemporary and Gospel Hit Music by artistes from the Caribbean and around the world, as well as short inspirational messages, targeting the young and young at heart. Believe it or not, we started this radio station as a secular Top 40 hit music station in 2001, long before we were Christians. The change really started in 2008, when Annie, who has been our program director since almost the beginning, felt very inspired to dedicate an all day format on Sunday with only Christian hits, after listening to a new syndicated Christian radio show we were airing called Sonrise. She thought that if the music from Sonrise inspired her so much, then it can inspire others as well! At that time there were no other secular stations in Barbados playing an iota of Christian music, so our station certainly stood out in it's originality for going against the grain.

In 2009 we both happily gave our lives to Jesus Christ, after completing the Alpha course and thoroughly enjoying it. It left us feeling like we needed to know more about God and his word, and we were soon blessed to find an amazing small home group which we quickly joined. By the end of 2009, we were baptized along with our young son, who surprised us, and volunteered on his own to join us in the water and get baptized as well. As our relationship with God grew, we both told God that we wanted to work for him, as we felt like we had devoted so much of our life to the secular world up to that point, and would now like to serve him and others for the rest of our lives. We had no idea what we were in for with that decision, as our lives instantly grew harder and harder, even losing our home for a while; but we didn't change our minds on serving him; it made us even more determined to!

By 2012 Annie was removing more and more of the Top 40 songs from our playlist due to content, and personal convictions. We started to lose financial ground and support because of it, as many advertisers wanted us to play immoral Top 40 music before they chose to advertise with us. However, Annie felt very strongly that we should switch the format of the station to 100% Christian pop, as there were so many secular stations that never promoted anything remotely family oriented or positive on the airwaves in Barbados, and she felt very convicted about the words that kids were singing along to some of the music on the radio. Unfortunately, Scott did not have the faith for such a move at that time, as he feared it would not be a financially viable decision.

In January 2015 we wanted to move the station from our then offices at Sheraton Mall to a new office which would reduce costs and give us more space for the the station to grow. For 2 years we tried to move into the new office and studios, but no matter what we did, we encountered too many challenges, and could not get into the new office.

On May 8th 2017 Scott received an unexpected visit from a friend who really didn't know why he came to see him; but during that conversation, and lamenting to him about our seeming inability to move the station, Scott heard very clearly the words "You shall not put a secular station in my house". With that our friend then left, saying 'Now I know why I was supposed to meet with you today'. We felt we had received our answer and directive after hearing that, and after seeing the amazing things God had done in our lives over the past 8 years. Scott finally had the faith for this transition that Annie had 5 years earlier.

We knew then what God wanted us to do, and we agreed at that moment to switch the format of MIX 96.9 FM that same night to 100% Christian hit music, with a focus on reaching the youth and many others in Barbados, with the Gospel of Jesus Christ through music. We would support the work of local and regional Christian artistes, who were usually not supported on most radio stations, as well as the work of the Church as the body of Christ in Barbados.

At midnight on May 9th 2017, MIX 96.9 FM was transformed into a full time Christian ministry. We surprised many with this change, but were so happy about our decision! In 7 days the station was moved into its new offices and studios. What we could not do in 2 years as a secular radio station, God enabled in 7 days as a Christian ministry!

It has not been an easy road for us since our transition. We lost advertising clients, financial support, friends and acquaintances. You name it, we lost it; but we remain faithful, despite the greatest challenges we have faced to sustain this ministry and survive as a family.

On September 20th 2018, 16 months after we switched formats, our Rohn 65G 300 foot guyed transmission tower collapsed due to high winds, age, and corrosion. We relocated to a smaller rented tower, but our signal has never been the same since, and we have not been able to run our main 3.5KW transmitter there, because our main antenna and transmission line was destroyed when that tower came down, and our backup antenna and transmission line cannot run the main transmitter. We have had to use our small 300 watt backup transmitter and backup antenna on this shorter tower. In addition, our old 1985 Harris FM3.5K tube based transmitter which we bought used in 2001, has reached the end of its life. It needs major maintenance, parts are expensive and difficult to obtain, and the cost to run it will quadruple our electricity bill.

We continued to plod on with our mission, but by January 2021 the pandemic had taken its toll on Barbados, and with little to no advertising, or other financial support for the station, we could not repair, upgrade or maintain our transmission systems, and the station went off the air. The last 18 months of our life has been the most difficult time of our life by far, but by the Grace of God and the goodness of others we have survived.

Recently, we managed to get back on the air, but with a very small 75 watt transmitter, and extremely limited coverage of the island. Our Internet streams are also back up, but our app is still unavailable on the app stores, and we are running fully automated with no staff except Annie and Scott.

We have been praying and asking God for the financial support to restore our main FM transmitter site, as well as the ongoing support for this ministry to continue the work we began in 2017. At the moment, there are 13 secular radio stations, and only two Christian stations on the air in Barbados.

Today we are asking for your support in raising the funds needed to restore our FM transmitter site. This includes the cost of replacement of our inefficient and expensive to operate 36 year old Harris FM3.5K tube transmitter, with a modern, energy efficient, solid state transmitter, as well as the associated tower, antenna and transmitter site expenses required for this transition, necessary to provide a stable platform upon which this ministry can function reliably in the long term.

Over the past 18 months, we have significantly reduced our operating expenses, and automated many processes, so that we can keep operating expenses low, while delivering a quality radio product at a far lower cost. This radio station is not expensive to run when compared to others, and we know that with your support we can do this.

MIX 96.9 FM is the only radio station with a specific mission to deliver the gospel of Jesus Christ to the youth and young at heart in Barbados, through music and content they can relate to, and connect with. At this critical time in our nation's history, with violent crime on the rise among young people daily, and the proliferation of music on most local radio stations that promotes gun violence and immorality, it is vitally important that Barbados not lose this media. MIX 96.9 FM upholds true Godly values, and supports the family structure, with inspiring, uplifting, positive music and messaging. For us, this is our ministry and mission. Please help support it.

If you would like to listen to MIX 96.9 FM from anywhere in the world, you can listen here: https://mix969fm.radio12345.com/

We have been so happy to hear from many listeners from Barbados and internationally, both believers and nonbelievers, who exclaim their love for MIX 96.9 FM. Many of our loyal listeners who started listening to us in 2001 as a Top 40 station, continue to enjoy the music and programming in 2021 as a Christian station. We would love your support in keeping this station alive to serve God and the work of others in his vineyard.

Your one time, or ongoing financial support for this radio ministry, can help give the next generation of young people and the young at heart in Barbados, access to God's word, through amazing Christian music and inspirational messages. Many of today's young people are unlikely to find themselves in the pews of a Church today, but we can reach them through great music they can relate to right where they are, with your financial support.

We will post regular updates on this campaign page and on our social media, so that you can see and hear the progress that has been made in getting our main transmitter site back on the air, and the difference your support is making in the quest to reach the youth in Barbados with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Should you feel inspired to support this radio ministry, we know that God will bless you, and multiply to you many times over what you donate to this cause. We hope that our testimony will inspire you to seek a relationship with God today. We think he is an amazing Father! It is the most important and rewarding decision you will ever make, and we have no regrets about walking with him. May God bless you and sustain you in this difficult time.

Much love and Blessings to you, Scott & Annie!