About Our Annual Fundraising DrivE

CFRC's Annual Funding Drive is our most important fundraising event of the year from our community.  Donor gifts make it possible to maintain high quality broadcasting and service to provide our listeners on campus and in the Greater Kingston area.  We consistently raise 25,000 per year, a tenth of our operating budget.  We're grateful to our our new and perennial donors who support the station's ability to keep the doors open and our diverse, innovative and independent programming on air!  Our success year over year is a testament to the value community members place in volunteer-driven music, news, spoken word and multicultural radio programming for our region.

All of the funds raised during our Annual Funding Drive go directly back into the station to strengthen our operations and support projects of benefit and interest to the whole community.  Day to day operational costs that donations support include maintenance, replacement and upgrading of existing station equipment, purchase of new equipment to meet modern digital realities, music content licensing and transmission costs, transmitter and webstream maintenance, general operations, funding capital projects and growing our capacity as a community hub for listeners to learn more about local helping organizations and services as well as our local artists and arts events.

Here's a condensed list of some of the operational projects we have been able to complete since 2018 thanks to the generous gifts of our donors:

  • Replacing the 30-year-old AEG Bayly Telefunken FM transmitter with a Nautel VS1 unit 
  • Replacement of microwave transmitter equipment in Botterall Hall 
  • Launch of our new podcast platform featuring locally produced spoken word programming 
  • Replacement and upgrade of soundboard in our main recording studio for use by volunteers and local artists in their recording projects
  • Renovation of primary recording studio space and equipage of space to support live in studio band performances and roundtable discussions
  • Investment in new live remote broadcasting equipment
  • Investment in new off site recording equipment
  • Investment in new DJ equipment to support community events
  • Investment in new recording and broadcast studio equipment
  • New broadcast computer and software, refurbishment of older model computers

Your support in 2022 means we can bring our website up to modern, accessible standards while also being able to support a new community-facing project that allows local youth to freely participate in a summer camp experience with no cost barriers, and learn the skills behind broadcasting, thus training future generations for community radio.  

Thank you very much for your support!