Today is June 1 and around here that’s a special day. At least it’s special to me. June 1, 1976 is the day that WPDH came on the air as a rock station. And obviously it changed my life. I was only in high school back then, but I pretty much knew that I wanted to be in radio. It was so cool to have a rock station right here in the Hudson Valley, and it was my dream to someday work there.

Here’s the story that I retell every year, but I’ll make it short. My friend Tommy Webster picked me up for school in his old Ford Falcon and the radio was on. He told me that he’d just discovered this new rock station, and it’s right out of Poughkeepsie. And that was my beginning with WPDH. It became the radio station that all my friends and I listened to. It wouldn’t be long before I would be sitting behind a mic in the WPDH studio.

But the real reason that WPDH is still on the air as a rock station after almost 50 years has nothing to do with me. It’s all about you. Our WPDH listeners are the most loyal and most generous listeners anywhere. I know people who work at other radio stations in other parts of the area and the country. None of them feel the connection with the listeners the way we do here at WPDH. 

Our listeners are also our friends. They’ve been with us for years, and introduced the next generation to us, and now their children are loyal listeners and friends. It’s a great feeling to be part of something with such a long history and such a strong connection to the Hudson Valley. I’m proud to work for WPDH, and thankful for the opportunity to be able to do it for most of my adult life. And I’m thankful for you, the WPDH listeners, Happy Birthday to all of us! 

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