We Did It! WESU’s Spring Fund Drive Surpasses Goal
Thanks to the incredible generosity of our listeners, supporters, alumni, students, volunteers, and friends, WESU’s Spring Fund Drive has surpassed its $30,000 goal.
What makes this achievement especially meaningful isn’t just that we met our goal—it’s how we got there.
WESU serves many different communities, each finding its own value in the same shared resource. Some of these communities are broad; others are remarkably specific. First-generation immigrant communities—including Connecticut’s Jamaican and West Indian diaspora and Middletown’s Italian community with deep roots in Melilli, Sicily—tune in for programming in their own languages, with news, views, and community information they cannot find anywhere else on the FM dial. Their friends and family back home listen too.
So do devoted fans of the Grateful Dead, hardcore and punk rock, underground hip-hop, old and new, jazz, blues, and sounds from across the globe and the freeform galaxy that defy easy description. And then there are our beloved oldies listeners, a vital and generous part of the WESU family, who can find everything here from the big band sounds of the 1930s and 1940s, doo-wop, early rock and roll, soul and R&B, right through the classic rock, funk, and disco of the 1970s and 1980s.
There is simply too much to list—and that’s the point.
Students and alumni. Local listeners and far-flung fans. Public affairs devotees, late-night freeform explorers, and those who tune in for Anything Goes!
Disparate as these communities are, our pledge drives are the moment they all come together around a common purpose. This spring, that convergence put WESU in the black and reaffirmed the strength of the partnership between our Radio-Active donors, our student and community volunteers, and Wesleyan University. Together, they make WESU possible.
We also want to extend special thanks to the generous alumni donor who made an anonymous matching gift to this year’s drive. This remarkable contribution didn’t just help close the gap—it inspired others to give and effectively doubled the impact of every donation received during the final stretch of the campaign.
To everyone who contributed this spring—whether you gave $5 or $5,000, mailed in a pledge form, shopped in the WESU store, or simply spread the word to a fellow listener—thank you. Every dollar mattered. Every act of support made a difference.
The fund drive may be over, but WESU’s mission continues 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We remain committed to providing diverse music, independent news and public affairs programming, opportunities for student learning, and a platform for voices that might not otherwise be heard.
Take a look at our program schedule and discover something new. And remember: every show remains available online for two weeks after it airs, making it easier than ever to stay connected with your favorite programs.
Most importantly, thank you for keeping us Radio-Active.
Enjoy the summer, stay tuned!
— Ben Michael
General Manager
WESU 88.1 FM
