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Show QfGS Xswi by MICHAEL NOLAN PmnjJmj ff id Hw riimhrinn maingw rt hnmmuUr, As die only broadcwrigg tomce in town, Baumfc it difficult to ovrrrsrimate. "According to die lag the loral newspaper the Ctbmk CiyRxanL Linda, his of 10 yens, handles an ottair shift and schedules impact wife tnmy I ami I dunk 70 pesxnt of die people in the coun-t- y ipend three or four houa a day with us," he notes with mmmnriah. At this pareirular humble appreciation. Although Baum scned at the mayor of Colorado Gty for 14 yean, he believet hit greatest contribution it a feature called Community Close-u- p. For 20 yeart, he has recorded interviews with residents and former residents simply talking about their lives. ' There and hhmrirs indude cowboys reliving their experiences on trail drives, a doctort early days of practice when chickens and eggs were battered fo( sendees, memories fimn the fiist woman to wade in the load refinery; and 50A annivenaiy recollections. These recordings, wfaidi Baum describes at his legacy, now number more than 1,000 tapes and are chronicled alphabetically and numerically. If someone calls in and asks about an interview we did cm their grandfather back in die 1980s, well .make them a copy. There are all impananc pacts of our histoty; our her--' itage, and to hare them on tape and to hear the people's voices its just a tremendous collection. Add another 50 yeats and think what there are goiqg to be wrath for people tffhsten toT Baum sqrs, adding a whimsical footnote. Each one it tun every 5 12 yeats m, in t sensei no one ute . ever really dies here. Besides' deliverii information. KVMC likes to keep its audience mcmainrH. Jim's one of the wariest guys .there is, ays Tiarit Tumef; a retired firmer Hefc id ifaydim and thyme, noting Baum is skill at c&ring y m spans broadcasts, clever commercials far his advertisers, and a winning petsonality that people find irresistible. I tell him. You give me a jump-sc- at : when you're on the air " For noveity, Baum often a daily roadkill count reporting on varmints that foiled to observe safety rules when crossing the highway within a two-mi- le stretch of die starion. Can you imagine if someone tunes in while driving horn Dallas to LA. on he 'chuckles. "What must they think of us when we're talking about skunk finalities for die year? . Btn and two resident cats are KYMCs only full-tiemployees. Pkrrrimea include a bank employee, a col-atf- pky-byfk- 0? tadio station, anybody who works here is also die receptionist, accepts payments on bilk, rakes public service amnuncrmenti and rfasdfvd page ads, and lets the cats in and out, he explains. Theyre part of the femily if they wotk here, and they usually stay a loag rime when they came. Without question, Baum, father of four, is a cherished member of die town's extended femily T dont know what wed do without him," Turner wys. Local folks needn't worry about him pulling up stakes. T can say every day, he says with a smile, that Im living my dream. 0 . ... Mkbwd Nolan, afnqmnt contributor to American Pro-ftl- e, bad visions of becoming a disc jockty until bt beard bis voict on tape 19 p arrant of tha county 1-- 4 hours a n-- CmaVi independentradto sadons exist al across America, broadcasting r Omora.1b find such a station h your p UMAIusfcginifodfcftocfcaotfaw website has Inks local news, anea, check broiness firings in sports, resources, and a phone book or log onto and check hdrgi for yosam ortowm.Coflega sadons are IndudedThk to other sites as weLThe two stations below are typical of what you wl findr In Commerce, Ga. iyyC IrtCommerce, Co, the staff at WfjC KCDZ hJorfiuaThro.Calit - DaiffieaukofJodvalnCatf,deaaiesKCDZ (1270 AM) covers the local news and sports scene, os wel os' r(l07JFM)mamotnbndpopaskgets.mHeandhb 15- foes the extra mfc to stay on top of themusk that yearoidson are oner personalties. Hb w fester, and thdr fisteners want to hear.1 mother work behind the scenesJnd It has tacked up an fI ,YbstMnquesonadciBybasls,"saysGe bpiesdife ana af national awards for news avenge aid Jordan, who' owns the station with brothers Don'. and community sendae. and Phi Brown TAfe consider ft a poor that people ' 'Vfele the any fee MM soum (hr foe leMena hi " v. ; . V, " ,'" 'V bur broadcast area hdkfnf JiOOO U5L Marties ste me even Idenirg TAfele very dtarse In our musk," he says of the stab honed inTwentynheMmsTDaigneauk says. f tbbwhkbpkysprimafymdicounir$andgospd musk ;V; Wfe aha enjoy an extreme food tebSondip wkh i of die 60s and 70s, as wel as new southern gospel die emeigency sendees up here because we respond so I , musfc.'Vfcl play fif Anderson and Ebon John back to qukfylfaUe0kmihane&boihoo4thesheiL I badCHm am very few stations that can say that department cab us because they kixM lean stf hove a bf record foraryf someone wants them another lOjOOO pairs of eyes looking to hear a song by George Jones from die 60s, we doift for that person Ifpeople see smoke or hear ofa big oad-den-t, have to look fir he says wthpride.lWw! got a spe. dl they have to dob turn on the station and dtey cial place then on the know weYe going to be on top oft" uhere his records an." f r . , Imme-dusdygi- ve jr' i American Profile Pago 7 |