Jim and Vickie Heddle met, married and lived in Jim's home town, Ann Arbor, before moving to the warmer Tucson, AZ. The friendly pair live happily in modest places where Jim has always found a job in broadcasting and Vickie has been employed in day care.

Attuned to what happens in the broadcast industry, Jim notes for the Ann Arbor homefolk of an unprecedented, communication opportunity for their non-profit organization, "It's called 'low power FM' and it permits any non-profit organization to file a request with the FCC to be licensed to broadcast their own FM radio signal on the standard broadcast band."

He notes that at these LPFM standard frequencies, the station will operate with an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100 watts and an approximate service range 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles radius).

Jim envisions a LPFM station as a non-profit's primary information provider, "A church could broadcast the previous week's sermon while parishioners are driving to church for this week's services. If there were traffic conditions to avoid, they could be described in detail over the station airwaves."

He sees no downside to owning a LPFM station especially considering a non-profit can spread timely information to the community, even at the 11th hour.

Jim is aware of one LPFM station in Michigan that is "on-the-air" and is operated by a Plymouth, MI native and a former commercial radio station owner. It's WKKM in Harrison, near Clare in Michigan's mid-section. David A. Carmine is the hands-on owner through his family's foundation.

"I would advise interested parties to research the FCC web site (www.fcc.gov/lpfm/) for more information or to contact Mr. Carmine via email with questions at countrykingradio2004@yahoo.com or call 989.539.7109. It would be worth a trip to Harrison to see his set-up." Heddle suggests.

Do Jim and Vickie yearn for Michigan's shivering winters and shoveling snow? Vickie notes, "Jim misses his hometown Ann Arbor and all the athletic events, both high school and college. But so many games are on TV, he probably wouldn't go to them if we lived there!"

Photo: Jim Heddle in his Tucson radio station studio.

Jim Heddle knows Ann Arbor like the palm of his hand. And his hand used to swell catching his father's fastballs. Jim's dad was a member of the Dewey Street gang which was a group of playful, well-intentioned neighborhood children who were very close to each other and their families. Former local legendary broadcaster, Ted Heusel was a member of the Dewey Street group during his youth. Dale Leslie met Jim through their common interest in broadcasting and Ann Arbor Pioneer High School sports past and present. Teh author, Dale Leslie, can be reached at 734.660.1023 or via daleleslie@comcast.net

Photos and some text: www.aadl.org/gallery/pictureAnnArbor/Dale+Leslie/dixboro