Who knew, A Blanket

Dave Andrews • Jun 21, 2022

The KJOL Blanket Drive

It was just over three years ago that I realized a simple piece of cloth could make a difference in someone’s life. I always viewed blankets as something that was simply utilitarian with no frills….like finger nail clippers, like a pair of socks, or a toaster…something with a purpose that is tossed when it wears out. 

Then, my 2 year old daughter got really sick. A nasty onset of Type 1 Diabetes ended her up at St. Mary’s Hospital. She was about to take a fast helicopter ride to Children’s in Denver; and the flight staff was concerned… telling my wife to prepare herself for the worst. Before the flight departed, she was covered with a handmade white flannel tie-blanket at St. Mary’s…a gift to our hurting little girl. I burned rubber on a prayer filled I-70 ride to meet Ellie and her mom at Children’s Hospital; and by the time I arrived several hours later, Ellie had received another flannel, this time a pink tie-blanket. She was covered with that pink blanket when the intensive care nurse told me she thought she would be okay. She wore that blanket for two weeks of care in the hospital…and she wore that same pink blanket last night. Ellie is now 5 and still loves that blanket. The white tie blanket became our next child’s favorite…and she uses it nightly as well. 

A blanket can provide a strange sense of comfort when we are sick, when we are cold, or when we are hurting inside. And that is why in our efforts to serve Christ and His Kingdom, our next project at KJOL is to collect blankets for children who are hurting…this time specifically, who have been victims of abuse or witnessed serious trauma.  Starting Monday, through the rest of the month, we are asking you to drop off new or handmade blankets at our studios. 

They will end up being gifted to hurting children to comfort them at the time of their legal interview process at the Western Slope Center For Children in Mesa County and the Dolphin House in Montrose County (also serving Delta County). And while these locations are not our usual Christian-ran ministries that we normally try to lift up, these two groups are equipped, able, and in the unique position to work with these kids in this capacity. And really, in the end, we do it for our Lord Jesus. Send them with a prayer.

We need both girls and boys blankets. The Dolphin House especially is low on blankets for boys. Perhaps a church group might like to build a few tie-blankets, or a retiree might crochet one, or a working family might take their kids to pick one or two out from the store. And there are lots of DIY blanket patterns and instructions online, with several weeks to build one or deliver one to the station. If you are out of town and have a hard time getting to GJ, just let me know. We will do our very best to make arrangements to get those one way or another. 

Would you be able to help? Thanks for your consideration.
 
-Dave Andrews, KJOL Station Manager

Share The Light Tips of the Day

By Dave Andrews • 04 Apr, 2024
Our annual Spring FriendRaiser is underway for the month of April; and as a part of that, our theme this year is Share The Light. As you share the Gospel and the Light of Christ, KJOL has compiled 30 tips for every day of the month. Here they are:

Songs that say THANK YOU!

By Kurt Neuswanger • 04 Apr, 2024
During KJOL’s April “Friendraiser” month, we want to say THANK YOU to our faithful supporters. And THANK YOU to everyone who makes a first-time donation. And finally THANK YOU to God, the giver of all good gifts in our lives, starting with Jesus Christ! KJOL has a lot of new songs that say THANK YOU. I hope you enjoy them! That Thank You Song! Citizen Way Thank God Stars Go Dim Thank You Life.Church Worship I Thank God Housefires Thanks Giver Crowder Thanks and Praise Lucy Grimble and Vineyard Music A Thousand Thank Yous Sarah Kroger Thankful VERSES Thank You Jesus For The Blood Charity Gayle

Four More New Artists

By Kurt Neuswanger • 07 Mar, 2024
In January, we told you about four new artists at the KJOL music blog . This month, we have four more new artists. Jordan Smith “This Is Jesus” Jordan Smith is a 30 year old Kentucky native who grew up singing in the church choir. In 2015, he won NBC’s The Voice. He sang “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” and "Mary Did You Know." Natalie Layne “Amen” Natalie Layne is a 24 year old Colorado Springs native, where she was a worship leader at New Life Church. She received a masters degree in piano from Belmont University in Nashville. In 2019, she won Belmont’s Christian Showcase. She continues to serve as a worship leader at her church in Nashville. Terrian “Big God” Terrian (Woods) is a singer/songwriter from Memphis. She is also a member of TobyMac's band Diverse City. And she serves on the staff of AngelStreet in Memphis, which mentors girls as part of an all girls choir. Seph Schleuter “Counting My Blessings” Seph Schlueter ( pronounced “seff shleeter”) spent 7 years as a missionary. In 2020 he formed the worship collective Damascus Worship, in conjunction with the organization “Damascus” which conducts two-year programs to develop leaders who will impact their generation for Christ with the aim of bringing revival to the Catholic Church.

Oh The Many Repairs...

By Dave Andrews • 04 Mar, 2024
He had noticed we had been off the air on 94.5 FM in Delta…and I related to him it was one of “those” weekends for our poor equipment. Not only did our AM 1400 Delta transmitter go down causing us to make a very expensive replacement only weeks before, but our FM transmitter in Delta went down at the same time as our Montrose 91.9FM transmitter, and only hours after our whole network went down across the Western Slope!

February Update

By Dave Andrews • 05 Feb, 2024
The other day a kindly woman knocked on my door asking for a donation to help build the local swimming pool. I came back with a glass of water. Doesn’t it feel great to give to a good cause??

"How Great Thou Art" 75th Anniversary Edition

By Kurt Neuswanger • 31 Jan, 2024
The English version of the hymn “How Great Thou Art” turns 75 years old in 2024. To mark the anniversary, a new recording has been released, including a brand new verse by Matt Redman. First a little history… Swedish pastor Carl Boberg wrote the original lyrics in 1885. Boberg said that after a strong thunderstorm passed by, he opened his window and heard church bells ringing. He immediately was inspired to write his poem, set to the tune of a Swedish folk melody. It was translated into Russian, where English missionary Stuart Hine heard it while in Ukraine in 1931. He wrote two new verses (3 & 4) and translated it into English in 1949—which is the 75 th anniversary. British missionaries around the world soon began to spread the song. Eventually it reached Billy Graham and George Beverly Shea , who performed it during Graham’s 1957 New York Crusade. The audience liked it so much, they asked Shea to sing it over and over. Graham then used it every week on his Hour Of Decision radio program. Fifteen artists have now collaborated to record the 75th anniversary edition, called “How Great Thou Art (Until That Day)” . When you hear the song on KJOL, the first two voices are from Chris Tomlin and Hillary Scott . The remaining voices include: Kari Jobe and her husband, Cody Carnes Naomi Raine (Maverick City Music) Taya (formerly with Hillsong) Blessing Offor (from Nigeria) Matt Maher (who also plays piano) Matt Redman For the 75 th anniversary, the Stuart Hine Trust commissioned Matt Redman and Mitch Wong to write a new fifth verse: Until that day When heaven bids us welcome, And as we walk this broken warring world, Your kingdom come, Deliver us from evil, And we’ll proclaim our God how great You are! And we’ll proclaim, our God how great You are Redman said they wanted to tie the verse to Stuart Hine’s work in Ukraine, especially in light of the current conflict there. “I wanted the word ‘war’ in there,” said Redman . “It’s kind of a gritty word. But we have to sing about both the everyday and the eternal.” Time will tell if the fifth verse becomes a staple in hymnals. But few will argue that “How Great Thou Art” is one of America’s favorite hymns. And with this new rendition, hopefully it will continue to be loved by future generations.
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