Another Board Bio
For election at 3.21.07 general membership meeting to fill vacant board seats.
Please see also the more complete list posted here.
My name’s Anthony Udell, though most of you know me as Tony, and I’m the
41-year old father of a beautiful 4-year old daughter. I was born in Reno
NV, spent the majority of my years in South Florida, before moving up here
to W. Mass. in ‘98. My previous radio experience began in high school, where
I was the program director, later I did a reggae music program for WVUM, the
voice of the University of Miami, filled in on occasion for the long-time
Jazz guru of S. Fl. radio, China Valles, and was the grave-yard shift board
engineer for a for-profit AM community radio station. I once considered
making it my profession, only to discover that I hated being told what to
play or say… Oh well. Over the years, I’ve worked a string of crappy
retail/clerical jobs, and in the meantime, became a radical. I co-founded
the Holyoke Community College Anti-War Coalition and helped re-establish a
lively activist branch of the International Socialist Organization locally.
Though I’m no longer a member, my affiliation spurned me to start a
socialist news show on Valley Free Radio called “Praxis”, which enjoyed it’s
first anniversary a few months ago.
Since I first joined VFR, I’ve maintained a weekly studio manager shift
on Fridays. For the last few months, I’ve facilitated the Programming
Committee meetings, am currently a member of the scheduling sub-committee,
and have volunteered to assist the board as non-voting member the last few
weeks. In other words, I strongly feel this station and the community that
sustains it are vital and I can think of no worse fate than to see this
precious resource forged by the efforts of so many to disappear. I recognize
that the latest spate of empty seats on the board is the result of a
multitude of pressures, and I trust that those who stepped down were
motivated by very compelling reasons, but I would like to make it clear, if
granted the opportunity to serve the Valley Free Radio community as a member
of the board, that I intend to serve the full measure of my term.
With all of the obstacles of late, and the occasional acrimony, it’s
sometimes easy to forget what we’re fighting for. We’ve got something more
amazing, more compelling, and yes, at times, more nerve-wracking, than all
of these for-profit, commercial-laden, transmitters of bad music and
government/corporate propaganda. For now, all of us, as members of the VFR
community have been entrusted with this torch. Let’s run with it and hand it
off even brighter than we found it.
Tags: Board of Directors, Board of Directors, Latest Station News, Latest Station News, vfr, vfr
