Tag: Spirit of Christmas

USF News

Spirit of Christmas Programming on WCSF-FM 88.7 Starts Thanksgiving Day

Joliet, Ill. – Starting at noon on Thanksgiving Day (Thurs., November 24, 2022) and running through noon on January 2, 2023, University of St. Francis (USF) radio station WCSF-FM 88.7 switches over from its regular programming to the 30th season on the Spirit of Christmas, a 24-hour, commercial-free, season-long holiday format.

“As we enter our 30th season, I’d like to express how grateful we are for the support of the Spirit of Christmas program and WCSF Radio from our many listeners and the local sponsors which help pay the bills.  We work tirelessly to bring you the highest quality and most variety in Christmas music and programming available anywhere in the world, all commercial-free.  We even have listeners across the country and around the world either finding us online or taking a bit of home with them to the office or wherever they travel through stfrancis.edu/spirit.  We hope you and your family will continue to join us at 88.7FM for the Spirit of Christmas,” said Don Burke, director of programming for the Spirit of Christmas.

Spirit of Christmas features a variety-filled rotation of over 4,000 songs, including multiple versions of holiday classics, so you’ll never get tired of hearing the same songs over and over again. One special program that airs nightly at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. during Spirit of Christmas is the classic 1937 radio series, The Cinnamon Bear. Relive the story of Judy and Jimmy Barton and their adventure to an enchanted world alongside Cinnamon Bear, a stuffed bear with button eyes and a green ribbon around his neck, to recover the missing silver star from their Christmas tree. The Cinnamon Bear starts at 6 p.m. on November 29th and continues through Christmas Eve.

Tune in to FM 88.7 to listen to the Spirit of Christmas on your radio in the Joliet area or livestream the station at stfrancis.edu/spirit.

Area businesses are also invited to promote themselves through special sponsorship opportunities that air during Spirit of Christmas programming. Sponsorships start at $250 and are a great way to promote your business or extend holiday wishes to the Joliet community and beyond.

For more information about sponsorships, please call 815-740-3748.

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The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 53,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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WCSF-88.7 FM Mega Music Rummage Sale Set for October 29

Joliet, Ill. – WCSF-88.7 FM, the radio station of the University of St. Francis (USF), is hosting its annual Mega Music Rummage Sale on Saturday, October 29, 2022 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at USF’s St. Clare Campus, which is located at 1550 Plainfield Road in Joliet. Admission to the event is free. Thousands of items will be for sale at the event, including vinyl LPs, 45s, 78s, CDs, DVDs, sheet music, 8-tracks, cassettes, instruments, audio equipment, and many more music-related items. Early bird admission starts at 7:30 a.m. with a $20 donation. All proceeds support the educational mission of WCSF-88.7 FM.

WCSF is also currently accepting donations of LPs, 45s, CDs, video games and DVDs. Please contact WCSF by telephone at 815-740-3697 to arrange a pick-up or drop-off.

WCSF-88.7 FM is well-known in the greater Joliet area as the home of the popular “Spirit of Christmas” programming that is broadcasted each year from Thanksgiving Day to New Year’s Day. During the rest of the year, the station plays a great mix of new, alternative, independent and local music programmed and operated by USF students. The station is available on the radio and online at wcsf.streamon.fm.

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The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 53,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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Spirit of Christmas Programming Starts Thanksgiving Day

Joliet, Ill. – Starting at noon on Thanksgiving Day (Thurs., November 25, 2021) and running through noon on January 2, 2022, University of St. Francis (USF) radio station WCSF-FM 88.7 switches over from its regular programming to the Spirit of Christmas, a 24-hour, commercial-free, season-long holiday format.

“2020 was a challenging year for so many reasons. One of our challenges last year was an antenna that was damaged during that summer’s derecho, which severely limited our broadcast coverage throughout the program. While 2021 continues with its own set of challenges, I am very happy to report that our new antenna is up and running and we are at full power for this year’s program! We hope you and your family will join us for the 29th season of the Spirit of Christmas,” said Don Burke, Spirit of Christmas director of programming.

Spirit of Christmas features a variety-filled rotation of over 4,000 songs, including multiple versions of holiday classics such as “White Christmas”. One special program that airs nightly at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. during Spirit of Christmas is the classic 1937 radio series, The Cinnamon Bear. Relive the story of Judy and Jimmy Barton and their adventure to an enchanted world alongside Cinnamon Bear, a stuffed bear with button eyes and a green ribbon around his neck, to recover the missing silver star from their Christmas tree.

Tune in to FM 88.7 to listen to the Spirit of Christmas on your radio in the Joliet area or livestream the station at stfrancis.edu/spirit.

Area businesses are also invited to promote themselves through special sponsorship opportunities that air during Spirit of Christmas programming. Sponsorships start at $250 and are a great way to promote your business or extend holiday wishes to the Joliet community and beyond. For more information about sponsorships, please call 815-740-3748.

: :

The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 52,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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Reminder – WCSF Mega Music Rummage Sale Set for October 23

WCSF-88.7 FM, the radio station of the University of St. Francis (USF) is hosting its annual Mega Music Rummage Sale on Saturday, October 23 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at USF’s St. Clare Campus, which is located at 1550 Plainfield Road in Joliet. Admission to the event is free. Thousands of items will be for sale at the event, including vinyl LPs, 45s, 78s, CDs, DVDs, video games, sheet music, 8-tracks, cassettes, instruments, audio equipment, and many more music-related items. Early bird admission starts at 7:30 a.m. with a suggested $20 donation. All proceeds support the educational mission of WCSF-88.7 FM.

WCSF is currently accepting donations of LPs, 45s, CDs, video games and DVDs. Please contact WCSF by telephone at 815-740-3697 to arrange a pick-up or drop-off.

WCSF- 88.7 FM is well known in the greater Joliet area as the home of the popular “Spirit of Christmas” programming that is broadcasted each year from Thanksgiving Day to New Year’s Day. During the rest of the year, the station plays a great mix of new, alternative, independent and local music programmed and operated by USF students. The station is available on the radio and online at wcsf.streamon.fm.

: :

The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 52,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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Spirit of Christmas Perseveres through a Unique Season

Joliet, Ill. – This past summer, the radio antenna tower for WCSF 88.7 FM, the University of St. Francis’ (USF) radio station, was blown off its mounts atop Tower Hall on the main USF campus in Joliet during a strong thunderstorm. This challenged the station to transition its broadcast to a temporary, but less effective, tower. While the normal range for the radio station reaches as far as Mokena, Morris, Wilmington and Bolingbrook, the temporary signal reached only one or two miles. What was thought to be a short-term challenge lasted much longer than initially anticipated and impacted the reach of the largely popular annual Spirit of Christmas programming, serving as yet another reminder that 2020 was a year in which anything can and will happen.

Despite the challenge, WCSF 88.7 FM persevered. Through the persistence of WCSF station manager Anthony Musiala and Spirit of Christmas producer Don Burke (with the support of USF Administration), a new tower and antenna were scheduled for fabrication and installation, but not before the start of Spirit of Christmas programming on Thanksgiving Day. Understandably, listeners were concerned when they realized that couldn’t hear Burke’s familiar voice, programs like “Hardrock, Coco and Joe” and “The Cinnamon Bear”, and the diverse variety of holiday songs for which the Spirit of Christmas is known.

On the Spirit of Christmas Facebook page (facebook.com/WCSF887), one listener posted, “I can’t wait. I am listening to a static radio music now. But I love it so much that I don’t care.”

This listener wasn’t alone, either. Dozens of other listeners also called, posted comments and emailed stating that they were missing their favorite Christmas programming.

In the week leading up to Christmas, the installation of the new tower and antenna finally began. The antenna mounts were bolted atop Tower Hall and, in the week after Christmas, the new antenna elements and cabling were hoisted up, secured and connected. While not quite a Christmas miracle, WCSF 88.7 FM was finally broadcasting at full power again before the end of the calendar year.

In an effort to provide even just a small portion of the Spirit of Christmas programming listeners had missed, Burke and Musiala extended Spirit of Christmas for an additional 48 hours, with programming scheduled to conclude on Monday, January 4.

The extension included a “Cinnamon Bear” marathon, which immediately received a warm reception. On the Spirit of Christmas Facebook page, one listener posted, “My children always loved The Cinnamon Bear! I was sad that we missed a lot of it this year, so this is a real treat. Thank you!”

One caller left a voice message that effectively summed up the feelings of many listeners. The caller stated, “I simply want to thank you for the beautiful Christmas music. It brought such joy into my life. I don’t have a home computer so I wasn’t able to listen to it without it being on the radio. So to go a whole month without it, I have to tell you, it was really tough. I’ve been listening to the program for the last 20 years. It was one of my most treasured traditions. It was actually kind of painful, I know it sounds silly but it was. I’ve listened to it almost nonstop for the last 4 days. Thank you, thank you, thank you. God bless you for all that you do. You and your program are a true blessing. I wish you an extraordinary New Year and blessings to all of you. Thank you.”

The moral of the story is that we should not take things for granted. Special thanks are extended to Don Burke for another outstanding season of Spirit of Christmas programming, even under the most trying of circumstances.

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The University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 51,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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USF News

Spirit of Christmas Programming Starts on Thanksgiving Day

Joliet, Ill. – Starting at noon on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020) and running through noon on January 2, 2021, University of St. Francis (USF) radio station WCSF-FM 88.7 switches over from its regular programming to the Spirit of Christmas, a 24-hour, commercial-free, season-long holiday format.

Spirit of Christmas features a variety-filled rotation of over 4,000 songs, including multiple versions of holiday classics, like “White Christmas”. One special program that airs nightly at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. during Spirit of Christmas is the classic 1937 radio series, The Cinnamon Bear, which tells the story of Judy and Jimmy Barton and their adventure to an enchanted world alongside Cinnamon Bear, a stuffed bear with button eyes and a green ribbon around his neck, to recover the missing silver star from their Christmas tree.

You can tune in to FM 88.7 to listen to the Spirit of Christmas on your radio in the Joliet area, or you can livestream it at stfrancis.edu/spirit.

Area businesses are also invited to promote themselves through special sponsorship opportunities that air during Spirit of Christmas programming. Sponsorships start at $250 and are a great way to promote your business or extend holiday wishes to the Joliet community and beyond. For more information about sponsorships, please call 815-740-3610.

: :

Currently celebrating 100 years of higher education rooted in Franciscan values, the University of St. Francis, in Joliet, Ill., serves close to 4,000 students nationwide and offers undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, nursing and social work. There are over 51,000 USF alumni across the globe. For information, call 800-735-7500 or visit stfrancis.edu.

University of St. Francis: Bigger thinking. Brighter purpose.

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