The ‘Pepperland Cabin Jam’ will feature performances by the Pepperland Kids, Caroline Aiken with special guests Carly Gibson and Diane Durrett, Holly Howell, High Strung String Band, Glenn Phillips, Green Bracelet, Copious Jones, The Squirrelheads and Carla Le Fever & the Rays. This venue offers a broad spectrum of music that encompasses Americana, bluegrass, blues, zydeco, rock and funk. In addition, there will be a Silent Auction offering collectible local art, Athens’ goods and services along with some historic music items and signed artifacts from talents such as B52s, R.E.M., Widespread Panic and more.

100% of proceeds will go to Pepperland Farm Camp, a non-profit organization based in Murphy, NC that offers children programs in music, earth skills, and a strong sense of family on 64 acres of spiritual land. Musicians and other volunteers lend their tireless energy at the camp to teach music and these values. The Pepperland vision is that it is a life long process to provide a special place for kids to be free to play, laugh, enrich and enjoy nature. The Pepperland Music Camp aim is “to preserve and protect the natural state of the land for the kids to have for eternity by creating conservation easement with a local land trust and to provide a safe and positive growth experience for all children, especially those who are physically or emotionally challenged.”

Caroline Aiken and Carly Gibson will also be at the Athens Farmers Market at Bishop Park on Saturday morning starting at 8 a.m.

For information on Pepperland programs, visit www.pepperlandfarmcamp.org.

For more information, contact Last Call at 706.353.8869. www.lastcallathens.com.

T-shirts are American Apparel evergreen tri-blend with yellow ink for $11, and hoodies are American Apparel cranberry flex fleece with cyan ink for $30. American Apparel sizes tend to run narrow, so visit www.americanapparel.net for a sizing chart if you are uncertain about what size to order.

The last day to order is October 15th.

questions? email gm [at] wuog.org

Chairman: Lynn Harris Medcalf
Secretary: Roy Green
Treasurer: Lee Echols
Member-At-Large: Jon Milavec

A big round of applause to all of the candidates in the election process – thank you for offering your time and talent to help the WUOG Alumni Association!

The transition to the next executive council will take place during the upcoming alumni weekend.  Stay tuned for introductions from the new council.

Friday, 7-9PM – alumni/station mixer, Trappeze Pub, 269 Washington street, downtown)

Saturday, 4PM – alumni association meeting, Tate Student Center, Room 482

Saturday, 7PM – catered dinner at Mama’s Boy, 197 Oak Street

Alumni weekend DJ shifts:

Friday
8-10AM – OPEN
10AM-noon – OPEN
12-2PM – Katie G.
2-4PM – David S.
4-6PM – Chris L.
6-8PM – Robert N.
8-10PM – Andy M.
10pm-mid – Dan M.

Saturday
8-10AM – Michele M.
10AM-noon – Jon M.
12-2PM – Lynn Harris M.
2-4PM – Alex M.
4-6PM – Jonathan P.
6-8PM – Melissa P.
8-10PM – Jake L.
10pm-mid – Chris T.

Sunday
8-10AM – Cari G.
10AM-noon – David M.
12-2PM – Dick D.
2-4PM – Scott P.
4-6PM – Neil T.
6-8PM – John H.
8-10PM – Susanna A.
10pm-mid – Sarah D.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q9RG2QJ

Voting is anonymous, and the voting period extends from now until Friday, September 24, at 6:00PM US East Coast time.  Many thanks to all of the candidates for rising to the occassion, and to everyone that submitted nominations!

The next WUOG Alumni Association executive council will take charge during the upcoming alumni weekend, October 1-3.

Vote now!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q9RG2QJ

As some of you may know, there has recently been some concern amongst WUOG alumni about the increasing amount of off-air activity at WUOG.  In response to this, yesterday the WUOG Alumni Association executive council sent a letter to leaders and mentors of WUOG (i.e. the General Manager, the Graduate Advisor, the Faculty Advisor and the Director of Student Activities) to raise the concerns about the station.  A full copy of the letter is available here.

We are pleased to report that we received a prompt response to our concerns – the response from Director of Student Activities Ed Mirecki follows below.  As Ed suggests, we think that having face-to-face interaction during the upcoming alumni weekend (October 1-3) will be a great opportunity to work on these issues together.  We welcome your feedback (concerns, suggestions, etc.) and involvement in this process – just send an email to chairman <@> wuog.org or post a message on our facebook page.

Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to this effort so far!  It is really inspiring to work with alumni that are still so passionate about the future of WUOG!

Long live WUOG,
Beth O.
WUOG Alumni Association chair

PS – please don’t forget to submit your nominations for the next WUOG Alumni Association executive council!

*****
Response from Ed Mirecki (20 August 2010):

Beth and Lynn,

Thank you for your letter. I want both of you to know, as well as all of the alumni, that we share your concerns regarding WUOG’s on-air presence outside of the academic calendar, and the impact this situation has on the station’s reputation and standing within the larger community. I appreciate your invitation to open a dialogue on how the WUOG community can best address this situation.

As you mentioned in your letter, there has been significant disruption with the broadcasting equipment over the past two years as we have made the transition to the new studio in the Tate Student Center. However, I agree with your sentiments that expectations regarding  WUOG’s on-air presence during “break radio” need to be addressed. In my opinion, there are a number of different factors that have contributed to this situation over the past couple of years, and I hope that by opening a  discussion with the students, staff, and alumni we can identify solutions to improve our year-round broadcasting schedule.

I have been looking into the funding that was available for “break radio” and know this was a resource that was in  place between 1993 and 2004. I am researching why this program was discontinued in 2004, and what factors were involved in that decision. (If you have any insight on this issue, please let me know.) I also believe it would be beneficial to discuss other possible options for the station as well. Since I started here in 2005, I have personally been opposed to the thought of automation at WUOG, but I recognize that as a community, it might be time to have at least a serious discussion about what that would mean for the station.

I know that Alumni Weekend will be coming up soon at the beginning of October, and trust that would be an ideal time to explore and discuss this issue. Of course, if there is a possibility of starting a discussion on this topic earlier, I would certainly be open to meeting with you, or coordinating a conference call with other interested alumni. I am also interested in pulling together relevant information and doing the necessary groundwork to prepare for the meeting in October. Please let me know your thoughts on the next steps.

Thank you again for sharing your concerns. I want you to know that we are committed to working with you to sustain and grow the success of WUOG, and I am looking forward to working with you to address this issue.

Thanks again,

-Ed

Ed Mirecki
Director of Student Activities

The time of year is upon us again to round up a fresh-faced crew for the next WUOG Alumni Association Executive Council.  Please take a moment to nominate folks (yourself included!) for the following four fabulous positions!  All positions are open – no experience required!  Nominations are open until Friday, Sept. 3, 2010 – then we’ll contact the nominees to confirm interest and get back in touch with you all about elections.  We anticipate elections to be held September 10-24.

HERE IS THE LINK FOR THE ANONYMOUS NOMINATION FORM:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/8V6JJVV

But first, “what does an Executive Council member do”, you wonder?   Provide a support network for WUOG operations, help to (re)connect WUOG alumni, help plan regional meet-ups, spam the WUOG listserv, brag about how awesome they are bars to impress friends and strangers, etc. – all this in less than a one hour a week commitment!  The next council would begin following this fall’s Alumni Weekend in Athens (October 1-3, 2010) and run until the following year’s Alumni Weekend.

Chairman
Responsibilities include scheduling and facilitating monthly council meetings, coordinating engagement with the station, and actively propagating the dissemination of Alumni Association goals and initiatives.

Secretary
Responsible for recording minutes during council meetings, distributing the minutes to station volunteers and the Alumni Association, and managing the implementation of executive leadership council networking initiatives.

Treasurer
Responsible for managing the implementation of fundraising activities, giving a fiscal report at monthly meetings, and preparing an annual report for the current exec board.

Member at Large
Speaks on behalf of the Alumni Association body.

LINK FOR THE ANONYMOUS NOMINATION FORM:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/8V6JJVV

Thanks for nominating someone!

The date listed in Airwaves is a Sunday, but the dates for the weekend are actually, Friday October 1-3, 2010 in Athens. So …save the date and stay tuned for more details…including a chance to sign up for a DJ shift during that weekend!

Washington DC 2010 meetup
hosts: Scott Seymour and Amanda Perofsky
When: Friday May 7, 5:30-8:30
Where: Commonwealth Gastro Pub, 1400 Irving Street NW
web: http://www.commonwealthgastropub.com/index.html

Atlanta 2010 meetup
hosts: Roy Green and Jordan Stepp
When: Saturday, June 12, 7:00PM
Where: Manuel’s Tavern, north room, 602 N. Highland Avenue, corner of North Avenue and N. Highland Avenue, Atlanta, GA
web: http://www.manuelstavern.com/

Los Angeles 2010 meetup
hosts: Andy May and Mike Marcotte
When: Thursday, June 10, 7:30PM
Where: BigFoot Lodge in Atwater Village near Los Feliz, 3172 Los Feliz Boulevard, 90039
web: http://www.bigfootlodge.com/

More information about the events, with RSVP options, is available on our Facebook page – WUOG Alumni Association.