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.THE PRO LINE f Over /. 4'.” the ' Radio 0 0" ~ / Waves February. 1996 0 Martinvnle WI in Eastern Ontario hosts a community fund raiser which net: $3,200. 0 Bob Johnston tell: the story of Adelaide Headless on the anniversary of her death. March. 1996 ' James Gordon sings his newest song. “ We Are the WI. " on Hometown Times. May. 1996 I Owen Sound WI disbands, The younger women in the area think "W1 is a silly social thing where you mokejoml ” . Good news. bad news â€" you can hear it daily by turning on your radio. The message is brief; it lets you continue your daily routine; it keeps you informed. The Canadian Association of Broadcasters says the average Canadian devotes about 22 hours per week to radio, Of the 800 radio stations in Canada. 175 are located in Ontario Are you aware ofWT‘s involvement in radio broadcasting - past. present and fu- ture? In New Glasgow. Nova Scotia. the radio program "The News and Views of the Women‘s Institutes" is in its thirtieth year. Ellen McLean. former President ofthe Asso- ciated Country Women of the World. hosted the first program in January. 1966. She con- tinues to be the voice of the Women‘s Instiâ€" tutes of Nova Scotia today. Ellen McLean explains the beginning of the program. “A committee, appointed by the District Executive. approached the manage ment of our local radio station. CKEC New Glasgow. We discussed with them what we wanted to do and why. and also that we understood that the station. under CRTC (Canadian Radio~television and Telecom- munications Commission) regulations, had to allocate a certain amount of time to comâ€" munity service broadcasts. and asked them if we might have some ufthat time. The CKEC management was receptive to our request." For five minutes each week. listeners hear topics which are relevant to Women's Insti- tute aims and objectives. They are as diverse as the organization itselfâ€" programs. projects and WI events of interest to the listening audience. It may be Federated Women's Institutes ofCanadu (FWIClissues. inforrna» tion about the societies of the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW). or United Nations concerns. “I have agricultural awareness programs and nutrition month. farm safety week. [and] 4-H week are all part of the themes I use. “ McLean states. The original idea for a radio show came from Prince Edward Island Women‘s Insti- tutes. They had had a Weekly program on CFCY Charlottetown since 1948. The first hostess. Helen Herring. had 15 minutes once a week. Now the program airs five days a week for 2 minutes on both CFCY and CJRW Summerside. Herring. in an article she wrote in Through the Years. Part 2. states that "during the years 19474978. radio has proved a popular method of disseminating information. an» nouncing Institute activities. and providing an educational medium for Women‘s Instie tutc members in Prince Edward Island." Karen Craig. Liaison Officer of Prince Edward Island WI. states that the information covers WI related material. such as notices of workshops. seminars and conventions. It also includes upcoming events of interest to the public at large and sometimes topics ofinter- est. such as dealing with stress and effective communication. She continues. “How effec- tive it has been in promoting WI work is difficult to answer. No evaluation has ever been done. Yet we know a number of people listen in. especially men who call in fre- quently to get further information on a topic they heard that interested them, Also. with the program aired for nearly 50 years. we plan to keep it going." At the August Provincial Board meeting. Board Directors decided to promote the Women's Institute via radio. They voted to advertise the W on radio via prepared pro- motional public service announcements. Or. you can go one step further. A commit- tee can go to the station manager and suggest the idea ofa WI program. ' Items interesting enough to be printed are potential radio news. ' Open-line shows look for interesting topics and people. Send a representative knowledgeable about the WI and its pro- jects to project the WI image. ' Consider a panel, interview or debate. ° Contact the program director with a newsworthy event. Provide background material. Public service announcements need to be clear. brief and typed to be easily read. ' Appreciate: a thank you letter keeps you welcome. Some newspapers in Ontario now have regular Women‘s Institute columns. weekly or monthly. Why not a radio Show? Are you ready to accept the challenge? Mary Janet it the Public Relulfrml’ Officer [or the Federated Wrirnert it Institutes of Ontario She run he reached at 6868 Egremnnt Ril. RR <‘i. Wutfrml 0N NOM 250. Phone: (519)786A551I. Fur (5I91736755l'l (plmnefirxl). TlMlElLlY TWEIEDSMUHR MIPS By Marcie Johnston Each Branch should have a Tweedsmuir His‘ tory Book for their own Branch history. I encourage each Branch to take pictures of guest speakers at their meetings for inclusion in their Tweedsmulr Book. and be sure to include the details (name. proper title. topic) in a caption. Each monthly meeting warrants this sort of documentation. All Branch Tweedsmuir Books should include the following: the yearly slate of ofiicers: autobi- ographies at all members as per the Tweedsmuir History Manual; and. photocopies ol all media articles. Tweedsrnuir Hislones should also include sections about your local community or Institute area ( items about the 4-H. Junior Farmers. local births. deaths. wed- dings, and community activities that the WI is involved in, could be included). Tips: - always use acidriree paper a never write on the back ol 3 photograph; always use POST ITS - have gloves available tor anyone wishing to use your Tweedsmuir History 0 microfilm and photocopy all History Books before they are lost to fire. humidity. water or theft - store all Twoedsmuirs in a dry room - conduct oral history interviews amongst the seniors in your community. belore it is too late - organize “Remember When..." events for young audiences in your community Mort-l: Jnhnslwl is the Provincial Tweet/smith History Curator. She can be rent-lied at RR 4. Lirlmvel 0N [MW 369. Plume, (5I9J29I‘2949. Home a Country. Fall ‘96 9