Have You Pledged Your Support to KDVS 90.3 FM's Annual Fundraiser Yet?

Instead of going into a big, long spiel about why you - as a Sacramento/Davis community member who cares about what they put into their ears - should contribute to this year's KDVS 90.3 annual fundraiser, I thought it would simply be better to give you a list of 10 very good reasons to pledge whatever you can to this community-run, free-form radio station this valley is extremely lucky to have.

Here goes:

10. KDVS 90.3 FM provides quality content in the form of music, public affairs and news programs (Democracy Now, Al Jezeera America, etc) you cannot hear anywhere else... for free!

9. "Community-run" essentially mean that KDVS belongs to all of us. It's our radio station - by the community, for the community of this region and (thanks to the Internet) the world beyond.

8. KDVS is a free-form radio station, where the all volunteer DJ staff provides its listeners with a wide and varying broadcast content; on any given day, you may hear the sounds of indie, punk, folk, hip hop, jazz, experimental, and just about any genre of music you can think of.

7. Unlike certain Robo-radio stations from far-off lands who dictate their content to you and gleefully boast about you not having a choice in the matter, KDVS plays what you want. Go ahead. Call into any show on KDVS and request a song from an actual human being. Most likely, you'll hear your song two minutes later.

6. KDVS also sponsors community events and music festivals such as Operation Restore Maximum Freedom, Picnic Day, local shows, and various dance parties (via the station's Mobil DJ Unit). In addition, KDVS produces its free quarterly publication, KDVationS, featuring content provided by the station's dedicated and talented staff.

5. KDVS Recordings - an off-shoot record label of the station's - has released records by Buk Buk Bigups, San Francisco Water Cooler, Mucky The Ducky, Pregnant, and many more. And these are damn fine slabs o' wax, indeed.

4. Only 3% of KDVS 90.3 FM's operating budget comes from the Regents of The University of California Davis. The rest comes directly from you, the listener, in the form of your pledge donation. Yes, the direct line between best intentions and taking action is that easy for you to traverse.

3. If, for some horrible, horrible reason, KDVS 90.3 were to "go silent," you would be very, very bummed. Seriously, where would you hear about even a fraction of the cool music you've been made aware of without KDVS? 

2. Unlike mainstream radio's shrill, grating and insulting commercials, KDVS' homemade plugs have a whimsical moxie and charm all their own. And they're downright funny and fun, because they're made by non-professionals just like you and me.

1. If you listen-to and enjoy the content provided by KDVS 90.3 FM's all-volunteer staff, you should simply pledge your support. In doing so, any number of premiums are available to you (good stuff like records, CDs, DVDs, books, T-shirts, gift certificates, hand-made crafts, etc., etc.) But beyond receiving goodies, pledging your support to KDVS 90.3 feels so damned good. Give it a shot! Call in or go online, pledge any amount to the station and see if you don't feel good about yourself after you do. Trust me, you will.