Hofstra Radio Alumni Audio Yearbook

Long time, Hofstra Radio friends!  I have been working on a project about my role in covering 9/11 from the Shadow Traffic Helicopter.  It's a small part of a much larger story about 9/11, but I wanted to talk about it in honor of the 25th anniversary of the terror attacks, talking with my friends Tom Kaminski (reporter) and Arthur Anderson (pilot).
The project was produced by Sue Zizza, who gave a lot of great advice and pushed me in the right direction.  The programs are hosted by Andrew Schmertz, who gave me my start at WRHU back in 1991.  So, this is a Hofstra project in many ways.  This is a preview of the free, educational documentary that will air on WRHU, WMSC and many other radio stations.  It is also available at AOTpod.org
Thank you for listening, and take care.
 

Hey, friends.  The deadline to nominate someone for the Hofstra Radio Hall of Fame is coming up at the end of March.  We want to hear your nominations, but also, we want you to update your membership in the Hofstra Radio Alumni Association.  https://ebill.hofstra.edu/C20848_ustores/web/store_cat.jsp?STOREID=16&CATID=185&SINGLESTORE=true

The five year anniversary of this series is coming up and I am hoping to record lots of new interviews this Summer.  We have just surpassed 18,000 downloads and have more than 250 shows produced.  But I feel like we are just getting started.  Thank you for your support.  Thank you for listening.  Let's record some more interviews soon!  Every story is important.

Recent graduate Jake April is back to talk about his upperclassman years at Hofstra Radio in the early 2020s.  Jake has an incredible story and has so many good stories about the people he worked with and how those relationships continue to inspire him.  Thank you for listening.

Aasha Lewis Redway came to Hofstra as a graduate student in the late 2010s and, on a whim, decided to check out the radio station.  Aasha instantly became part of the station and a producer on the Hip-Hop Basement.  It's a really interesting journey.  Thank you for listening.

There is a long history of couples getting together at Hofstra Radio and that continues with Nick Faria and Brittany McGowan-Faria who were at the station in the late 2010s.  Nick and Brittany had different reasons for joining the station but became close friends and then a couple.  This is a fun and loving conversation.  Please take the time to check out to the whole thing.  Thank you for listening.

Evan Wilner was a sports and news guy at Hofstra Radio in the mid 2000s.  Evan came to Hofstra specifically to be part of the sports department. Evan had a personal connection to the Ingles family and Kevin and Ed instantly made him part of the community.  Evan has a lot of great stories.  Thank you for listening.

Edward Mabeza began his time at Hofstra Radio in the late 2010s and was involved in many different departments.  Starting with music shows like Off The Charts, then the Morning Wake Up Call, sports and the Hip-Hop Basement were just some of the many things Edward did during his time at the station. It's a fun conversation. Thank you for listening.

Hello, Hofstra Radio community!  It's been awhile.  New episodes coming out on Thursday, April 10th and the following 3 weeks after that.  If you would like to record an interview, let me know!  Thank you for listening.

Jen Murphy Packer is your host, as she interviews me about my upperclassman years at Hofstra Radio in the 1990s.  Jen and I cover a LOT of material about my days as Airwave Producer, Program Director and Station Manager.  I had a lot of fun (and left out so many stories).  Thank you for listening.

Denyse Haynak was at WRHU in the early to mid 1990s and, in this conversation, we talk about our upperclassman days at the station.  Lots of good memories and fun stories.  Thank you for listening.

I spoke with Tommy Smart and Christian Ladigoski about their program, The Screening Room, just after the 11th anniversary of the show's premiere (it's still on the air).  Christian and Tommy spoke about how they took their different ideas and created a show and how it grew and eventually became a staple of WRHU programming.  Lots of great stories in this one.  Thank you for listening.

I had a great conversation with Chris Caron about his early days at Hofstra Radio in the early 2000s.  We spoke about his desire to join the sports department and how the events of 9/11 shaped those early days.  Chris has a ton of great stories and insights.  Thank you for listening.

Jamie Morris spoke with me about her early days at Hofstra Radio in the early 2000s. She talks about joining the music shows and then finding her way to Newsline and to the morning show.  It's a fun conversation.  Thank you for listening.

Another amazing year, made possible by the Hofstra Radio Alumni community.  Nearly 5300 downloads this year and almost 16000 since we began.  I am honored and thrilled that so many of you have taken part in this project and I hope to hear from more of you in 2025.  Thank you for listening.

Pete Silverman has been a Professional in Residence at WRHU since 2012 and he took some time to talk to me about his career before Hofstra and his role as a mentor and teacher at Hofstra Radio.  So many great stories!  Thank you for listening.

In this conversation Tommy Smart talks about joining Hofstra Radio in the 2010s and how he made some friends and created The Screening Room program.  It's a fun conversation.  Thank you for listening.

Just a quick moment to say Thank You and to ask for your help in getting more people to be part of the oral history of Hofstra Radio.  I love hearing these stories (and hopefully you do, too).  Let's keep adding more voices to this project.  Thank you for listening.

It was a real treat to speak with recent graduate Jake April about his experiences at Hofstra Radio in the early 2020s.  Jake has so many great stories about getting started at the station and all the people he worked with.  Please take some time to listen.  Thank you.

In the early 1990s Allison (Skornick) Rose was, initially, a somewhat reluctant member of the radio station, but she seems to have enjoyed her time at WRHU when we were still in the basement of Memorial Hall.  Please take some time to listen to our conversation.  Thank you.

Dave Mock was posthumously inducted into the Hofstra Radio Hall of Fame on October 19, 2024.  I spoke with several people who knew Dave at WRHU in the 1980s and 1990s, including Hall of Famers Sue Zizza and Stu Rushfield, Joseph Romano, Al Montag, Rosemarie (Lonigro) Peduto, Dave Koenig and Ethan Dreilinger.  It is an honor and privilege to share this with you.  Dave, we miss you.  Congratulations on joining the Hofstra Radio Hall of Fame. Thank you for listening.

Shannan Ferry is one of the newest members of the Hofstra Radio Hall of Fame and in this conversation we talk about her feelings about being inducted on October 19th and what Hofstra Radio has meant to her. Thank you for listening.

Antonio Grillo came to Hofstra to pursue a career in sports broadcasting.  In this conversation Antonio talks to me about his early days at the station in the mid 2010s.  Thank you for listening.

Stu Rushfield is one of the newest members of the Hofstra Radio Hall of Fame and he spoke to me about what his honor means to him, and what Hofstra Radio meant for his career.  It's a HOF worthy conversation.  Thank you for listening.