Station hosts annual general meeting

This next fiscal year, Reviving Kanehsatà:ke Radio (RKR) 101.7 FM aims to increase fundraising efforts for a new building and expand radio content, including more shows for francophone listeners.

“There is still a lot of work to do before we get the building,” said Karahkóhare Syd Gaspé, president of Mohawk MultiMedia Inc., the organization which oversees RKR, at the radio’s annual general meeting (AGM) on February 24.

Estimates for a new building range between $600,000 to $2 million, said Gaspé.

The building would include a multimedia space to create videos or audio content, a recording studio, and theatre space to host events. 
Gaspé hopes the building will allow the radio to expand its operations and content, as well as serve as a space for the community to create multimedia projects and host events.

Costs for the building will be covered by provincial funding programs, advertising revenue, and fundraising efforts.

Patrick Tehasénnake Gélinas, who attended the meeting, will support RKR in finding more funding opportunities.

“It’d be nice to help them connect with this funding,” said Gélinas, who is economic development officer at the Kanesatake Economic and Business Development. “There’s a brand new $50 million fund just in Quebec for Indigenous projects, big projects.”

The radio will also host more games to fundraise money within the community, said Gaspé.

The money raised from Chase the Ace, the current ongoing fundraiser at the radio for the new building, adds up to about $20,000.

A previous Chase the Ace fundraiser for the station’s antenna contributed $50,000.

But despite needing more funds for the new building, the station is in good shape, said Gaspé. The station nearly doubled its revenue from about $129,000 in 2023 to just more than $250,000 by 2025, according to the financial statements. The funding allowed the station to increase Kanien’kéha content and run a media training program with Kiuna College which produced nine graduates, three of whom work for the station, including morning radio show host Sterling Mallette and afternoon radio show host Karyn Wahsontiiostha Murray.

The Pines Reporter also began collaborating with RKR this year, with Fern Marmont joining to help both teams’ reporting efforts.

“More funding was approved, which brought in more exciting programs,” said Gaspé.

But the increase in revenue does not mean the station has gained more money for the building, said Sonia Bonspille-Boileau, RKR board member and filmmaker.

“A lot of the monies that we receive are for specific programming, and we have to spend it on that programming. We answer to people afterwards for these funds,” said Bonspille-Boileau. “And then the other thing is, when we are able to put some money aside, it’s towards the goal of building a new building, which is like a multi-million dollar project. So although we do look good on paper, we still need a lot more funding, both for programming and for infrastructure.”

For example, funds specifically for broadcasting Kanien’kéha programs were about $120,000 in the 2024 fiscal year at RKR.

And although the allocation of most of the funding has strict parameters, the many funded programs build on the station’s efforts to strengthen Kanien’kehá:ka culture, especially those for learning and showcasing Kanien’kéha, said RKR board member Gordon Oke.

“One of my goals has always been to promote the Mohawk language. That arose from my mother being taken away to a residential school when she was very young. Most of my family doesn’t speak Mohawk,” said Oke. “It’s encouraging to see the young people in the community trying to learn the language. It’s not easy to learn, so it takes dedication, hard work, and through the radio station, we’re promoting the language.”

This upcoming fiscal year, Gaspé said the RKR team will try to also broadcast French content.

“We do have a lot of French-speaking members in Kanesatake,” said Gaspé. “Why not serve them?”

The station is also making efforts to grow the number of listeners across the lake, he said. This past weekend, RKR broadcast live from Shiverfest, a winter festival in Hudson, Quebec, where some RKR listeners reside.

And in the community, the radio’s prominence is growing. At the festival in Hudson, RKR afternoon radio show host Mallette was asked by two Kanehsata’kehró:non for autographs.

“I have to be proud of the achievements that I’ve made so far,” said Gaspé. “Things just keep on moving right and things just keep on getting better.”

[email protected]

Hadassah Alencar, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter