WHJM, "

Radio Maria Radio Maria, formally known as The World Family of Radio Maria, is an international Roman Catholicism, Catholic radio broadcasting service founded in Erba (CO), Erba, province of Como, in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan, diocese of Milan ...

" (for "Hearts of

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

and

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

") is a non-commercial FM station operating at 88.7 MHz licensed to

Anna, Ohio Anna is a village in Shelby County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,470 at the 2020 census. History Pre-historical period The prehistoric Teays River ran through modern-day Anna about 2 million years ago. The Teays river deposited l ...

. It is a repeater station of

KJMJ KJMJ (580 AM) is a Catholic radio station broadcasting from Alexandria, Louisiana, United States. It is the originating station of Radio Maria USA, The World Family of Radio Maria's US operations, airing Catholic programming including a mix o ...

(AM) 580 in

Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat and largest city of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River of the South, Red River ...

(where its local Catholic diocese is also headquartered) and is owned by Radio Maria Inc. airing inspirational music and Catholic programming for the Upper Miami Valley region of Shelby, Auglaize,

Allen Allen, Allen's or Allens may refer to: Buildings * Allen Arena, an indoor arena at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee * Allen Center, a skyscraper complex in downtown Houston, Texas * Allen Fieldhouse, an indoor sports arena on the Univ ...

Logan Logan may refer to: Places * Mount Logan (disambiguation) Australia * Logan (Queensland electoral district), an electoral district in the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Logan, Victoria, small locality near St. Arnaud * Logan City, local gove ...

Mercer Mercer may refer to: Business * Mercer (automobile), a defunct American automobile manufacturer (1909–1925) * Mercer (consulting firm), a human resources consulting firm headquartered in New York City, US * Mercer (occupation), a merchant or tra ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

and surrounding counties in West Central Ohio. It is part of the international broadcast ministry of The World Family of

, which is based in Italy and broadcasts in over thirty countries in thirteen languages worldwide. The station also audiostreams from its website for listeners outside its immediate signal area in addition to its very own smartphone app, the Tune In app and the

Alexa Alexa may refer to: Technology *Amazon Alexa, a virtual assistant developed by Amazon * Alexa Internet, a defunct website ranking and traffic analysis service * Alexa Fluor, a family of fluorescent dyes * Arri Alexa, a digital motion picture ca ...

device.

History

A group of New York City-based volunteers known as "Friends of Radio Maria" which operates an Italian language FM subcarrier (of

WKTU WKTU (103.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a rhythmic adult contemporary formatted radio station city of license, licensed to Lake Success, New York, a suburb of New York City. WKTU is owned by iHeartMedia and broadcasts from studios at 125 West 55th ...

) acquired the original funding and construction permit for the new station in 2001 by means of a New York-based fundraiser called a "Mariathon." The construction permit however initially sat dormant until it was discovered by a group of Dayton area volunteers in 2005 looking for a Miami Valley frequency to start a local Catholic station. After a tower site was found, WHJM joined the Radio Maria family on June 8, 2006 while volunteers feverishly proceeded with preparations to get on the air before the construction permit was to have expired. Within just a few days prior to the construction permit's deadline date to start broadcasting, WHJM "

" first came on the air on June 15, 2006. Its transmitting antenna and tower was abruptly struck by a spectacular display of lightning only after two hours on the air during its inaugural sign-on. However, the brief airtime before the lightning strike was enough to fulfill the FCC deadline. After necessary repairs were made, WHJM returned to the air August 11, 2006. Its current operating power is 1,000 watts ERP. WHJM's current signal fades-out north of Lima at Beaverdam where

WJTA WJTA "Holy Family Radio" (for: "Jesus, The Answer") is a non-commercial FM broadcasting station with its studio and office located in Glandorf, Ohio with transmitter located near Leipsic in rural Putnam County. WJTA airs programming from the ...

's FM translator (W204CU) in Findlay fades in, followed by CIMX in Windsor, Ontario which begins to fade-in north towards Bowling Green and Toledo. Its signal also fades out to the south near Tipp City where listeners can switch to 1600 AM (WULM) in Springfield or 103.3 FM (WULM's translator W277AO) in Enon. Friends of Radio Maria also helped acquire the construction permits of new repeater stations

WOLM WOLM "Radio Maria" (for: Our Loving Mother) is a non-commercial FM broadcasting station at 88.1 mHz licensed to D'Iberville, Mississippi and serving the D'Iberville and Biloxi areas. Its founder "Friends of Radio Maria" (which in addition airs It ...

D'Iberville, Mississippi D'Iberville ( ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States, immediately north of Biloxi, across the Back Bay. The population was 12,721 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Gulfport-Biloxi Metropolitan Area. Etymology It is nam ...

near

Biloxi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It lies on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi, bordering the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfport to its west. The adjacent cities ar ...

and

WRMW WRMW (91.3 FM "Radio Maria" (for: Radio Maria-Wisconsin)) is a non-commercial radio station licensed to Peshtigo, Wisconsin serving the Sturgeon Bay area with Catholic programming. WRMW's signal and tower height also has the potential to reach ...

licensed to Peshtigo serving the

Door Peninsula The Door Peninsula is a peninsula in eastern Wisconsin, separating the southern part of the Green Bay from Lake Michigan. The peninsula includes northern Kewaunee County, northeastern Brown County, and the mainland portion of Door Count ...

region of northeastern Wisconsin. These stations are now licensed to Radio Maria Inc.

Call sign history

The WHJM call letters were previously used at an Urban/R&B/Hip-Hop formatted station at 107.7 FM in Ledyard/Pawcatuk, Connecticut. The call sign for that station has since switched to WWRX. Before that, the WHJM calls were used on 1180 AM in Knoxville, Tennessee which had used

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

Adult Standards Adult standards (also sometimes known as the nostalgia or Big Band format) is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations. Adult standards started in the 1950s and is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly tho ...

and

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...

formats. That station is now WKCE.

has been on the air as the US flagship station of

since May 2000. Originally, the 580 frequency was home to KALB-AM, sister station to

KALB-TV KALB-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Alexandria, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with NBC, CBS and The CW Plus. Owned by Gray Media, the station maintains studios on Washington Street in downtown Alexandria, and its transmitte ...

channel 5. Radio Maria was founded at first with humble beginnings as a small parish-operated station in Erba (province of Como,) Italy in 1983 before its subsequent international growth in the 1990s which gave birth to the World Family in 1998.Catholic Telegraph news article on Radio Maria's Ohio sign-on
(September 8, 2006) Emanuele Ferrario is Radio Maria's founder and Carlo DiMaggio as its president.

Facilities and programming

Though WHJM, for the most part, is a repeater of

, there is a studio facility west of Anna in nearby Minster which originates several live programs including "Living The Lectionary" (now hosted by Julia Monnin after the passing of Father Rick Nieberding in 2019) and Herb Wilker's Hospice program "Letting Go." Past local programs originated by audio recording and over telephone lines included "At Home With Jesus' with Glenda Canfield,"From The Tummy To The Heart" and "Francesca and Friends" presented by Francesca Franchina from The University of Dayton's Marian Library. The studio officially opened on Sunday April 22, 2007 with a prayer and blessing service and open house officiated by Father Rick Nieberding C.P.P.S.(1953–2019) who was pastor of St. Augustine Church and the original presenter of the program "Living The Lectionary." WHJM was also the originator of the yearly remote broadcast of the Fatima USA candlelight prayer vigil which takes place in the evening during the month of August at Maria Stein, a

concelebration In Christianity, concelebration (from the Latin + , 'to celebrate together') is the presiding of a number of presbyters (priests or ministers) at the celebration of the Eucharist with either a presbyter, bishop, or archbishop as the principal ce ...

involving parishes from Minster, Marion Township and Saint Henry. Overnight programming was provided b
Radio Maria New York
and originated by

WSNR WSNR (620 AM broadcasting, AM) is a Commercial broadcasting, commercial radio station, city of license, licensed to Jersey City, New Jersey, and serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is co-owned by Gregory Davidzon and Sam Katsman, ...

620 am licensed in

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

. Radio Maria now airs evening and overnight repeats of various daytime programs aired for listeners who work dayshift hours. Prior to the studio opening, a public information session took place on August 29, 2006 at St. Charles Center in Carthagena, Ohio to introduce Radio Maria to local listeners and the northern portion of the Cincinnati archdiocese. The WHJM transmitter is located to the north in nearby Botkins...at the

Microwave radio relay Microwave transmission is the Data transmission, transmission of information by electromagnetic waves with wavelengths in the microwave frequency range of 300 MHz to 300 GHz (1 m - 1 mm wavelength) of the electromagnetic spectrum ...

tower site (formerly used by

AT&T Long Lines AT&T Inc., an abbreviation for its predecessor's former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the w ...

) on West State Street (with the Hogg horn antennas removed prior to WHJM's 2006 sign-on.) The WHJM studio is located in the Hoying Profesional Building at the corner of Main and Fourth Streets..the intersection of Ohio State Routes 119 and 66 in downtown Minster.

Radio Maria's AM station for Dayton/Springfield area

According to a

Springfield News-Sun The ''Springfield News-Sun'' is a daily newspaper published in Springfield, Ohio, by Cox Enterprises, which also publishes the ''Dayton Daily News''. Both newspapers contain similar editorial content, but tailor their local news coverage to the a ...

story dated March 10, 2008, Radio Maria USA purchased

WULM WULM (1600 AM broadcasting, AM) is a non-commercial radio station licensed to Springfield, Ohio, United States, and features a Catholic Church in the United States, Catholic-oriented Christian radio, Christian format as a full-time owned-and-op ...

(the former WBLY) from Urban Light Ministries in Springfield, Ohio. The application for license transfer and purchase which took place on February 15, 2008 was granted FCC approval on April 16, 2008. The AM station acquisition now brings Radio Maria programming to Springfield, Dayton, Tipp City, Troy, Urbana and other communities in the Miami Valley not reached by WHJM's signal. WULM's signal also has the potential to reach east towards Columbus and west towards Richmond, Indiana along U.S. 40 and I-70. WULM is also simulcast for the north Dayton suburbs on FM translator W277AO at 103.3 FM in Enon. Radio Maria programming on

commenced on Saturday, May 31, 2008 at 12 noon local time. The WULM studio (formerly located at

WIZE WIZE (1340 AM broadcasting, AM) — branded Dayton's BIN 1340 — is a commercial All-news radio, all-news radio station in Springfield, Ohio owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. as part of their Dayton, Ohio, Dayton cluster. While servicing the Dayton m ...

's transmitter site and now-vacated studio on Miracle Mile Road) is now located at the Father Boyle Center (the former parish convent) on Lagonda Avenue next to St. Bernard Parish east of downtown Springfield. Radio Maria now offers its audiostreaming though the

iPhone The iPhone is a line of smartphones developed and marketed by Apple that run iOS, the company's own mobile operating system. The first-generation iPhone was announced by then–Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs on January 9, 2007, at ...

BlackBerry BlackBerry is a discontinued brand of handheld devices and related mobile services, originally developed and maintained by the Canadian company Research In Motion (RIM, later known as BlackBerry Limited) until 2016. The first BlackBerry device ...

and Android mobile phone devices in addition to its own World Family Smartphone app and the

TuneIn TuneIn is a global audio streaming service providing news, radio, sports, music, and podcasts to over 75 million monthly active users. TuneIn is operated by the privately held company TuneIn Inc. based in San Francisco, California. The comp ...

app for listeners outside of WHJM and WULM's signal area in addition to the

Amazon Alexa Amazon Alexa is a virtual assistant technology marketed by Amazon and implemented in software applications for smart phones, tablets, wireless smart speakers, and other electronic appliances. Alexa was largely developed from a Polish speech s ...

device which can be accessed by the vocal command: "Alexa...Open Radio Maria." hence Radio Maria USA now has nationwide coverage outside the signal areas of its terrestrial stations. Mary Pyper, (presenter of "Marian Apparitions" and past National President) is currently the National Board Treasurer of Radio Maria USA. Jim Linthicum is local voiceover/audio production technician. Cletus Prenger is Minster studio technician
Ernestine Miller (1923–2013
(formerly with WERM, now

WFGF WFGF (92.1 FM, "92.1 The Frog") is a commercial radio station based in Wapakoneta, Ohio, broadcasting a country music format. Its studios are located in Lima, Ohio, with their transmitter located in Cridersville, Ohio, between Wapakoneta and ...

) served as Minster studio and office public relations representative, Greg Oen associate recording and remote broadcast technician, Nick Hoying associate remote broadcast technician and Jim Boeckman (1941–2019) was volunteer in charge of promotion and publicity before his passing. Rose Luthman is current Minster studio and office manager.

References

External links

Official Radio Maria USA site (with streaming audio)

Radio Maria WHJM on Facebook

Unofficial WHJM/WULM website for listeners and supporters

Listing of Radio Maria USA's stations in English, Spanish and Italian

Official Radio Maria World Family site (with streaming audio)

Official Radio Maria Italy site (with streaming audio)

Radio Maria app download for iPhone

Radio Maria app download for Blackberry

Radio Maria app download for Android
(March 10, 2008)
Youngstown Vindicator news article on WHJM.
September 10, 2006)
WHJM's current transmitter site

WHJM coverage area map in PDF format
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whjm Lima, Ohio Catholic radio stations Shelby County, Ohio Radio stations established in 2001 HJM 2001 establishments in Ohio Catholic Church in Ohio