Heavenly airwaves

A Hillsboro church has made local and regional history by becoming the first Highland County nonprofit organization and the first church of the more than 200 parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati to be granted permission to build a radio station.

According to Father Mike Paraniuk, pastor of St. Mary Catholic Church of Hillsboro, St. Mary has been granted permission from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to build a low-power FM station (LPFM) at 106.9 FM.

"I am ecstatic about this new radio ministry as a gift from the Lord," Paraniuk said.

Paraniuk explained the historical significance of the permit.

"St. Mary is the first church in the 193-year history of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati to own its own radio station," Paraniuk said. "St. Mary Catholic Church is the very first religious or educational institution to receive permission from the US government to own a non-commercial, educational public broadcast station in the history of Highland County."

According to the FCC, "LPFM stations are authorized for noncommercial educational broadcasting only," and the most recent filing window was Oct. 17 through Nov. 14, 2013.

Paraniuk, who has over 20 years' experience in the radio industry, said he found out about the filing window and was interested. He then discovered the church "already had an engineer," as LaRue Turner, a member of the church, is a former radio engineer for WSRW.

"We filed a petition with the FCC in November," Paraniuk said. "He did the 'how' we could do it, and I did the 'why' we should do it."

The church was granted a construction permit on June 6 to build a radio station within the next year and a half.

"We're going to get it done in a matter of months because people have donated," Paraniuk said. "We have the land and the power. The response has been phenomenal."

Paraniuk said that they have already purchased property on state Route 247, including a 90-foot telephone pole and a building for the equipment.

"With donations, we're going to buy a transmitter and studio equipment, and hopefully we will be on the air within six months," Paraniuk said.

Anyone in the community who is interested in helping fund this project is welcome to send donations to SMCBS at 212 South High St., Hillsboro, Ohio 45133.

"A lot of money has come out of my own pocket and from generous benefactors to get this started, but we will have bills every month, so we are always open to donations," Paraniuk said.

The radio station will be a subsidiary of the St. Mary Catholic Broadcasting System (SMCBS), with a tower and station being built on property on state Route 247. The antenna will be 100 feet high and transmitting at 100 watts, per FCC regulations.

Because the site is "on a high plain," Paraniuk said that the church hopes the station can be heard within a 15-mile radius.

As Greenfield, where Paraniuk also serves as minister of St. Benignus Catholic Church, is 18 miles away, Paraniuk is hopeful that parishioners in that area will be able to tune in to the new station.

"I know we have the best engineer going, we're going to have great equipment and a solid antenna," Paraniuk said. "If God blows a puff of air and moves the signal to Greenfield, maybe we'll make it."

The studios will be set up in the St. Mary rectory, where Paraniuk lives. The station's motto will be "Bringing Christ Into Your Home."

"The purpose is to bring good Christian Bible teaching into the home," Paraniuk said.

The programming will be "primary religious and educational" with a focus on Catholic Christian information. The radio will be used "for educational purposes" for St. Mary Catholic School, and the church plans to use the station to broadcast Mass and other religious services.

The station will be networking with Radio Maria, which features "programming which offers plenty of space for prayer, catechism and human development," according to their website.

As mentioned, Paraniuk has a background in radio, as he hosted a number of music radio programs on WOBO, a radio station in Batavia, for 21 years. He said he would like to host an "Ask the Pastor" call-in show for listeners to call in with questions about "the Catholic faith, the Bible, marital problems or whatever they would want to call in and talk about."

"I'm excited about the limitless possibilities for our church and community," Paraniuk said. "It's a blessing from God. I'm glad the Lord saw fit to give this ministry to St. Mary Catholic Church, which we will cherish and minister according to the Word of God."