Dear Member,
This month we are airing loads of great programs on the American Labor Movement (see page 7 ) as well as on Hispanic Heritage Month (page 9). One show, Harvest of Loneliness, covers both topics. Harvest of Loneliness was brought to our attention by our good friend Alicia Sanchez whose father was a bracero, as were many fathers, uncles, and grandfathers of those of us who live in the North Bay today. The film, directed by Gilbert Gonzalez, professor emeritus at UC Irvine, tells of the difficulties and injustices that the braceros experienced. The film is important Hispanic and labor history, and is also, in the context of today’s debate on immigration, a look at how one “guest worker” program worked.

On September 14 at 10:30 pm on KRCB Television check out the KRCB Classic, Go Chanting Libre. With the support of the National Endowment for the Arts, in 1985, KRCB produced this portrait of Latino poet, Juan Felipe Herrera. Juan Felipe was part of the great Poetry in the Schools program; remember when programs like that existed? Herrea is now one of the nation’s most respected poets, so we are delighted to bring the film back as a part of Hispanic heritage month.

Dear Member,
You have read many times in these pages about KRCB’s own Natural Heroes, about which we are very proud. We are about to launch the fifth season with high hopes of continuing to build a significant national audience. Because KRCB is so much of the North Bay and Bay Area, folks sometimes forget that Natural Heroes is, in fact, a national series with over 50% of the American households now able to tune in
thorough their local public station.

In addition to Natural Heroes, KRCB provides a wide variety of other environmental programs, some of which have also been distributed nationally, and others available to the Bay Area. You can find Climate One on both KRCB Television and Radio. This excellent speakers series from the Commonwealth Club of California brings together top thinkers and doers from business, government, academia and advocacy groups to advance the discussion about a clean energy future.
Bay Nature on the Air and Around the Bay with Will Travis feature our beautiful natural landscape and the challenges of rising sea levels. Lisa Friedenthal-Lee’s Don’t Throw That Away turns young people’s attention to trash, while KRCB and InCA Productions teamed up to produce Powering Up to feature simple changes we can make to significantly reduce our energy consumption.

All reflecting KRCB’s commitment to our community and our world.
Sincerely,

Dear Member,

Over the past few years you have heard much talk about the television conversion from analog to digital broadcast. KRCB successfully completed the transition of our transmission system two years ago. That was the largest and most expensive part of the project and our engineering staff is happy that it is behind us.

The second part is the conversion of our television master control facility, where programs are received, recorded, stored, and played at the appropriate time. We have been in the tape-to-tape to machine world for our entire 27 years.  Not only has the industry moved way beyond where we are, many of the machines are now so old there is no manufacturers’ support.

Enter some fantastic grants awarded by Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the Department of Commerce. These are matching grants and we have made substantial progress but are not home free yet. Our match requirement was $447,407 and to date we’ve raised $273,387, leaving $174,020 to raise.

Congress has just zeroed out the Department of Commerce program and continues to threaten unexpended funds at CPB.  We are therefore turning to you, our loyal supporters, to ask for an additional gift of whatever size you can manage to help assure that these funds are not lost to KRCB and our community.  One grant is a 3 to 1 match, the other a 2 to 1 match, clearly a pair of wonderful opportunities.

So, if you can dig in again, if you know of a corporation or local business that we might approach, we are looking for all the help we can get.

Thanks for your support.
Sincerely,

Dear Member,
   One of our great pleasures here at KRCB is when we are able to work with independent producers to air their work on Channel 22 and also to present it to PBS stations nationwide. Not only are we able to get these producers the recognition they deserve for their great work, but we also are able to add variety to the program line-up on other stations.

   In May we are airing two programs which KRCB will also present to “the system.”  Lessons from the Real World comes to us from award-winning producer Bob Gliner.  Lessons looks at our K-12 school system and the current emphasis on test scores. The documentary suggests, as do many educators, that looking at scores is looking in the wrong place for an improved and relevant education.

   Someplace with a Mountain will also be a KRCB presentation to stations around the country. Producers Russell Long and Steve Goodall present the story of climate change and the flooding of the homeland of a very special group of Pacific Islanders.

   Independent producers are the creative force in public broadcasting.  KRCB has always been committed to providing a forum—Channel 22—to showcase their work. Of course, our own Natural Heroes, returning in August, is also evidence of that commitment.

   Enjoy!  You make it happen.