For the love of nonprofits: Radio show reveals the life of charitable organizations
If you want to know the ins and outs of non-profit work, or even just hear some of their stories, one local radio program has you covered. KC Cares, which airs on radio and streams online, focuses on the details of local non-profit entities.
Though the program started life as being strictly a radio show, now it’s got a video element available via YouTube and Facebook, as well as being a podcast available on Spotify, iHeartRadio and Apple.
For those who still want it in analog, it airs on ESPN 94.5 FM and 1510 AM at 8 a.m. on Saturdays.
Bill Brandmeyer and Rick Monday initially started the show at KC Creative, but then Monday left, followed by Brandmeyer in 2017. Current host Ruth Baum Bigus (a writer who freelances for The Kansas City Star and the Journal) had already started co-hosting at that point, and Lee’s Summit resident Bobby Keys was doing the technical work, too.
By 2018, Keys and Bigus formed the non-profit Charitable Communications to produce the show. The video element came after the shutdowns of 2020.
For the past three years, the show has gotten funding from the Kauffman Foundation, and Keys said they have recently learned the foundation will fund them for three more years.
“It’s pretty cool that they believe in us. They love what we’re doing, just being able to highlight and tell the stories of other nonprofits, as well as helping with providing solutions for people who are starting out in the non-profit world,” Keys said.
Non-profit workers can apply to be guests for the show on the KC Cares website, kccaresonline.org. Both Keys and Bigus have a hand in selecting the guests. They try and hit on organizations dealing with a variety of community issues, including immigration, housing, women’s advocacy and more. They do steer clear of politics, Keys said.
A lot of the episodes deal with fundraising, because it’s a vital part of keeping non-profits running.
One of the focal points of the show is sharing the difficulties various non-profits had getting started to help others who may be in the same situation. Often, they have an “ask the expert” episode to target other specific problems.
The episodes that feature personnel from non-profits talking about their organizations have a dual purpose. Not only do they share stories with the public and other non-profits, but the organizations themselves can then use the recording as a promotional tool.
“They’re able to then take the video we provide and the podcast and all the materials that we provide them. They’re able to take that as marketing materials for themselves, to be able to target donors, generate donations and help with communication impact,” Keys said.
Providing that service is important to Keys.
Marketing is difficult for non-profits, which are often understaffed, Keys said.
“They don’t have the technology or the understanding of technology to be able to market with the lack of funds they usually have. Being able to help them tell their story and help them communicate their impact is something that’s pretty cool. It’s always awesome to see them thrive and survive in a saturated market,” Keys said.
During the show, while Bigus conducts the interviews, Keys does all the behind-the-scenes technical work for switching around the video, streaming it and all the other things necessary to put it on the air. He also puts together the related web and social media content in addition to the graphics.
When he’s not helping produce KC Cares, Keys has his own creative agency and is the music director for the Royals.
“It’s a lot of work, but that’s one thing working in the agency world taught me, is the amount of work I can handle. I love the creative world. I love helping non-profits. Ruth loves helping nonprofits,” Keys said.
Being able to contribute to the area’s charities is refreshing to Keys.
“It enriches your soul. It feels good to be able to help out the community and do good things,” he said.
He hopes to make even more on-site videos for non-profits going forward.
