KPFA’s fund drive beats its goal by $45K, budget has surplus

KPFA’s Summer Mini-Fund Drive was the first in recent memory to finish on time, and on goal. Ahead of goal, actually: by the time the pledge room closed at 7 PM last Thursday, KPFA had exceeded its $285,000 goal by a whopping $45,000 — bringing in a total of $330,000. More donations continue to trickle in online. A hearty congratulations to all, and a big THANK YOU to everyone who pledged!

What accounts for the turnaround? For one thing, good news. On day two of the fund drive, word got out via this SaveKPFA newsletter and elsewhere that the Pacifica National Board had declined to renew the contract of Pacifica Executive Director Arlene Engelhardt, the executive who killed KPFA’s Morning Show.

This was also the first full fund drive with UpFront — the new 7 AM news collaboration that returned former Morning Show co-host Brian Edwards-Tiekert to a morning timeslot. Just 10 weeks old, the program, co-hosted by Edwards-Tiekert and KPFK’s Sonali Kolhatkar, delivered KPFA’s top pledge totals, bringing in nearly $50,000 over the course of the mini fund drive.

Donate to KPFA now, so you can vote this fall. If you didn’t give during the drive, you can still show support for KPFA’s new direction by donating online at www.kpfa.org. In order to vote in this fall’s general election for representatives to KPFA’s Local Station Board, you must have given at least $25 in the year ending August 30, 2012.

Endorsements for the YES campaign continue to roll in

Here’s a sampling of the latest YES endorsements (all titles/organizations for ID only): CHRIS KAVANAGH, former elected Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner (2002-2008), former Green Party of Alameda County Central/County Council member * EMILY ALMA, Chico Peace and Justice Center, Butte Environmental Council, Occupy Chico, Chico Palestine Action Group * SCOTT CAMIL, activist * HELENE KNOX, poet, KPFA listener/volunteer * EDDY PAY, KPFA music programmer * SASHA FUTRAN, member, KPFA local station board * FRANCESCA ROSA, member, SEIU 1021, delegate. SF Labor Council * BILL HARVEY, former president, Alameda County Labor Council, AFL-CIO* GENE COYLE, economist & listener * LAWRENCE DAVIDSON, former co-host of Probabilities, a KPFA show * MARY TILSON, host, America’s Back 40 * LAYNA BERMAN, unpaid programmer, Your Own Health & Fitness * LISA KERMISH, Vice President, UPTE-CWA Local 9119 * CARLOS ECHEVARRIA, listener, Inglewood CA * JAN ETRE, KPFA Crafts Fair coordinator * CELIA REYES, listener, Oakland * JACK SAWYER, President, Parker Street Foundation * SHARON MALDONADO, listener * RAMSEY KANAAN, KPFA unpaid staff, founder AK Press & PM Press * GUADALUPE LEDESMA, listener 30+ yrs * LESLIE TOWNSEND, college professor * ROBERT LONGER, EVP, CWA Local 9421. | See COMPLETE ENDORSERS’ LIST HERE and ADD YOUR NAME

Still no ballot? Here’s how to make sure your vote counts

We’ve been getting calls and emails from KPFA subscribers who still have not received ballots. What should you do?  REQUEST ONE IMMEDIATELY from Pacifica’s election supervisor at kpfarecall@gmail.com or (323) 375-4126. And please also let SaveKPFA know, by email or phone.

If you were a KPFA member at any time between November 2010 and November 2011, you should have received a ballot . Ballots must be received by AUGUST 3 at this address: KPFA Recall Election, P.O. Box 11708, Berkeley, CA 94712. If you haven’t yet, vote YES now and mail ASAP.

Here are some voting tips. First, you must FILL IN THE ENTIRE YES SQUARE on the ballot for your vote to be counted. Also, please RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO WRITE ANYTHING on the ballot other than your vote. If you made a mistake marking your ballot, contact the recall supervisor and request a replacement ballot right away (and we’d appreciate it if you’d copy SaveKPFA).

IMPORTANT: Keep your PIN ballot stub as proof that you voted. All ballots in KPFA elections have PIN barcodes on them, so that no subscriber may vote more than once. If there are issues with the fairness of the vote process, we’ll be asking you to help us prove that, and your PIN stub may help. The PIN numbers also mean when you request a duplicate ballot, your first ballot will be discarded and only your second one will count.

If you have voted, please take a moment to let us know you have done so. Use SaveKPFA‘s convenient online survey, or simply contact us by email or phone. You’ll be helping us document the vote in case there are challenges to the process. Ballots must be received by August 3. | MORE ON BALLOTS HERE