The Catskill Chronicle

Story and photos by Carol Montana

ROCK HILL – “Radio is what happens between the songs,” says Vince Benedetto, president of Bold Gold Media, the parent company of Thunder 102. And on Thursday, January 21, what happened between the songs was a strong outpouring of generosity at the Thunder-Thompson Dollars for Haiti Radiothon.

It all started with an almost-simultaneous idea from Town of Thompson Supervisor Tony Cellini and Deputy Supervisor George Cooke. “Linda and I were having dinner, and the TV was in the background,” said Cellini, “and we were hearing about the devastation in the Haiti. I looked at Linda and I said ‘We have to do something.’ “

The words were barely out of his mouth, when the phone rang. “It was George Cooke,” said Cellini, “and he said, ‘We have to do something.’ ”

The next morning the duo called Thunder 102. “Paul Ciliberto (Thunder 102’s New York Regional Manager and host of Ciliberto and Friends) said he’d call me back when he got off the air,” continued Cellini, “They didn’t even flinch, they said let’s do it.”

Dr. Michelle Koury, Chief Operating Officer at Crystal Run Healthcare – who had been the guest host on Ciliberto and Friends that morning — got involved by offering her conference room as a venue and her IT department as the technical staff.

And so, in less than one week, the Thunder-Thompson Dollars for Haiti Radiothon was in full swing. “George just started making phone calls,” said Cellini. 

“It’s amazing how everybody involved just swung into action,” said Ciliberto. “It’s incredible. … We started this morning just 3 hours shy of seven days from when we got the phone call.”

Mike Sakell, Thunder 102’s host of Sakell in the Afternoon, had high praise for Cellini, Cooke and the Crystal Run Health Care IT staff. “They made it so easy. Everything that Tony and George did, Dr. Michele Koury from Crystal Run offered the facilities. We came, we plugged in. We just more or less showed up.”

The organizers designated four charities for the donations: the Salvation Army, Doctors Without Borders, Unicef and the American Red Cross. They only accepted checks or money orders since they didn’t want to handle cash, and Provident Bank provided money orders at no cost. “The outpouring has been incredible,” Cellini reported.

Incredible indeed. At the end of the Radiothon, which lasted from 7:00 a.m till 8:00 p.m., donations exceeded $50,000, and were still being counted.

George Cooke was clearly touched at the response. “The spirit here today and the enthusiasm talks a lot about the people of Sullivan County, which is going through some difficult times …”

Cooke said that most of the volunteers got in touch with him. “We contacted people who had volunteered before. We have the service organizations, we called different governmental leaders. We didn’t have one refusal. What people should understand is that a lot of the people who are contributing also contributed to other organizations before we started this. …”

Phone bank coordinator and floor manager, Al Frangipane said he was honored to be asked to take part in the Radiothon. He’s been a member of the American Red Cross for 12 years and currently serves on the disaster response team, and has been to Livingston Manor to help victims of floods four times. Frangipane was amazed at the number of volunteers. “People who are working here – there’s a consistency in the faces – it’s amazing.”

Thunder 102’s involvement in its community has a lot to do with the man who created it. “I’m a big believer that all radio is local,” said Vince Benedetto. “Anybody can play music, but what happens when the music stops is what matters. I have such a great team of people who understand that and make it happen. … what makes Thunder 102 successful is the team, and devotion and the dedication with emphasis on their community …” 

And as that community continued to call in and pledge their support to help the victims of the Haiti earthquake, George Cooke added up the numbers and said, “I think it’s important to say ‘thank you’ when someone comes to your assistance. We can’t say thank you enough.”                            

You can still make a donation to any of the Radiothon’s designated charities. Send your donation to:

Thompson Town Hall, Haiti Relief, 4052 Route 42, Monticello, NY 12701.

Make your check or money order (no cash please) payable to:

The American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Unicef, or Doctors Without Borders

Please put the words “Haiti Relief” in the memo portion of your check or money order.

To see more photos from the Thunder-Thompson Dollar for Haiti Radiothon, visit The Catskill Chronicle on Zenfolio.