Pat Watters < Back Got the Blues Pat Watters Thursday 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm Pat has been a part of Valley Heritage radio since the beginning. His show Got the Blues began a month after the station went on the air and continues every Thursday evening at eight o’clock right after the bingo. Got the Blues is a two-hour weekly show which provides you the opportunity to listen and enjoy the blues. If you want to be more informed and exposed to this genre of music so that you can appreciate the blues, then this is the place to be! Blues has been portrayed as mournful and slow but as you listen to Got the Blues you will discover it is far more energetic and it rocks. It has been said, “The blues had a baby and they named it Rock ‘n Roll”! There are plenty of blues styles and you will hear a great variety on Pat’s show. Traditional to contemporary artists are played regularly and Got the Blues is proud to feature many of our Canadian Blues artists. Previous Next

Board Members < Back < Back Denzil (Denny) Ferguson President/Treasurer Denny was born, raised and schooled in rural Renfrew. Following a most enjoyable time at Renfrew Collegiate Institute – where he played a wide variety of sports – he joined the RCMP in 1961. Posted to Regina for basic training and then to Cape Breton Island for policing experience, Denny was transferred back to Ottawa and the Security Service. He earned his Business Administration Diploma at Algonquin College while working throughout Canada. Denny moved to Pakenham and into beef farming and continued policing, working in the Federal Public Service and the Private Sector until retirement in 2012. He has had the pleasure of serving the residents of Pakenham and Mississippi Mills for more than 20 years as a municipal councillor. Denny was a founding partner (retired) of 5 Span Feed and Seed – Pakenham. He has been married for more than 50 years to his Calabogie Sweetheart Margie, and they have four children. Denny has served on the station’s Board of Directors for more than a decade, and has been president since 2012. He travels the Valley extensively, attending dances, church suppers, Douglas Irish celebrations, and many other functions. He enjoys life, loves the Valley and its people, and the satisfaction of assisting in the operation of Valley Heritage Radio.

Check out our Sunday programs on Valley Heritage Radio station in Renfrew Ontario. Sunday Programs

Mike Cloutier < Back Valley Saturday Night Mike Cloutier Saturday 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm Host Mike Cloutier loves to hear from our listeners, and that’s exactly what drives his Valley Saturday Night program – listener requests. Almost every song each week is chosen by listeners from across the Ottawa Valley, and beyond, as they call in their favourite tunes – and Mike is the man to find them and play them. So if you have a song you’d like to hear, then give Mike a call on Saturday nights between 4 and 7, and you’ll likely get your wish. The show has also grown to include guest appearances from Mike’s wife Nancy (aka The Saturday Night Widow). Previous Next

Roy Berger < Back Simply Country Roy Berger Sunday 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm What better way to spend a couple of hours on a Sunday afternoon than listening to the country music classics of years gone by. Roy Berger brings you some of your favourites, some songs you haven’t heard in years, and maybe some you’ve never heard – every Sunday from 3 to 7 p.m. Previous Next

Learn about the history of Valley Heritage Radio, country radio station in the Ottawa Valley. In 2001 Vic Garbutt was approached to lead the efforts of a volunteer board to look into the possibility of starting a community radio station here in Renfrew County. Vic and His wife Linda, co-founders of the station, took the challenge on and started attending all fairs, events and anything to do with country music in the Valley, looking for signatures to support the project. The history of Valley Heritage Radio The little station that could... In 2001 Vic Garbutt was approached to lead the efforts of a volunteer board to look into the possibility of starting a community radio station here in Renfrew County. Vic and His wife Linda, co-founders of the station, took the challenge on and started attending all fairs, events and anything to do with country music in the Valley, looking for signatures to support the project. They were able to obtain more than 12,000 names on the survey. An engineer’s survey was required to make application to the CRTC for a broadcast license and this survey was going to cost $10,000. This money was raised by requesting $100 each from 100 people and organizations. This list of 100 became the founding donors of the station (see full list below). In 2004 the application to CRTC was approved and our 98.7 FM frequency was awarded. The next task was to raise the funds necessary to get the broadcast equipment and find a home for the station. The station in order to apply for a Trillium Grant required an elected board, not a volunteer board, so the founding donors were assembled to elect a new board of directors. After researching different locations (Gillan Road in Renfrew, Arnprior and others), a decision was finally made to rent the old Mack MacKenzie body shop on Burnstown Road. Studio construction and clean-up in this old automobile body shop began immediately. The Valley Folks Respond We needed approximately $337,000 to purchase the broadcast equipment. We researched many different options to borrow the money, but as with most new business start-ups, we were not able to to secure the funds. We then turned to the people of the Ottawa Valley and requested $1,000 loans at 6% interest. The Valley people responded and started lending VHR the money required. The board had given the project a deadline of June 2006 to raise the money required or the project would be shut down and all money returned to the lenders. The board meeting of June 2006 arrived and the money was not all secured. There was still $30,000 required. A board member mentioned an interest in loaning the balance, but required 24 hours to make arrangements. The decision to shut the project down was postponed until the following day. And we raised enough money! Due to these loans from the people of the Valley and one understanding supplier, the broadcast equipment was ordered. A condition of our licence was that we were to be on air no later than September 2006. The provision to apply for an extension was in the decision, so we applied for the extension. We would not be able to get on air by the September deadline as we had to purchase our own tower when the original deal for rental on a nearby tower had fallen apart. Due to this change of tower location we needed to change our antennae specs, and it had to be reordered. Valley Heritage radio started broadcasting in test mode for Industry Canada on Dec 11, 2006 and went officially on air on January 15, 2007. The first song ever played on our new station was Vic Garbutt’s Waltz, by Calvin Vollrath. Station history compiled by Jim Long Our Founding Members Louise & Jim Allen Betty & Harold Burgess Bill Connelly Stephen & Tanya Dennee Vic & Linda Garbutt Norma Grace Harry & Jean Haley Hartley & Jean Henderson J.D. Swallow Heating Henri Lacombe Mr. & Mrs. Terry Little Barry & Ellen Martin Bruce & Waneta Murray Jerome Recoskie Bill Ryan Ralph & Muriel Verch Marion Anderson Jean Calberry Brent Cook Doris Desjardin George Cowan Enterprizes Ltd. Allan & Barbara Gravelle Dennis Harrington Louise & Arnold Hoare Bob & Julie Johnston Ron Lang Lonny Lytle Ken & Cora Matacheskie Northern Sons Renfrew County Federation of Agriculture Eric & Anita Schubrink Jacques & Martine Waisvisz Terry Shean Renfrew County Fiddlers Ottawa Valley Country Music Hall of Fame The Griffith Ridge Runners Hunt Camp Walter & Eleanor Guyea Phyllis Hein Roxanne & Jim Huyer Charlie Kitts John & Barbara Legrow Frances Marshall Ronald Moores Gene & Terry Pierce Larry Robinson Al & Llynn Steggall Bill Wimperis John & Vicky Yakabuski Wesley Bomhower Mike Cloutier Larry & Joanne Delaney Muriel Freamo Leonard Grace Peter & Wanda Hoafichuk W.B. Helman Audrey Jamieson Len & Irene Kuiack Larry & Daisey Lennox Gerry & Annabelle Marshal Glen Moulton Jennifer Pierce Revel & Helen Robinson Brian Tracey Ken Reynolds Agency Alex & Linda MacDonald Joe & Anne Leggs Gary & Rose Latendresse Cornelius John Hunt Irene J. Hunt Kate Jones Ray & Sally Cook Douglas Cowden Lowell & Margaret Montague Bob & Connie Badgerow Harriet Belliveau Brian Blackmore William Cambron Jack & Gail Cameron Carroll & Theresa Cashmon Dale & Jean Gillan Bryson & Beryl Robinson Bev & Merv Wilson Jack MacTavish Jean Green Greg & Joan Grieses Howard & Charlotte Hayes Barry Spicer Lorne H. Davis Arnold & Barb Dickon Mike Fahey Douglas Flemming Carl & Lois Gilchrist Wilfred Gilchrist Dalton Hein Shirley Pearce

Radiothon 2024 50/50 Purchase or Renew your membership online...it is as easy as that!! www.valleyheritageradio.ca/memberships Art will announce your name on April 12th April 9-11 - Out and About in the Valley (with Live Music) Tuesday April 09 - 12-2pm - Levi Home Hardware Almonte Wednesday April 10 - 12-2pm - Giant Tiger Arnprior Thursday April 11 - 12-2pm - Joanne's Valu-Mart Shawville April 12 - Art Jamieson is in the House! (10am - 4pm) April 13 - Pancake $5.00 Breakfast @ Renfrew Legion Partly sponsored by: No Frills Renfrew April 14 - Jim Long Memorial Round Up Dance @ Renfrew Legion Partly sponsored by: Melcher Heating; Shawville Ford & MacGregor Concrete Members $10.00 (Valid Membership Card will be required for Members) Non-Members $15.00 Tickets available at: Valley Heritage Radio @ 3009 Burnstown Road Out and About in the Valley (see above) Pancake Breakfast at Renfrew Legion At-The-Door at the Dance Non-Members can also buy tickets .... Darvish's in Kinburn, Perkins in Pembroke and Under My Roof in Arnprior The 2024 Valley Heritage Radiothon Line Auction is open from Monday April 08, 2024 at 9 a.m. until Friday April 12, 2024 at 4 p.m . The Auction is now closed. Thank you for your support

Jason Marshall < Back G'day From the Valley Jason Marshall Saturday 9:00 am - 10:00 am Jason’s Saturday morning show shines a spotlight on Ottawa Valley artists, with a special focus on all types of Valley music, not just country. He says, “as long as it’s Ottawa Valley and it’s good, then you’ll hear it on this show.” It’s the only show on VHR that showcases local talent beyond the country music genre. This includes local pop, rock, folk, bluegrass, instrumental, and more. And, of course, country and fiddle. You can’t do an Ottawa Valley show without country and fiddle! G’Day From the Valley airs Saturday mornings from 9 to 10. Previous Next

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80ba17a2-e523-4378-8c32-9f416ce43910 OUR DJs < Back Marion Eidsness Marion Eidsness is the host of the “Seniors in our Communities” program that is on air each week at Valley Heritage Radio, 98.7 FM. It is aired Tuesday during the noon hour. Marion draws on her experience of working in the senior service sector and managing volunteers in community agencies both in Saskatchewan and Ontario to come up with the ideas for this show. Marion and her husband moved to Renfrew in 2011 to be closer to their two sons and their families who live in Ottawa. A weekly visit with their grandchildren is a highlight. One of the benefits of working on this program, Marion says, is the knowledge she gains personally and the great people she meets that offer community support services throughout Renfrew County. Previous Next

05a58505-bfd9-4d00-8fcf-0d853952412c OUR DJs < Back Gerry Blandford Gerry Blandford was born and raised in Ottawa, attended public and high school there, and lived in the Glebe area of the city. Gerry first started working for Canadian Pacific Railway and then moved to work for OC Transpo for almost 28 years finishing up as a supervisor. He retired in 1996 and then started volunteering for Rogers Community Television. Since moving to Renfrew in 2003 Gerry has been involved with Cogeco and done several productions as a community producer and won an award for small media productions for a documentary on Remembrance Day and was named Volunteer of the Year in 2006. Gerry began volunteering for CJHR in the summer of 2007 and on March 4, 2008 went on the air as the host of The Big Band Ballroom. He was one of the originals who worked the afternoon shift along with Mike Cloutier and then hosted the Canadian Country and Fiddle show on Fridays. There isn’t a show at the radio station that Gerry hasn’t hosted, because of his versatility and passion for all genres of music. Gerry lives in Renfrew along with his wife Pat, and are proud parents and grandparents. Program VHR Bluegrass On the Valley Heritage Radio Bluegrass, Gerry Blandford plays 2 hours of your favourite Bluegrass. If you’re a fan of that type of music, you can hear it every Tuesday from 8 to 10 p.m. Previous Next

cc785aaa-c226-4c54-b84c-dd0c28e2a856 OUR DJs < Back Coyote Slim Coyote Slim is an Ontario native who started his music career at a young age by DJ’ing elementary school dances when he was in grade 7 and he continued to DJ events and clubs for several decades. His first experience in radio was hosting a weekly show on CRSC (Canadian Radio Seneca College). The Coyote is a guitarist, amateur singer/ songwriter and a passionate music fan. Despite being a full-time introvert, he has dabbled in theater and performed in several musicals such as “Paint Your Wagon” and “Annie Get Your Gun,” often as the comic lead. As a professional speaker his career has taken him around the globe and, despite an eight-year side trip to Alberta, he has always made his way back to the Ottawa Valley. He resides in the White Lake area and records at the Iron Raven Ranch studio. Coyote Slim hosts the Common Thread Show – a weekly show based on central themes where he endeavors to help listeners “watch” the radio by selecting music that “conjures up images in the mind.” He encourages audience participation and asks listeners to reach him via his e-mail address coyoteslim@valleyheritageradio.ca . In his words “the best part of my show is the listener feedback…getting requests, dedications and suggestions for show themes.” Program The Common Thread Show Coyote Slim hosts the Common Thread Show – a weekly show based on central themes where he endeavors to help listeners “watch” the radio by selecting music that “conjures up images in the mind”. He encourages audience participation and asks listeners to reach him via his e-mail address: coyoteslim@valleyheritageradio.ca In his words the best part of my show is the listener feedback…getting requests, dedications and suggestions for show themes. Previous Next