Dion Woodman is as close as one can come to personifying 2DRY FM. Elected as the current President in 2017, Mr Woodman was part of the organisation’s founding committee back in 1989 when he was a teenager.
Reflecting on those early days, Mr Woodman noted, “the idea of a community radio station was very exciting at the time, it was something that was new, and it was my first experience with volunteering.”
His tenure as a teenage member of the founding committee has led Mr Woodman to adopt a future focus for the station.
He further stated, “I get really excited seeing the youth coming into the station now, as it reminds me of my experience all those years ago, and we want to make sure we help those volunteers grow their skills.”
After completing his education, Mr Woodman left Broken Hill. However, by 2015, he was once again a resident of the area. At that time, he tuned his radio to 107.7 2DRY FM and chose to rejoin the organisation, based on his belief that the station was in a strong position.
In 2017, then-President Patrick Kreitner, who was featured in the last edition of the Truth, asked Mr Woodman if he would consider serving as the next President. By that year’s AGM, Mr Woodman found himself in a role that seemed almost predestined for him.
During his presidency, he indicated that “employing a station manager has been one of our greatest successes, because it was difficult to get the seed funding for that to begin with.”
“We realised as a board that we were at the limit of volunteer time to manage the station, so we needed that paid assistance, and this has allowed us to accomplish much more than we could as a purely volunteer-run organisation,” Mr Woodman added.
Since rejoining, 2DRY FM’s membership has grown from approximately 40 members to now boasting more than 100. Mr Woodman attributes this growth to the goals set by the station over the past several years.
“We are in the process of setting up podcasting on the website, so this is radio on demand. If listeners can’t catch shows live, they can access them whenever it suits them, allowing for greater flexibility, community outreach, and the development of new programs with new volunteers,” said a proud Mr Woodman.
Additionally, the station continues to offer new training programs, as “we want to invest in all our volunteers, which includes opportunities for governance training to ensure we are operating at the right standards and that the board can develop their skills in this area.”
To get involved, to donate, or for more information relating to the Radiothon, visit https://chuffed.org/project/2dryradiothon. This link also records the current balance of donations, of which 2DRY are watching with interest as the Radiothon progresses.
