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Tag Archives | Ross Tozzi

May ’98: A parade, and a (very) cold swim, for Memorial Day

May 25, 1998

As it has for 22 years, KNOM provides live coverage of the solemn Memorial Day parade, which winds from Nome’s Front Street to graveside observances at the town cemetery and a brief ceremony at Nome’s harbor. Paul Korchin and Ross Tozzi anchor the broadcast.

Later in the day, KNOM brings listeners to Nome’s East End Beach, where fifty hardy individuals dodge boulder-sized chunks of ice at the surf’s edge in the traditional Memorial Day Swim. The water temperature is only 34° F, and the air is 36°.

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Prayers for Ezio, and the latest with our volunteers

We ask for prayers for Ezio Tozzi, father of KNOM board president Father Ross Tozzi, and the entire Tozzi family. May God richly bless and guide them. Thank you.

All five KNOM volunteers are busy writing, producing and voicing exceptional radio programming.

Eva DeLappe visited Nome’s Quyanna Care Center to cover the opening of the facility, including interviews with elders and caring staff.

Dayneé Rosales just returned from a village trip to Diomede Island with reports and pictures of her trip.

Margaret DeMaioribus has been covering critical organizational meetings and presentations.

Lucus Keppel has been working with local voice talent, producing inspirational spots.

And Josh Cunningham has been cataloguing and recording music for the KNOM library. (He also brightens our day with his charm and wonderful sense of humor.)

We are so blessed! We thank everyone who makes their work possible.

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Happy Easter!

From all of us at KNOM, a very Happy Easter!

In Western Alaska, there are already a few signs of spring. The temperatures are warming slightly, the days are rapidly becoming longer, and the moon looms large in the night sky, casting a soft light upon the frozen Bering Sea and ice-covered tundra. The stunning landscape is a reminder of the majesty of God’s love.

In isolated villages – where a priest rarely, if ever, is present to celebrate Mass – KNOM beamed Easter Mass from St. Joseph Catholic Church in Nome. We are blessed that Fr. Ross Tozzi was present to preside at the community’s Easter celebration; his words and those of the congregation were heard throughout Western Alaska.

From time to time, the KNOM volunteers fly out to select area villages. (The flights are typically free, thanks to a longtime sharing agreement with Bering Air in Nome.)

Last week, volunteer music director Josh Cunningham traveled to the Yukon Delta village of Bethel for the Cama-i Music Festival.  He spent three days recording music, interviewing village elders, and sending back reports for KNOM’s Update News broadcasts.

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Far from Alaska, celebrations for a unique saint

Father Ross in St. Peter's SquareWhile we don’t normally detail the personal travel of our staff members in the Static, one of their recent trips stands out. In October, Father Ross Tozzi – KNOM board president and pastor of Nome’s St. Joseph Catholic Church – traveled all the way to Rome, Italy. Fr. Ross (pictured) gathered in St. Peter’s Square with more than 50 fellow Alaskans and 80,000 pilgrims from around the world to celebrate the canonization of seven new Catholic saints.

One of the new saints – St. Kateri Tekakwitha – has special interest for our mission, our staff, and our listeners. St. Kateri is the very first Native American saint, and her feast day – July 14th – is the anniversary both of KNOM’s first broadcast (in 1971) and of Fr. Ross’ ordination (in 2001).

Father Ross at the VaticanOn the day of her canonization, a homily from Pope Benedict XVI offered more details on St. Kateri:

Kateri Tekakwitha was born in today’s New York state in 1656 to a Mohawk father and a Christian Algonquin mother, who gave to her a sense of the living God… Leading a simple life, Kateri remained faithful to her love for Jesus, to prayer, and to daily Mass. Her greatest wish was to know and to do what pleased God. She lived a life radiant with faith and purity.

Saint Kateri… we entrust to you the renewal of the faith in the first nations and in all of North America. May God bless the first nations!

With your support, each of the new saints – including Saint Kateri – will be profiled in inspirational spots broadcast on KNOM over the coming year.

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Merry Christmas from your KNOM family

The KNOM Staff, 2012

The photo above was taken on the future site of the Tom and Florence Busch Digital Studios, our studio annex project. From left to right: Father Ross Tozzi; Eva DeLappe; Lynette Schmidt; Lucus Keppel; Kelly Brabec; Betsy Brennan; Rolland Trowbridge; Dayneé Rosales; Joshua Cunningham; Laureli Kinneen; Ric Schmidt; Laura Collins; Margaret DeMaioribus; David Dodman.

We can’t thank you enough for all you do for our mission. From all of us at KNOM Radio, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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Baby in a manger (and a parka)

Like so many Catholic churches around the world, the parish two blocks away from KNOM studios – St. Joseph Catholic Church – features a manger scene and Christmas tree during this Advent season. But the Nome creche (pictured) bears a touch of rural Alaska: the baby Jesus, Mary, and Joseph wear traditional parkas fit for our region’s harsh winters.

Throughout the year, KNOM broadcasts live Catholic Mass from St. Joseph’s whenever Father Ross Tozzi, the church’s pastor, is in Nome. Due to the dire shortage of priests in Alaska, Fr. Ross – among his myriad duties – divides his ministerial efforts between Nome and other communities in our region. (He’s also president of KNOM’s board of directors.)

Through your support, thousands of our listeners will be able to join the celebration of Christmas Mass by listening to KNOM. Across hundreds of miles of snowy tundra, the joy of Christmas will keep spirits bright – thanks to you.

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Thank you, Frank!

Father Ross and Frank JazzoKNOM is sustained through the generosity of thousands of people, spread all across America. Some – like lawyer Frank Jazzo, pictured with KNOM board president Fr. Ross Tozzi – make our mission possible through their expertise. Based out of Washington, D.C., Frank was instrumental in the transfer of the official, FCC broadcast license to KNOM in the creation of KNOM Radio Mission, Inc. Recently, Frank also traveled all the way to Alaska to pay us a visit and see KNOM in person. Thanks so much, Frank!

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Back in the building! – Fr. Ross, John, and Tom

Father Ross – pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Nome and president of the KNOM Radio Mission board of directors – is back in Nome from a short sabbatical. Fr. Ross was a KNOM volunteer in the late 80s and has been a part of the radio mission in one way or another ever since. He was ordained a priest in Nome on July 15, 2001. We are so thankful for his service, guidance and love for KNOM’s critical radio ministry.

Tom Bunger and John Kelsey

Tom Bunger and John Kelsey in KNOM’s engineering room.

Last week, the technical dynamic duo of John Kelsey and Tom Bunger (pictured above) visited KNOM to help with a myriad of engineering issues. They coordinated with engineering volunteer Rolland Trowbridge to fix, restore, renew, and update radio equipment throughout the KNOM studio building. The improvements will extend the life of some of our equipment and increase the productivity of our computer systems. We thank all who keep KNOM on the air!

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Summer and Sunday Mass

Father Ross Tozzi

Father Ross Tozzi celebrates Mass at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Nome.

Large patches of snow dot the tundra on north facing hills, but most areas are beginning to see a variety of blooming tundra flowers. Subsistence fishing and hunting will soon begin; in Western Alaska, families work hard to store up food for the winter.

Throughout KNOM’s primary coverage area, 19,230 persons are unable to worship Roman Catholic Mass in their villages more than half of the time. For these individuals, the only weekly opportunity to worship the Mass is KNOM’s Sunday morning broadcast.

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