The March 2010 Golden Mic Award recipient is Kyle Dowden of KWFC in Springfield, Missouri.

A 35-year-old native of Mountain Grove, Mo., Kyle is KWFC’s Program Director, a post in which he’s served six years. He is also its music director and Internet web master. Kyle has 17 years experience in radio broadcasting, spending the last 15 at KWFC.

KWFC (89.1 FM) is a 100,000-watt radio station owned by Baptist Bible College in Springfield and broadcasts to more than a half-million people in southern Missouri, northern Arkansas, and parts of Kansas and Oklahoma. Founded in 1969, KWFC is the largest Christian radio station in the region, serving up Southern Gospel music and Biblical teaching and preaching, with special children’s programming on Saturday mornings.

Kyle began his broadcasting career in 1993 when, as a college student, he became employed part-time at KCMG (now KELE) in his hometown. In 1995, he began his current stint at KWFC—initially part-time as an afternoon show host. He also soon began hosting the “Ozarks Top 20 Countdown,” heard every Saturday night. He later became a full-time news reporter for the station. He next became its News Director, a post he held two years.

In 2004 he became Program Director, and during that time, more Southern Gospel music has been added to KWFC’s programming, including during its overnight broadcasts. The station also began carrying a live stream of its programming online (kwfc.org), developed a partnership with Springfield’s other non-commercial Christian radio stations and has enjoyed a continuous rise in its airplay ratings under Kyle’s leadership.

Kyle has been married for 15 years. He and his wife, Rebekah, have three children: (all sons) Jeremiah, Jonas and Malachi. Kyle and his family are active in North Point Church in Springfield, where he and Rebekah are involved in their children’s ministry—Rebekah works in the nursery and Kyle teaches fourth and fifth grade–age students. Kyle is also a leader in the church’s community outreach program.

(written by Tim Gardner - reprinted from the Singing News, March 2010 edition)