WJYJ

For the Fredericksburg, Virginia radio station that held the call sign WJYJ at 90.5 FM from 1982 to 2018, see WPER (FM).

WJYJ

Hickory, North Carolina
Frequency	88.1 MHz
Programming
Format	Southern Gospel
Ownership
Owner	Positive Alternative Radio, Inc.
History
Former call signs	WUDD (11/19/1984 - 12/27/1984) WPAR (12/27/1984 - 07/11/1997) WPIR (07/11/1997 - 02/13/2018)[1]
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	53091
Class	C2
ERP	26,500 watts
HAAT	77.0 meters
Transmitter coordinates	35°43′34.00″N 81°8′52.00″W
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Website	joyfm.org

WJYJ (88.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Southern Gospel format. Licensed to Hickory, North Carolina, United States, the station is currently owned by Positive Alternative Radio, Inc.

The station uses the identifier of "Joy FM". It has a number of repeater frequencies located as far north as Kentucky.

History

This station signed on in Claremont, North Carolina on November 19, 1984 as WUDD, later on December 27, of that same year, 1984, they changed to WPAR, with a Contemporary Christian music format.

In 1989, Don Lee was general manager of WPAR and WCXN, which played Southern gospel music.^[3]

In August 1993, DJ and area minister Robert Barnette was one of the top five DJs at medium-market Southern gospel stations, according to The Singing News Magazine, and he was up for top DJ nationwide. At the time, WPAR sponsored gospel singing evenings which sold out.^[4]

In 1999 and 2000, Joy FM of Winston-Salem, also heard on WXRI and WTJY, was named National Southern Gospel Station of the Year by the Southern Gospel Music Association.^[5][6]

On February 13, 2018, Baker Family Stations and Positive Alternative Radio swapped the long-time callsign for their Fredericksburg, VA station, WJYJ, with the callsign for their Hickory, NC station, WPIR.

References

1. "Call Sign History". Retrieved 2013-03-29.
2. "Facility Technical Data for WJYJ". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
3. Joseph Galarneau, "Religion Via Airwaves: More Listeners Tune in Christian Radio Stations," The Charlotte Observer, November 15, 1989.
4. Monte Mitchell, "Gospel Radio DJ Touches Fans' Hearts and Souls," The Charlotte Observer, August 8, 1993.
5. "Business Milestones," Winston-Salem Journal, June 7, 1999.
6. "Business Milestones," Winston-Salem Journal, June 5, 2000.

External links

• Joy FM's Official Website
• Facility details for Facility ID 53091 (WJYJ) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
• WJYJ in Nielsen Audio's FM station database