ELK RAPIDS — Joe Yuchasz may have passed away in early 2023, but the spirit of the man who ran the Elk Rapids Cinema for nearly 50 years still feels very much alive within its walls. Now under the care of Aaron Timlin and the Chalfonte Foundation, the theater is alive with memories — and more than a few signs that Joe never truly left.
“There’s just all kinds of different things that have come up that just show that his spirit is still here,” Timlin says.
One place where that presence is especially strong: Village Radio (99.7 FM), a community station that launched in early June and operates out of Joe’s old office.
Timlin began the FCC application process in December 2023 — just in time for a rare 10-day window. It was the first time in a decade the FCC had opened low-power community radio licenses. The timing felt uncanny.
During that process, Timlin mentioned his plans to Yuchasz’s family and was surprised to learn Joe had once shared the same dream. A week after the application was approved, Timlin found proof: “(Joe) kept immaculate records so he had all kinds of files. And about a week after we were approved, I was looking through his files and I found this FCC file and the only thing in this file was a small, almost index card size carbon copy of an FCC application from 1967, I think,” he says.
The application had been denied pending corrections.
“His family told me that he just ended up going forward with the cinema instead.”
Today, Village Radio features a Youth DJ internship program — something Timlin believes would have resonated with Yuchasz.
“Joe did a lot of work with kids, so I just think it’s all in line with what he would be happy with,” he says.
The station has four interns, ranging in age from 10 to high school. Timlin says the program helps build confidence and public speaking skills, while also teaching playlist curation and music research.
Village Radio currently features a mix of live DJs and auto-play, broadcasting at least eight hours a day following FCC guidelines. Programming includes a rotating cast of local and Detroit-area DJs playing everything from classical to ‘90s alt-rock to video game soundtracks. Timlin is also developing more talk segments, including local issue discussions and DJ interviews.
Launching a radio station of any size is a pretty ambitious undertaking, so one might assume Timlin has a background in radio.
“Um, no,” Timlin laughs. “Especially when it comes to construction stuff, like how tall is the antenna? There were all the technical things that I didn’t quite know, so I was doing a lot of looking up things.”
Although the concept of radio wasn’t entirely a new concept to Timlin. He had a similar idea for a community radio station in Detroit in the early 2000s, but like Yuchasz, he put it on the back burner.
Perhaps it’s just a testament to the fact that everything comes in due time.
“You always hear these motivational speeches during the Academy Awards or the Grammys or the Emmys or something, where somebody’s talking about believing in your dream and if you believe in it, it’ll eventually come true.”
Timlin’s dreams for the station are just starting.
In the immediate future, he hopes to have the station online streaming by the end of summer.
“I love the idea of this quaint little community radio station out of this quaint little town, Elk Rapids, broadcasting out across the world.”
Meanwhile, Up the Dial in Elberta...
And just as Village Radio jumped at the FCC’s rare window for low-power FM licenses, David Beaton, 55 miles away in Elberta, was doing the same.
Beaton, who retired to Elberta six years ago, had previously started a radio station in Florida. Launching another wasn’t in his plans.
“We didn’t have the intention of starting a radio station up here, but when that opportunity arose ... we just felt that with our experience with radio, community radio is such a benefit to a community,” he says.
The FCC news spread quickly.
“This was happening all over the country — rural areas, where radio crazies like me were going, ‘Oh my God, we can apply for licenses. Maybe we gotta organize, raise money, do all these things,’” he says.
After local nonprofits declined to take it on, Beaton approached the board of the Elberta Labor Heritage Center, where he’s a founding member.
“I went to our board probably in late fall (2023) and said, ‘We’re gonna need to apply if we think this is important,’” he recalls. “And I was surprised, because my board is a farmer and a resale shop owner. I was like, ‘We don’t need to do this. I’ve done this before. I don’t need to do this again.’”
“But they said, ‘No, we need this in this community.’”
And from that came WUWU 100.1 FM, which officially hit the airwaves in June 2024.
The name is a nod to the sound of a train — “woo woo,” which is fitting, as the station operates out of an RV parked beside what was once a railroad boarding house. Beaton says landing meaningful, available call letters can be tricky. “Then we thought — railroads! Woo woo! It’s meant to be.”
For Beaton, the community is the station’s heart.
“I’m new to the community, and people have jobs and other things to do besides radio,” he says. “So it’s not like we had a base of volunteers. We’re slowly growing, and that’s what community radio does. It takes a while to grow.”
The station now has eight to 10 programmers doing two-hour shows, from music to talk to a mix of both.
“The thing I always say — it’s not about ‘radio.’ The important word is ‘community,’” he says. “Whatever people’s opinions are, I didn’t know any of these eight or 10 people doing shows. Now I know them. They didn’t know each other. Now they do.”
Programmers include a husband and wife, a farmer, and a granola maker.
“It fulfills something in them,” Beaton says. “And it builds community, which fulfills something in all of us. I believe if we build community, we reduce fear. And it’s a much better place to be.”
The station keeps costs low with support from Eclipse Communications, but fundraising remains key.
On Sunday, July 27, WUWU will host a Backyard Benefit Concert and Potluck featuring nationally acclaimed folk artist Grant Peeples. Peace Child, with Sarah Alexander and Jessie Brownbear, will open the show.
Peeples and Beaton have been friends for more than 20 years and Peeples previously performed with Beaton’s station in Florida.
Beaton says Peeples reached out and told him that he needed to come and see what they were doing up in Elberta.
“He’s a committed individual, just like people who run community radio,” Beaton says. “We understand that giving people the power to create, educate, inform, and entertain doesn’t have to be in corporate hands.”
And there’s still room for others to join in.
“Part of what they always say — what is it? It’s the 20 percent of people who show up that are going to change things,” Beaton says. “So if you want to get involved in community radio, just show up. Show up to the concert. Make yourself known.”
For applications to get involved with the station or to purchase tickets for the benefit, visit wuwuradio.org.
Backyard Benefit Concert and more Both stations are fundraising, with Village Radio offering donation streams to the station, Youth Internship Program and T-shirt drive at https://www.997fm.org/support Grant Peeples, a recipient of the Focus Foundation Award for Creative Excellence, will also perform a benefit show 5-8 p.m. July 27 at WUWU Studios, 526 Lincoln Ave., Elberta. Opening the show is Peace Child, featuring Sarah Alexander and Jessie Brown Bear. Bring a dish to share, a folding chair, and community spirit. Tickets are $10 and are available at wuwuradio.org
