Tiffin Catholic radio station hosts open house for new studio

Seneca Regional Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for St. John Paul the Great Catholic 103.3 FM's new studio at 11 Jackson St. Saturday morning. An open house, featuring door prizes and an inspirational guest speech by EWTN radio personality Debbie Georgianni, took place after the ribbon cutting. Tiffin's St. John Paul the Great Catholic radio station started broadcasting in 2015 and is now operated through listener support by volunteers as an affiliate of the EWTN Global Catholic Radio Network. "Catholic radio has had a big impact on my life, and I know that a lot of people in the area listen to Catholic radio," station manager Patrick Hanna said before cutting the ribbon Saturday morning. Hanna said the station has secured some business sponsors and donations at this point, but they are still looking to meet their budget. After the ribbon was cut and the pictures were taken, Georgianni spoke to those gathered in the new studio. "Tiffin is a small town, and this is a smaller station, but we get so many calls from people from Tiffin on our show," she said. "You have a vibrant, 'big' station inside of a small town here." Georgianni said that life is messy, and Catholic radio offers answers for people in need. "I could stand here until Thanksgiving and tell you stories of people who told me that their lives have changed because of listening to Catholic radio," she said. "We need it, in this crazy thing I call 'life.'" She said technology is changing how often we communicate with each other, and that Catholic radio is a tool for opening up more communication between people. "We are made for community, we should be getting to know each other," she said. "This station is a precious jewel, and it will bring you together." Garrett Gaietto and Dan White of the Knights of Columbus councils #608 and #810 were present along with other knights at the open house and mentioned that they had given 25,000 pounds of food and more than 1,200 winter coats at Saturday morning's Food Giveaway in the parking lot of the Tiffin Knights of Columbus Council, 49 E. Perry St. Gaietto also said that anyone with more winter clothing to donate can still bring items to the council building and drop them off inside. For more information about John Paul the Great Catholic Radio 103.3FM, visit JohnPaulRadio.org, call (419) 455-5004 or email st.johnpaulthegreatradio@gmail.com