First on the FM Dial-

Christian Radio Station KAMB on FM in Merced Since 1967

The main studio for KAMB Celebration Radio, 101.5 FM in Merced. Photo: Steve Newvine

There are many places where we can find music and entertainment in our cars and homes.

Listener choices include satellite radio, terrestrial (over the airwaves) AM and FM stations, individual playlists running through Bluetooth, and some other means of entertainment that might come to mind.

We are going back to 1967 when the folks at KAMB Celebration Radio in Merced started up their station. At that time, every Merced station was on the AM dial.  

FM was available in several cities, but if a station was on that band, it would usually be a sister station of a popular AM broadcaster.

Owners knew there might come a day when FM would be the primary source of over-the-air radio, but that day was long off into the future six decades ago.

“I don’t know if they were looking for AM or FM at the time,” says KAMB Station Manager Chris Grant. “It was just a reality of the time and space was available on the FM band.”

KAMB Radio logo. KAMB started in Merced in 1967 and is the first FM radio station to serve the area.  

KAMB was the first FM station to serve Merced beginning fifty-seven years ago. Chris says being on FM back then could have challenged listeners to tune in.

He says the real obstacle was putting a religious station on the air where commercial stations competed for listeners.

“There were very few Christian radio stations compared to general market stations back then,” he says. “But our founders recognized that and got the word out through churches, billboards, and word of mouth.”

Early programs on KAMB featured Christian music and spoken word broadcasts. Over the years, the station has focused primarily on music while not losing sight of the Federal Communications Act mandate to broadcast for the public interest, convenience, and necessity.

The station programs local public interest segments that deal primarily with initiatives among area Christian faith communities. It provides opportunities for supporters to partner with the station to present events everyone hopes will be impactful.

Chris was a board member and volunteer for the station until about a year and a half ago, when he accepted the opportunity to become Station Manager. He brought secular radio experience into the operation with a background in the Modesto media market.

KAMB moved their studios to the former California Highway Patrol office in Merced. The building tower still has the seven point symbol of law enforcement. The station uses the space in the tower for storage. Photos: Steve Newvine

The station operates in the former California Highway Patrol Merced office on 16th Street.

That building was featured in this space earlier in the year (History on the Highway Spanish style Building was once the California Highway Patrol — Merced County Events) .

Designed as an office for law enforcement, the station used the space by converting meeting rooms into studios.

Even the iconic tower of the former CHP building has been used as a storage area for old program logs and other paper documents. 

The station provided space to the newly formed pro-life health center nearly forty years ago. That organization became the Alpha Pregnancy Health Center and now has stand-alone office space near the Merced Mall.

It’s been a long road for the station. On the air since 1967, it remains a part of the Merced local media scene with a message inspired by faith and sustained by a foundational belief that the message coming over the airwaves connects positively and spiritually with the audience.

With so many choices for listeners in this world of satellite radio, internet-driven programs, and fickle audiences, KAMB landed first on the FM dial in Merced and has never looked back.

Steve Newvine lives in Merced.

His book Beaten Paths and Back Roads, as well as the other books in his California series, are available at the Merced Courthouse Museum Gift Shop and now are also available at Bookish Modesto at the Roseburg Square Shopping Center, 811 W Roseburg Avenue in Modesto,

He thanks the Merced Senior Center Writer’s group members for their warm reception on September 18. He discussed his writing process and read from his book Finding Bill. Steve is available to speak at service clubs and other groups. You can reach him at SteveNewvine@SBCGlobal.net