Chamber Announces Award Recipient !
2013 Business of the Year
The Cohase Chamber of Commerce is very please to announce his years Business of the Year is Puffer Broadcasting.
Puffer Broadcasting is a family owned and operated business (now in its 3rd generation)
that has been operating in our Cohase region since 1976. Their AM 1100 WTWN radio station is licensed to Wells River, Vermont
where their 300' tower is located. Their FM 101.3 WYKR radio station is licensed to Haverhill, New Hampshire where they
have a 199' tower. They operate 24/7. Co-owner Gene Puffer was inducted into the Vermont Association of Broadcasters in
1998.
The Cohase region has been fortunate to have had, for close to 40 years, such a valuable resource that not
only provides entertainment; it also supports our local businesses and our region-wide economic and social initiatives. All
of our communities, schools, businesses, churches and non-profits have benefited greatly from the services that they offer.
Their impact on our communities is wide and deep and should not be overlooked or underestimated. Puffer Broadcasting is truly
one of the cornerstones of our region.
Charitable works in the community:
They
work closely with many churches, schools, municipalities and Not-For-Profit organizations to support their programs and special
events.
They provide announcements on the Community Events Calendar at no charge. They match their advertising
budgets thus doubling the amount of advertising available to these financially strapped organizations.
They donate
to fund raisers their free tickets to concerts, amusement parks and others, when they are available.
They have
had great success re-uniting lost animals to their owners - making hundreds of announcements each year.
They donate
on-air time in the form of Public Service Announcements in excess of $500,000 annually.
They make on-air
giveaways to their audience (i.e. this regional community) that add up to thousands of dollars annually.
Their
employees donate their time to attend local service club meetings - Steve has been a member of the Chamber Board of Directors
for years.
Innovativeness & Creativity:
Because of
its great location, their tower in Haverhill is used as a collocation for the wireless technology industry.
They
are currently working with a company to collocate on their tower in Haverhill to bring better cellular phone service to the
area.
Their programming and audio have been tweaked with new equipment so that their audience can listen
longer with less fatigue, which means better results for their advertisers.
They were awarded the Funniest
Commercial of the Year 2009 by the Vermont Association of Broadcasters.
They received the Media Excellence
Award (2006, 2007, 2008) from The Partnership for a Drug-Free America for Outstanding Performance In Helping To Reduce Illicit
Drug Use.
Environmental Consciousness:
During the past
few years they have been replacing older electronic equipment to be more efficient.
When they erected their
FM tower in North Haverhill, they eliminated lighting it to preserve the look of the landscape.
They are
exploring the possibility of installing more efficient LED lights on their tower in Wells River.
They recycle
all of their paper and as much of the electronic equipment as possible.
Employee
Friendly:
Their full and part-time employees have been with them on average more than 20 years.
They celebrate employee birthdays with an office party.
Past Recipients:
2008- Farmway, Bradford, Vt
2009- Windy Ridge Orchard, N Haverhill, NH
2010- Colatina Exit restaurant, Bradford, VT
2011 - Four Corners Farm, Newbury, VT
2012 - Valley Floors, Bradford,
Vt
