Scott Trottier was a bit apprehensive when his church's head elder approached him as soon as he got out of his vehicle. But instead of carrying bad news, the elder hit with a request to build a radio station for the Cascade Church in Bend, Ore. The church family had long wanted to retransmit 3ABN (Three Angels Broadcasting Network) radio to the local residents. They already had a frequency available and some money set aside, but they didn't know how to go about setting up the station. Having no previous experience at this but always looking to play with new toys, Trottier agreed.
That was July of last year. In the months that followed, Trottier was able to find an existing tower and climate-controlled building on top of Awbrey Butte near downtown Bend. Having been a radioman in the Navy many years before, Trottier knew that the commanding view from the butte would allow the signal to carry well. Since the FCC only allowed the church to transmit at 2.3 watts, they needed all the help they could get.
So with some help from the people at 3ABN radio and the tower owner and a lot of help from God, Trottier was able to get all the right equipment and make it work. And work well it did and still does. The coverage for central Oregon is much better than expected. This was truly God's will that the Cascade Church should reach out to its neighbors in the community with the truth. Since the church's main goal is evangelism in the community, this station will pay big dividends.
So if you're ever in central Oregon, tune your FM radio to 102.1 and hear KEGB-LP rebroadcasting 3ABN all day, every day.
Tower owner Richard Oberdorfer installs the transmission antenna at the 60-foot mark.
The station's radio tower and shack are on Awbrey Butte.
The equipment rack holds needed equipment for the radio station.
