H.R. No. 1690
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Radio station KFYO in Lubbock is celebrating its
85th anniversary in 2011; and
WHEREAS, Founded in 1926 in Texarkana, Texas, the station,
whose call letters stood for the slogan "Kum Find Your
Opportunities," originally broadcast at 1430 AM with 10 watts of
power; the station was moved to Breckenridge in 1927 and moved again
a year later to Abilene, where for a time it broadcast from the
historic Grace Hotel; and
WHEREAS, In 1932, the station made its final move to Lubbock,
broadcasting at 1310 AM; it first aired a Texas Tech football game
in 1934, and the following year, began regular broadcasts of the
games; and
WHEREAS, During the next decade, KFYO was affiliated with the
Mutual Radio, NBC Blue, and ABC Radio Networks; the station was
granted a TV license for Channel 5 in Lubbock in 1953 and
subsequently began a nearly half-century affiliation with CBS News;
and
WHEREAS, KFYO was the city's FEMA/civil defense radio station
and was equipped with two diesel back-up generators, which proved
critical in the aftermath of the deadly tornado that struck Lubbock
on May 11, 1970; the only station that remained on the air, KFYO
provided vital information to the community and served as the
city's sole link to the outside world by broadcasting over the phone
to a Dallas station; as a result, KFYO earned a number of awards and
accolades, including a presidential citation; and
WHEREAS, Over the years, the station has offered a variety of
local coverage through the sportscasts of Jack Dale, known as the
"Voice of the Red Raiders," the farm reports of agricultural
director Jim Stewart, the weekly broadcasts of the Downtown Bible
Class, and programs by such popular area radio personalities as
Chad Hasty and Robert Pratt; in January 2009, the station broadcast
live from Centennial Plaza in Midland during the "Welcome Home"
celebration for former president and first lady George and Laura
Bush; and
WHEREAS, KFYO has kept pace with the latest radio technology,
transitioning to digital broadcasting in 1998 and streaming its
programming live over the Internet starting in 2007; the station
has been affiliated with ABC since 2003; and
WHEREAS, Since its humble beginnings 85 years ago, KFYO has
become a leading source of information, commentary, and
entertainment in Lubbock, and it is a pleasure to honor the
organization on the occasion of this special milestone; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
Legislature hereby congratulate radio station KFYO on its 85th
anniversary and extend to the station's managers and staff sincere
best wishes for continued success; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for the station as an expression of high regard by the
Texas House of Representatives.
Frullo
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1690 was adopted by the House on May
12, 2011, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House