New Life Broadcasting of Pa., Inc. provides an avenue by which the gospel of Jesus Christ can be advanced through various radio ministries. For over thirty years, from the fall of 1978 until when WKDN-FM went off the air in 2012, this took the form of owning and operating an FM translator which brought Family Radio to the Lancaster/Lebanon area on 97.7 FM. Translators owned by Family Radio also carried it to the York area on 88.7 FM and Harrisburg area on 101.7 FM. These two Family Radio translators are now off the air permanently. Family Radio is currently heard in the Philadelphia area on WKDN-AM
February, 2013 saw the beginning of retransmitting the programming by Truth 93.1, a service of Calvary Chapel Lebanon, on 97.7 FM. Truth broadcasts on 93.1 FM using a low power FM station in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. By rebroadcasting it on our Lancaster/Lebanon translator its coverage area is increased significantly.
FM Translators
Standard FM Translators are designed to receive a desired distant FM radio station and rebroadcast it into local communities. As such, they automatically receive the distant station, change the frequency (location on the radio dial) and rebroadcast it to the communities at relatively low power levels. They are often located high on a mountain where the distant signal is the strongest. This also enhances their local coverage area and signal strength. An alternate configuration enables the reception of programming from a satalitte to be broadcast locally although FCC rules limit this to the educational (lower) portion of the FM band.
Translators normally may not be owned and operated by radio stations beyond their primary coverage area. Those which rebroadcast stations that have educational status are exempted from this FCC rule. The result is that most translators are owned and operated by organizations consisting of interested people in the local communities. Initially New Life Broadcasting of Pa., Inc. was formed for such a purpose. This was before Family Stations, Inc. was granted the educational status by the FCC. Today, Family Radio owns and operates many radio stations and FM translators across the USA, extending the reach of their Christ centered programming to countless more people. New Life Broadcasting has continued to exist with the hopes of establishing additional translators in areas still without good Christian radio ministries.
Lancaster/Lebanon Translator
The Lancaster/Lebanon translator is located on Furnace Mountain near the northern edge of Lancaster County. An array of directional antennas beam the transmissions toward Akron, Lancaster, Mount Joy and Lebanon. Due to the distances to these communities, a waiver granted by the Federal Communications Commission allows this translator to transmit at a much higher power level than normally allowed in the eastern USA. As with most translators, it occupies rented space on a tall tower. The operating and maintenance expenses are paid from funds contributed to New Life Broadcasting of Pa., Inc. which relies entirely on listener contributions to meet their operating expenses.