Christian Radio & Records In Memoriam – 2024
Christian Radio and Records Industry Mourns the Loss of Many Colleagues in 2024.
For those in the Christian Radio and Records industry, this year brought profound loss. Many talented voices, passionate hearts, and dedicated individuals who enriched the airwaves and inspired audiences through their work are no longer with us.
While we mourn their absence, we celebrate their lives, their faith, and the impact they had on us all. Their stories remind us to treasure the time we have, to live with purpose, and to continue carrying forward the light they brought into the world.
May their memory inspire us to persevere in our mission and to honor their legacy through our own efforts. We hold their families and loved ones in our prayers, trusting in the hope and peace that comes through Faith
Jan 2024 – WYGS/Columbus, IN morning host Jim Hutson has passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
WYGS celebrated his life and memories all week and his legacy will continue on through the music and spirit. Please keep all of his family and friends in your prayers as they mourn and remember this amazing man.
Jan 2024 – Songwriter, producer and co-founder of Red Street Records Don Koch passed away. In 2022 Koch was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and a tumor in his brain.
Songs written by Koch include “In Christ Alone” made famous by Michael English, the Christmas favorite “A Strange Way To Save The World” originally by 4-Him, “Mercy Came Running” from Phillips, Craig and Dean, and more recently he was nominated for a DOVE AWARD for co-writing “Child Of The King” performed by Joseph Habedank. He is also a co-writer on Jim & Melissa Brady’s current single, “Ever Present, Ever Faithful.”
Don Koch made a significant impact on the sound of Christian music.
March 2024 – Veteran radio broadcaster, Ted Sauceman was 83 years old and resided in Dallas. Ted served as General Manager of Sonlife Radio at Jimmy Swaggart Ministries and VP/GM of KSKY/Dallas at AMFM, Inc. He retired in 2014, after nearly fifteen years as the Dallas Market Manager for Multicultural Broadcasting.
March 2024 – Longtime WAFJ/Augusta General Manager/programmer Steve Swanson passed. It was announced just a week prior that Steve was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Steve joined Radio Training Network (RTN) at The Joy FM/Sarasota, FL in the fall of 1995. There he served as PD and afternoon host until 2006 when he accepted the position of GM at WAFJ (also part of the RTN family). Steve also serve as the station’s PD and Music Director while hosting middays. Steve first started on air in radio in 1978 when together with a friend purchased air time for a weekly show in a Minneapolis suburb and also spent time in Davenport, IA before going to work for RTN.
Jim Campbell RTN Founder – “It was my pleasure to work with Steve Swanson for 25 years.. he was one of the most faithful radio people I’ve ever been around. His love for Christ and leadership will be missed by all.”
May 2024 – Dr. K.P. Yohannan, founder and director of GFA (Gospel For Asia) World and Metropolitan of the Believers Eastern Church, went to be with the Lord on May 8 following a serious accident in Dallas May 7. He was 74.
In an obituary, GFA World describes Yohannan as “a missionary statesman with an undying call to share the love of Christ with this world and to inspire others to follow in his footsteps.” Yohannan shared his heart about biblical discipleship and the many “lost souls around the world who need the love and salvation that Jesus offers” on his minute-long program GFA Minute.”
The GFA Minute was rebranded in 2023, at the time Yohannan told HisAir, “My desire is that listeners walk closer to God and strengthen their reliance on faith that comes from having a heart for missions, Jesus, and the lost world.”
May 2024 – Former KFIS/Portland morning host Andy Waits passed away after a battle with cancer.
Joanne Church, President of Radio Research Consortium (RRC), passed away on May 21 in Maryland following a brief illness.
In 1981, Church and her late husband Tom collaborated with Arbitron to negotiate a group purchase of audience measurement data, making it accessible and affordable for individual public radio stations. They also initiated workshops to educate public radio managers and programmers on key audience metrics. In 1986, they co-authored “Audience Ratings: A Primer for Non-Commercial Stations,” with consultant Peter Dominowski.
Premier Christian Radio/London Chief Executive Peter Kerridge died following a year-long battle with acute leukemia. Peter passed away surrounded by family and loved ones in the early hours of Saturday morning June 8th.
Peter launched Premier in 1995 after campaigning for a Christian radio station in the UK. He previously worked as Business Development Director at Essex Radio.
Aug 2024 – Former KFNW/Fargo (Life 97.9) morning co-host Teresa Lewis passed. Lewis was with KFNC from 2014-2018. Most recently she was an Executive Leadership Coach for Eide Bailly, a motivational speaker, author and mindset coach. Lewis was 55.
Aug 2024 – Dr. Harold J. Sala, a beloved voice of Christian inspiration and guidance, passed away peacefully on August 6, 2024, at the age of 87.
As the founder and president of Guidelines International Ministries for an extraordinary five decades, Dr. Sala hosted the daily five-minute radio program, “Guidelines for Living,” which is the first and longest running daily five-minute program in Christian radio. The program, translated into over 25 languages in more than 100 countries, has touched the hearts and lives of millions across the globe, pointing listeners to the hope found in Jesus Christ.
September 5, 2024 – Christian Radio veteran Skip Spence passed at age 66 in Port Charlotte, FL.
Skip worked with the original WayFM in Fort Myers, Florida starting in 1987 and hosted the night show. He later moved to Nashville in 1991 to promote the new WayFM there.
Christian Radio vet Chris Chicago passed in September. Chris had battled cancer the last few years.
Chris joined NGEN/Houston in 2015 as PD afternoon host, he left the position in Jan 2021. Previous radio experience includes KLYT/Albuquerque, WayFM, and hosting the Rapzilla LIVE on Jam The Hype. He also was know for Radio Promotion at Shamrock Media Group and Save The City Records.
In 2022 Chris launched SOFLOW RADIO, a new digital station. In March 2022 Chris reunited with his former NGEN co-host Lil Ang for a new show on SOFLOW RADIO. Chris married his wife Jessica in 2003. They have 4 children.
Oct 2024 – His Radio/Greenville Operations Manager/mornings Rob Dempsey. Recently Rob was diagnosed with cancer. He was admitted to the hospital for an emergency surgery last week, and suffered cardiac arrest.
In April 2024 Rob celebrated over 35 years at Radio Training Network and 24 years at His Radio/Greenville.
Rob’s testimony of how he got into Christian Radio is remarkable, a true story of the Grace of God. He loved to tell the story.
Rob told HisAir, “My start in radio began as a homeless teenager, addicted to drugs and alcohol. A youth pastor who reached out to me during this time introduced me to WCIE in Lakeland, Fl. One night while leaving a bar WCIE was on the radio. I had given up on life. Dave Stewart reached out over the radio. It was as if he was speaking to me. “God loves you” he said “He will never leave you nor forsake you.” He prayed the sinner’s prayer and at that moment I rededicated my life to Christ. Then I prayed another prayer. “God, I want to do what that guy on the radio is doing.”
Tisha Lehfeldt passed in Dec 2024. She served as afternoon host on KAIM/Honolulu (95.5 The Fish) from April 2014 – April 2024. She exited after the sale of KAIM from Salem to EMF in April 2024. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2023. In 2005 Tisha released a kids worship album called “King Binky and his super fun friend Tisha!” You can find it on iTunes and Amazon. Dec 2024 – Goforth Media (WBHY/Mobile Power 88) staff member Kevin Thomson suffered a heart attack and passed away. He was a board op for WBHY and Christian 840AM as well as a producer for all three Goforth Media stations since 2004.
Brighter Media Group (WRBS/Baltimore) Assistant Director of 48Live Becky Garzone passed away after a courageous year-long battle with breast cancer. Becky passed away on December 20, 2024, surrounded by her family. Becky was with Brighter Media Group 15 years.
“The loss of Becky is deeply felt by everyone at Brighter Media Group and the entire 48Live team,” says Mike Alley, Director of 48Live. “She brought passion, professionalism, and joy to everything she did. Whether it was organizing backstage logistics, seating charts, or coordinating BRIGHT-FM outdoor events, Becky’s impact was felt by everyone who worked with her. Her presence and her love for the live music industry will be missed.”
As the assistant director of 48Live, she played a pivotal role in ensuring a great concert experience for the artists, their crews, and concert-goers that contributed to the success of countless events. Her work behind the scenes was instrumental in bringing live music experiences to life for audiences in the Mid-Atlantic area and across the country.
December 30th longtime Christian Radio personality Theresa Lynn Conner passed after a battle with cancer. Also known as Theresa Ross on the air she spent time at many Christian Radio stations including 17 years at WMUV/Jacksonville (The Promise), KCBI/Dallas, WPOZ/Orlando, WayFM/West Palm Beach, Northwestern Media, and Christian FM.
Theresa’s Christian Radio career started at Cedarville College (now Cedarville University) where she graduated with a degree in Communication Arts with a minor in Professional Writing. She credits Jon Skillman, her first PD at the CDR Radio Network for giving her a chance even though she had no radio experience.
In a 2014 HisAir interview Theresa said, “It was in my heart of hearts to do Christian radio once I finished and ended up being hired part time Sunday mornings on what used to be WXIR (Love 98.3FM) in Indianapolis.
Christian Music Industry
April 2024 – Grammy Award winner Mandisa was at the top of the list of artists that made herself available to Christian Radio to share her life, the ups and the downs, with listeners. As news of Mandisa’s untimely death spread that early Friday morning, Christian Radio morning shows were on the air sharing the tragic news.
Here’s how many handled it: Kevin Avery WFSH/Atlanta – “We were as shocked & heartbroken as the entire CCM community was. We shared from our hearts what Mandisa meant to us and our listeners. Taylor, who is the absolute best communicator I’ve ever heard at sharing her unfiltered emotions, paid a very personal tribute to Mandisa, expressing & identifying with our audience in the shared moment. Then we opened the phones for listeners to share their feelings. One listener, Clara, said it best, “Her music was a lifeline. Overcomer literally saved my life.”
July 2024 – The Gospel music industry mourned the loss of Southern gospel group The Nelons and three friends who were killed in a plane crash. All seven individuals on board passed away. This included Nelons members Jason Clark, Kelly Nelon Clark, Amber Nelon Kistler, Amber’s husband, Nathan Kistler, product manager Melodi Hodges, pilot Larry Haynie and his wife, Melissa Haynie. The Nelons were en route to The Gaither Alaskan Cruise, which was departing out of Seattle. The single engine plane had stopped for fuel in Nebraska City, Nebraska. They were then planning to land in Billings, Montana for lunch.
The plane went down in Gillette, Wyoming around 1PM. The crash led to wildfires that local authorities battled for hours. Autumn Nelon Streetman, the youngest member of the group, and her husband, Jamie Streetman were not on the plane, having travelled commercial to meet the group for the cruise.
Former TobyMac Diverse City member Gabriel (Gabe) Patillo passed away on Friday, April 12 after a battle with cancer.
Gabe began honing his creative skills at the age of 10. As a child, he danced for dcTalk, appeared in multiple videos for Brentwood Music and worked as a theater kid at Opryland in Nashville. As an adult, Gabe worked with Grammy and GMA Dove award-winning artist TobyMac as part of Diverse City, where he sang background vocals, was a choreographer and dancer and co-produced TobyMac tours. He also used his talents in the voiceover world working with Square Inc., Budweiser, ESPN and Under Armour, among others.
May 2024 – Maverick City Music announced on its social media that Brandon Reynolds passed away. Reynolds was an executive with Maverick City Music and Tribl Records and an integral part of the worship music collective. While Maverick City Music called Brandon a “secret hero,” Tribl Records on the other hand called Brandon’s demise as something that would change the group forever.
Maverick City Music writes, “His legacy and memory will forever resonate within the core of our heart. As we mourn our profound loss, we extend our deepest condolences to the Reynolds’ family. Please keep both the family and our team in your prayers during this difficult time.
Brandon was only 33.
Sandra Crouch, the twin sister and collaborator of gospel music legend Andraé Crouch, died March 17th at the age of 81, after an illness.
50-year member of The Oak Ridge Boys Joe Bonsall passed away July 9 from complications of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. He was 76. With The Oak Ridge Boys, Bonsall was a member of the Grand Ole Opry and was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
Christian rock pioneer Michael Knott passed away in March 2024 at age 61. Knott’s cause of death is currently unknown. In 1991 Knott who founded Blonde Vinyl Records, Knott came out of Southern California’s Christian punk scene in the early 1980s. He has been credited for pioneering the “alternative Christian rock scene”