PAR Expands In Virginia Beach

Southern Gospel music has arrived in the Virginia Beach area, thanks to a new radio station featuring the Positive Alternative Radio Joy FM brand, according to Brian Sanders, Executive Vice President.  “We are thrilled to be on the air in Virginia Beach, VA where we are hopeful that our community supported ministry can make a huge impact on countless lives,” Sanders said.

 The new signal can be found at 105.7 FM , and has the potential to reach up to 1 million people. It signed on with testing in early December.

 “How thrilling it is to bring Gospel music beloved by so many to the Tidewater Region,” commented Daniel Britt, Joy FM General Manager. “Already, we’re hearing stories of how listeners are being enriched and encouraged.” Joy FM came to Virginia Beach/Norfolk in March of 2020, with a signal at WKGM/Smithfield, VA (940 AM).

 While Southern Gospel as a radio format may be shrinking across the United States, PAR has seen phenomenal growth for Joy FM, which is broadcast from Winston-Salem, North Carolina and reaches several major metropolitan areas, including Charlotte, North Carolina and Johnson City-Bristol, Tennessee.

“Listeners are very engaged with us at Joy FM, and since they are also our donors, we can truly say we could not expand like this without their support,” Sanders said. “God has truly blessed Joy FM.”

PAR is a non-profit ministry founded in 1985 by Edward Baker’s father, the late Dr. Vernon H. Baker and his mother, Virginia. Today, PAR owns and operates stations and networks in key markets in Virginia, eastern Tennessee, West Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina and South Carolina. They include WCQR, broadcasting from Johnson City, Tenn.; Walk FM, Ashland, Ky.; Spirit FM, Lynchburg, Va.; Joy FM, Winston-Salem, N.C. and WPER-FM, Fredericksburg, Va.