Todd VanDyke – Weekdays, 6:00 am to 10:00 am
Todd hosted his first radio broadcast in 1974, and has been waking up Copper Country residents since 2005. In recent years, he’s received multiple Michigan Association of Broadcasters Small Market awards for Best Morning Show, Best Newscast, Best Sportscast, Breaking News Coverage and Feature Programming. Todd is a country music performer, as well, and can often be seen on stage singing and playing several instruments (including his notorious tuba and ukulele). He is the “voice” of many community events, including the CopperDog 150, the Baraga County Lake Trout Festival, and Heikinpäivä. Connect with Todd through our KBear 102 Facebook Page, via Twitter @ToddontheRadio, by email at Mornings@UP.net, or by calling our Morning Coffee line at 487-BEAR.
Penny Mitchell – Weekdays, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
I have always been absolutely enamored of radio. After I figured out that the music coming from the radio of our family car wasn’t being produced by teeny tiny little people who lived in the dashboard (for real…I did think that) I was always really interested in the nuts and bolts of how radio works. However, I fell completely slam-bam in love with radio when I was about 13. I was always a huge music buff and would spend hours poring over liner notes while listening to albums through headphones. However, this was definitely pre-Internet, and I wasn’t allowed to have a phone (or even TV) in my room. When I was in there by myself, I was totally and completely by myself. As much as I loved my albums, I would invariably get to feeling a little lonely, and I discovered THE COOLEST THING I HAD EVER ENCOUNTERED: all I had to do was turn the turntable off and flip the radio on. And just like that, with the flip of just one switch, I was no longer all alone in my room. With the flip of a switch, I was hanging out with a friend, listening to music. It was, and remains, the coolest magic trick I’ve ever seen. I am so honored to get to do this for a living. Connect with Penny’s Facebook Page here.
Nick FoX – Weekdays, 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm
I became a fan of country music after my family moved me from New York City to a horse farm in South Alabama when I was in High School. Talk about a culture shock! I graduated from the University of Alabama in 2008. I started my radio career in 2010 in Mobile, AL by submitting a YouTube video of my celebrity impressions pitching me as a station staff member. Been doing this ever since. I met my wife, Sarah, through a radio bit in December 2014 and we eloped November of the next year. She is a barrel racer, so we have horses, dogs, and cats on our farm. They keep us busy! Also, Sarah went to Auburn, so we are a house divided. We normally just don’t talk about football and focus on the things that we have in common like outdoor sports, music, and Star Wars. On the weekends, when we aren’t at a barrel race I like to cook and lately I’ve been teaching myself how to make my own sushi which is messy but saving us a ton of money. If you ever need to get in touch my social media is the same everywhere it’s @NickFoxRadio
Nikki Walker – Weekdays, 8:00 pm to 1:00 am
Nikki is a music junkie. Her entire life has revolved around music whether she was singing in choir, or dancing in a studio. That’s what led her out of a boring college history class and into radio. She loves listening to all genres of music- not just country. If she could bring her dog Pip everywhere with her, she would. Camping, eating good food, and hanging out with buddies are what feed her soul. Nikki describes herself as a simple woman that loves outdoors and, of course, music.
Rich Creeger – Weekdays, 1:00 am to 6:00 am
Rich first became involved with country music when he was hired to be a bartender back in the early 80’s at the world famous Gilley’s nightclub in Pasadena, Texas, during the height of the Urban Cowboy craze. Although country music has gone through many variations since then, it has remained the first preset on his radio because it still has the foundation of real stories told by real people about real life. Some of Rich’s favorite current artists are Chris Young, Brantley Gilbert and Jana Kramer. His all-time favorites include Willie Nelson, George Jones and Reba. Rich and his wife, Fran, are a blended family of five kids, two dogs and a cat. When they get some free time, they usually point the car toward the beach, and set up camp.