(July 6, 2012 - by Jon Fugler) St. Louis, Mo., and Ecuador were connected in a dramatic way last week when more than 1,000 radio listeners sent a clear message to meet an important need at the ministry's stations in Quito and Guayaquil.

Taking a breather in the studio during the "HCJB New Life for Ecuador" fundraiser on June 28, Joy FM's Johnathon Eltrevoog and Sandi Brown flank HCJB Global's Jon Fugler.

On Thursday, June 28, Joy FM in St. Louis dedicated the day, appealing to its listeners to help a pair of Christian radio stations nearly 3,500 miles away. By mid-afternoon, Joy FM listeners had met the $91,000 goal to help HCJB Global keep its stations on the air in Ecuador, covering much of the country with gospel broadcasts.

With the 37-year-old transmitter at HCJB-FM in Quito on its last legs and the antenna tower at sister FM station HCJB-2 in the coastal city of Guayaquil rusting and deteriorating, the ministry faced an urgent need. The signals from the two stations can be heard by a total of 9 million people-nearly two-thirds of the country's population.

The timing was perfect for Joy FM to step in and do something about it. And that they did, not only raising all the funds needed to replace the transmitter and tower, but going nearly $28,000 beyond the goal, helping replace failing studio equipment at the station in Quito.

"I was completely overwhelmed by the response of the Joy FM listeners," said Jon Fugler, HCJB Global's vice president of advancement, who was on the air with the Joy FM staff during most of the fundraising event. "These listeners are committed to missions, and they spoke with their wallets. I have never seen so much money raised in such a short period of time."

Joy FM General Manager Sandi Brown placed a call to her counterpart in Quito, Anabella Cabezas, when the goal was met early. Live on the air, Brown made the announcement to Cabezas, choking back tears of joy as she expressed her gratitude in an emotional conversation. She told Joy FM listeners that their gifts would help the stations continue "making Him known" to the people of Ecuador.

For two years HCJB-FM has been raising funds to replace the transmitter, but with little success. However, the need to replace the unit was imperative while engineers carefully maintaining the equipment to keep it working. The corroding tower situation in Guayaquil was just as perilous. It is close to the ocean and has been steadily deteriorating because of the salt air. It would soon be unusable, and no money had been raised to replace it.

Brown said that when she heard about the acute need, she knew it was a missions project that Joy FM listeners would want to get behind. The station's theme this summer is "music and missions," and the HCJB Global project fit right in. She continually encouraged listeners to be "on mission" by giving to this urgent project. Joy FM only had two weeks promote the project before holding the fundraiser, and she and her staff were surprised at the overwhelming response.

The Joy FM morning show team (Sandi Brown and Greg Cassidy) kicked off the "HCJB New Life for Ecuador" fundraiser on June 28.

On Saturday, July 7, 31 Joy FM staff and listeners will get a firsthand look at how the money will be spent as they leave for a weeklong missions trip in Quito to meet the HCJB-FM staff, work around the station, help at a local church and serve at an orphanage. This will put an exclamation point on what the more than 1,000 listeners had started just nine days earlier.

The engineering team in Ecuador continues to need prayer as they trust God to hold together these fragile pieces of equipment until delivery and installation of the new transmitter and tower in the fall.

HCJB-FM and HCJB-2 are ministries of HCJB Global whose mission is to reach the unreached with the gospel around the world via media, healthcare and training. For more information on HCJB Global and the Ecuador project, visit www.hcjb.org/joyfm.

Sources: HCJB Global, Joy FM