LAVONIA, GA - There’s a new radio station on the air in Northeast Georgia. A grand opening is planned for Saturday, May 31, 2008 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Listeners may register for a 92.1 gallons of gas give-a-way and other door prizes and take a tour of the newly renovated studios.

WLHR Vice-President/General Manager Daniel Brown said “We are so excited to have WLHR on the air. We realize the people in Franklin and Hart Counties have been anxiously awaiting for a full service FM radio station. The station has a large signal and can be heard from Athens, GA to near Sylva, NC. ”

The station on located on 92.1 FM and features Franklin and Hart County news throughout the day from veteran newsman Jon Hughes. Hughes comes to the station from Whitehall, Michigan. “Hughes is actually a local man, so to speak” Brown said. Hughes is a 1970 graduate of Seneca High School (Seneca, SC), and worked for WGOG-AM in Walhalla, SC and WLET-FM 106.1 in Toccoa, GA back in the early 1970’s.

WLHR also carries national news at the top of every hour from the Associated Press, the largest news organization in America. In fact WLHR is the only AP Radio News affiliate in all of Northeast Georgia.

The new radio station welcomes on-air personality/operations manager Randall Scott. Scott comes from Cleveland, GA, and is doing the Morning Show Monday through Friday from 6 am until 10 am. Brown said “Randall’s a real asset. He’s got a morning show that is very entertaining and community oriented. You’ll frequently hear him talking about all kinds of local happenings in our area.”

Also on staff is local resident Marsha Sahlman who will be the station office manager. Brown said “I am thrilled to have Marsha on the team. She’s a very hard worker and has an eye for detail. When people come to the radio station, Marsha’s our person who’ll be there everyday to greet you with a smile.”

WLHR also carries other local features such as obituary announcements, community calendar, birthday announcements and special programming for local residents.

High school sports will be an integral part of WLHR. Starting this Fall, WLHR will broadcast Franklin County Lions high school football games and the boys and girls region basketball games. Brown said “The Franklin County Lions have not had a broadcasting outlet in years."

WLHR carries a mixture of Contemporary Country music during the day and Classic Country music every night beginning at 7pm. Brown said, “I’m especially thrilled to have Classic Country on the air in the evenings to hear the music from 70’s & 80’s. There is no other place to find these legends being played on the radio.”

WLHR’s parent company, Georgia-Carolina Radiocasting Companies, is located in Toccoa, Georgia. Terry Carter, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said, ”The call letters W-L-H-R were selected to represent the three principle towns in the service area: ‘Lavonia, Hartwell and Royston’. Also given that the station’s large signal covers most of NE Georgia and Upstate South Carolina, the call letters and slogan reflects ‘Lake Hartwell Radio’.”

The studios are located in the old Lavonia Police Station at 12715 Augusta Road in downtown Lavonia. Carter said, “We are very appreciative to the City of Lavonia and the Lavonia DDA for their assistance in being able to locate the new studios in Historic Downtown. Also, we want to thank the Franklin County Commission for their approval and cooperation in the erection of the new radio tower.” Carter said WLHR also has plans to open a studio and office in Hartwell within the next several months.