CKQC-FM

On August 20, the station went on the air for the first time as CFVR AM 1240 (FVR for Fraser Valley Radio), with a power of 250 watts.  Fraser Valley Broadcasters Ltd. established CFVR, which at first was basically a repeater for the long-established CHWK, Chilliwack with five hours of local programming daily.  Four people operated the station from three small rooms on the second floor of the Park Hotel in Abbotsford.  Jack Dodge was the first manager, who also served as morning and midday host and sales manager.

Station staff had expanded to seven and local programming to ten hours per day.  Power was increased to 1000 watts. 

By this time Fraser Valley Broadcasters was owned by Murdo MacLachlan, Bill Wolfe and Bill Teetzel. Dennis Barkman purchased the interest held by Teetzel.

Ad: Blanket the Fraser Valley with CHWK 1270 / CFVR 1240.

Dennis Barkman was appointed managing director of CHWK and CFVR. He had been vice president and sales director for the past three years. He succeeded Murdo MacLauchlan who was managing director since 1958 and was withdrawing from active management and broadcasting but would retain his interests in the company of which he was president. Bill Wolfe, who was also withdrawing from broadcasting would continue as a director of the company.

Expanded programming hours and staff necessitated a move to a new 3000 square foot studio at Allwood and South Fraser Way in Abbotsford. Work also started on studies to improve signal strength. By this time, CFVR was operating locally between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

At this time, Fraser Valley Broadcasters was owned by Dennis Barkman, Gerry Pash, Gene Ross, Ken Davis, Bob Singleton and Harold Roberts.

On June 9, approval was granted for the transfer of 27.8% of Fraser Valley Broadcasters Ltd. from K.L. Davis, Dennis C, Barkman, and G.W. Pash to William Joseph Coombes and John Robert Singleton. Singleton was involved with CFVR almost from the beginning, and joined the station full time in 1964. On November 24, CFVR was authorized to move from 1240 to 850 kHz and to increase power from 1000 watts day/250 watts night (directional during the day) to 10,000 watts day and night with different day and night patterns.

Bill Coombes succeeded Barkman as President of the company.

CFVR received approval to move from 1240 kHz to 840 kHz. Power on the new frequency would be 10,000 watts day and night (two directional patterns).

A new CCA 10,000 watt transmitter was purchased. CFVR also acquired a new 1,000 watt transmitter for standby use.

In February, after four years of applications and technical expansion, CFVR moved to AM 850 with 10,000 watts. The 850 frequency had been used by CJJC Langley, which moved to 800 kHz two years earlier. CFVR was now broadcasting from a new transmitter site. Later in the year sister station CKGO Hope moved from 1490 to CFVR’s old 1240 frequency.

Jack Pilling died. He had joined sister station CHWK Chilliwack in 1929 and later became Managing Director of the station. He had become a major shareholder and president of Fraser Valley Broadcasters in 1955 and retired in 1963.

CFVR took over the entire top floor of the Allwood Building.  The expansion also allowed for the studios of a new FM sister station.

STAR-FM officially signed on October 1 at 104.9 in Abbotsford and 107.5 in Chilliwack with a mix of adult contemporary and easy listening.

On August 20 CFVR celebrated its 25th anniversary.  Now with 22 employees, the station originated all programming except midnight to 5 a.m.  The news/sports department increased to five people and became part of the Canadian Satellite Newsradio Network and the Information Network in B.C.  The station had four radio-equipped vehicles for remote operation.  Programming had evolved into Adult Contemporary, focusing on hits of the late sixties, seventies and eighties.  

CHWK general manager Bill Coombes was promoted to president and general manager of Fraser Valley Broadcasters. Dennis Barkman remained as a director of the company. Gary Milne took over as general manager of CHWK.

M.G. Stevens left CFVR for CKEG Nanaimo to do the morning show. Gary Milne, who had taken over management of CHWK/CFSR-FM earlier in the year, left to become sales VP at CKWX in Vancouver. 

On June 25, following the station’s major 5 p.m. newscast; it changed call letters to CKMA with the slogan Radio Max.  The format moved to hits of 1955 to 1980.

CKMA moved in mid-April to new facilities at 206-32450 Simon Avenue.

On August 18, sister station STAR-FM expanded its signal into the Vancouver market by moving its 104.9 transmitter to Mount Seymour and also added a transmitter on 92.5 to serve Abbotsford and Mission.  On September 8, CHWK Chilliwack and CKGO Hope joined CKMA to all become the Fraser Valley trio of Radio Max with “the greatest rock and roll hits of all time”.

Rogers Broadcasting moved to acquire Bill Coombes’ Fraser Valley Radio Group (CHWK/CKSR-FM Chilliwack, CKGO Hope, and CKMA Abbotsford), based at Chilliwack. While the AM stations were geared to a local presence, STAR-FM (CKSR) had three transmitters that had the potential of reaching two million people in the lower mainland. Coombes said he was delighted with the sale and that Rogers was a perfect fit. 

On August 30 the CRTC announced approval for a newly incorporated corporation, Fraser Newco, to acquire as part of an inter-corporate reorganization, the broadcasting assets of Fraser Valley (licensee of CKMA Abbotsford, CHWK Chilliwack, CKGO Hope and its transmitter CKGO-FM-1 Boston Bar) and Star-FM Radio Inc. (licensee of CKSR-FM Chilliwack and its transmitters CFSR-FM and CFSR-FM-1 Abbotsford).  On September 10 the Commission announced approval of an application to transfer assets of Fraser Newco to Rogers Broadcasting Limited.

In September the Fraser Valley trio of stations all changed call letters.  CKMA Abbotsford became CFSR, CHWK Chilliwack became CKSR, and CKGO Hope changed to CKIS, collectively STAR-FM.

On June 5 the CRTC announced approval of application by Rogers Broadcasting to convert CFSR to the FM band at 107.1 MHz with an average effective radiated power of 215 watts.  The applicant had made a commitment to make its AM transmitter facility available without charge to another party.  At 5 p.m. on August 31 the STAR-FM trio of CFSR-FM 107.1 Abbotsford, CKSR-FM 98.3 Chilliwack, and CKIS-FM 100.5 Hope officially launched as The Valley’s Light Rock.  On December 3, after simulcasting for three months, the frequencies of 850, 1240 and 1270 became clear as the three AM transmitters were shut down.

Rogers’ Abbotsford stations CKVX-FM-1 X-FM and CFSR-FM Star FM swapped frequencies at the end of April putting CKVX-FM-1 on 107.1 and CFSR-FM on 92.5.  

On June 20 the two stations returned to their previous frequencies.

On March 25 CFSR-FM 107.1 Abbotsford broke away from simulcasting sister station CKSR-FM 98.3 Chilliwack and changed slogans and formats from The Valley’s Lite Rock to Today’s Country Favourites, running without DJs and commercials.  Sister station CKSR-FM 98.3 Chilliwack continued as STAR FM The Valley’s Lite Rock.  At 6 a.m. May 2, after running without DJs and commercials since flipping formats March 25, Country 107.1 went live with new call letters CKQC-FM.

Early on the morning of December 2nd, Ted Rogers, founder and former Chief Executive of Rogers Communications, owners of CKQC-FM, died at his home in Toronto, after having suffered from congestive heart failure for some time. 

Kenny Jones left Country 107.1 to be afternoon drive host at SONiC in Chillwack /Vancouver.

Rogers Radio in the Fraser Valley saw the appointment of two program directors, Curtis Pope at Country 107.1 (CKQC-FM) Abbotsford and Teresa Laynes at STAR FM (CFSR-FM) Chilliwack. Pope moved up from his two-year gig as assistant PD. He remained the afternoon drive host at Country 107.1. Laynes, the promotion director at STAR, added PD to her duties.

Chris Coburn began on mornings at Country 107.1 June 18 after almost 20 years at the Pattison stations in Vancouver, 15 at JRfm 93.7 and, most recently, four years doing mornings at 100.5 The Peak. He succeeded Ian Slipp who moved from Country 107.1 to mornings at 103.1 JACK FM Victoria. Slipp succeeded Tarzan Dan.

John Sykes died at age 75. He was last at the then CFVR between 1985-93, and had worked at CKJL St. Jerome, CKGM and CFOX Montreal, CFUN/CKVN and CJOR Vancouver, and CJJC Langley. Over the years, he did news, sports and announcing.