HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — Lupita Reyes, founder and co-host of Alegria Latina, is retiring after 57 years on the air. The show airs starting at 7 p.m. Sunday nights on 927 The Van, WHTC’s sibling station.
“I hope that Alegria Latina continues to be the beacon of light for all of our listeners for many years to come,” wrote Reyes, who will be 84 next month. Her last official day with Midwest Communications is set for Dec. 31, 2021, but she plans to make periodic guest appearances on the show.
In her resignation letter, Reyes recounted how the show came into being. In 1964, she recalled boldly asking then-station manager Bill Gagano for time to do a Spanish-language show featuring music and information for Holland’s Latino community. After some negotiation, he carved out 25 minutes on Saturday mornings, but insisted she host the show. Reyes had never worked in radio at that time.
Bill Gargano, 96, remembers naming the show.
“I said, ‘Let’s give it a name’ and I said, ‘How are you most of the time,'” he told WHTC. “She said, ‘I’m happy most of the time, so the name was her idea.”
He recalled the program starting out at 7 p.m. Saturday evenings, but either way, he remains a Reyes fan, noting that when Reyes first arrived in the U.S. as a child, school officials put her in a special-needs class simply because she didn’t speak English.
“She has come along way from being in a retarded-children’s class,” said Gargano. “She’s a wonderful young woman.”
The show gained an audience, and grew, with Reyes joined by a series of cohosts, starting with a fellow Holland resident, and notable conjunto musician Amel Gomez. Her recent cohosts include Jesus (Jesse) Martinez, Barb Rubio, Belinda Coronado and the newest member of the team, Yeli Romero.
The show features Mariachi, Banda, Tejano, Balhata and Rancheras music, interviews, news, and calls from listeners. Reyes shared a story that she said embodies the purpose of Alegria Latina.
A man “called one night to let us know that he was lonely, had no family, and is handicapped. He told me that just before he called in, he was thinking that his life was useless and didn’t matter to anyone. Just before he called the program to request a song, he had thought of ending his life to end his misery. The song we chose for him that night touched heart and crying, he called again to tell me that the song we played for him had saved his life and he realized that someone cared enough for him to play a song that made him change his mind about ending his life,” she wrote, adding “That is what Alegria Latina is about, touching lives across this nation and helping people to look at the brighter things in life.”
Reyes said her experience with Alegria Latina is “one which has given me the opportunity to grow as a person, learn how to be humble, love my co-workers and the company that I have worked with for 57 years. I want to thank Bill Gargano for taking a chance on me and trusting me to do a good job, Patty (Vandenberg) and Margie (Boerman) for their support thought out my time with the station, the late Juke VanOss for encouraging me not to give up.”
She also thanked 927 The Van’s Brent Alan “for supporting me and trusting in me,” and Holland market manager Kevin Oswald, who runs both WHTC and 927 The Van, for his “calm ways, patience, giving me the support that I needed and yes, listening to my complaints and giving me that understanding look.”
As for everyone else, she wrote, “I will miss all of you but never forget any of you. I leave Alegria Latina feeling proud of the program’s accomplishments, its contributions to the community and all the fans.”
With the show garnering listeners online from across the US as well as in other countries, she wrote, “Alegria Latina today has helped to create a bridge of understanding with persons of diverse cultures. I may be leaving the program but will carry all the memories, co-workers, and fans close to my heart always.”
Back in the late 1960s and early 1970s, my Dad would take my brother and me to the Saturday night family swim at the Holland Community Pool (as it was known then). Somehow I had learned that there was this program on WHTC that featured Hispanic music. I would ask my Dad to turn on the station as we drove to the pool. While I didn’t understand the language I understood the music, this joyful upbeat music, presented by the host with what sounded like an incredible passion. Having been exposed to light pop music of the era and my Dad’s fondness for all things Rogers and Hammerstein this music, coming out of a single speaker on the dash of a 1967 Pontiac Catalina was something completely new to my ears. And while I was already becoming a radio geek, never did I imagine I would one day be working at the station that provided this incredible service to the community and to work with individuals such as Juke Van Oss and Lu Reyes.
This is a breaking-news story and will be updated.
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