WFHT-AM 1390
Avon Park

Original Call Letters: WAVP

Originally Licensed: Nov. 3, 1957
Original City of License: Avon Park
Original Frequency: 1390
Origin of Call Letters: 
Original Power: 1,000 watts
Original Location: Jacaranda Hotel
Translator: 2015-W298BU 107.5
Original Format: Urban Adult Contemporary/Black Gospel


Network Affiliation(s):


Mutual Broadcasting Service
CRC
Jones Satellite Network
Jones Radio Networks


Owner(s):


1957-Avon Broadcasting Co.
1959-Mid-Florida Broadcasting Inc.
1963-Avon Broadcasting Co.
1970-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
1978-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
1981-Florida Outdoor, Inc. 
1992-Lee Broadcasting, Inc.
1996-Histed Media Group
2001-Anscomb Broadcasting Group Ltd
2005-Odyssey Broadcasting Co. Inc. ($225,000)


History Of Call Letters and Formats:


WAVP-1957-
WAVP-1970-Country/Gospel
WAPR-1993-Contemporary Christian
WKHF-1993-Contemporary Christian
WAVP-1994-Spanish
WAVP-1999-Silent (07/02/1999-08/02/2000)
WAVP-2000-Gospel
WFHT-2006-
WAVP-2007-Silent (08/21/2007-01/28/2008)
WAVP-2008-Gospel.
WAVP-2009-Silent (10/01/2009-03/12/2010)
WAVP-2013-Silent (06/17/2013-09/09/2013)
WAVP-2014-Gospel  "The People’s Station"
WFHT-2020-Urban Adult Contemporary/Black Gospel  "Florida's New Hot Station"
History of WFHT-AM
Lee Broadcasting (Pearl Lee, president) acquired Avon Park’s one-kilowatt (.077 kilowatts at night) WAPR in 1992 and, the following year, switched the calls to WKHF. The station aired a contemporary Christian music format from studios at 801 U.S. Highway 27 South in Avon Park, and a tower and transmitter site at 1733 Lake Pioneer Road in Avon Park.



WFHT-AM 1390 Avon Park – Odyssey Broadcasting (Michael Cardillo, president) acquired Avon Park’s gospel WAVP-AM 1390 (The People’s Station) from Anscombe Broadcasting Group in late 2005, and switched its calls to WFHT in 2006.

WFHT programmed an adult standards format (Music with Class in the Heartland) featuring music from the all-time greats, like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Ella Fitzgerald, as well as the more contemporary Norah Jones, Michael Buble, Diana Krall, and Harry Connick, Jr.

In October 2009, WFHT went silent, but returned to the air with a talk format (Talk with Attitude) in early 2010, featuring talk show hosts Erich ‘Mancow’ Muller, Neil Boortz, Michael Savage, Lou Dobbs, Mark Levin, and Phil Hendrie. That year, the FCC also transferred WFHT’s license from Odyssey to Financial Professionals International, Inc.

Napoleon and Betsy Jhonson (Azure Media, LLC) acquired WFHT in 2011. Four years later, they flipped the station’s format to urban contemporary as Kiss 107.5 (after its FM translator). In early 2020, the station was sold to Walco Enterprises LLC, and joined other Walco stations in Winter Haven, Lakeland, and Bushnell under the Boss Hogg Radio format. It also reverted back to the WAVP call letters.

Today (2020), offices and studios for the one-kilowatt (.077 kilowatts at night) station are located at 801 U.S. Highway 27 South in Avon Park, while its transmitter site is on North Pioneer Road, off County Road 17A, east of U.S. 27.

Other names from WFHT history include Ron Zimmer (GM-2008), Dave McCoy (GM-2010), Frankie Grover (GM-2015), and Ferris Waller (Walco Enterprises LLC-2020).

 



Names In WAVP History
John W. Wright-1957-President/General Manager-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Jerald Brush-1957-Avon Broadcasting Co.
-1961-Chief Engineer-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
Albert B. Gale1958-Owner/General Manager-Avon Broadcasting Co.
John Gilbert-1958-News Director-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Leona Maxwell-1958-Women's Director-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Wade Scaffe-1958-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Thomas Moore-1958-Chief Engineer
Douglas L. Way-1959-General Manager/News Director-Mid-Florida Broadcasting Inc.
John B. Marshall-1959-President-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
William E. Hudson-1959-Commercial Manager-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
June Bowden-1959-Program Director/Promotions Manager-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
William Coarsey-1961-General Manager-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
Geneva Clayton-1961-Commercial Manager-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
June Cooper-1961-Program Director-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
John McMasters-1961-News Director-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
Jack How-1961-Chief Engineer-Mid - Florida Broadcasting Inc.
H. B. Davey-1963-Program Director-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Jerald Brush-1963-Chief Engineer-Avon Broadcasting Co.
John W. Wright II-1965-Promotions Manager-Avon Broadcasting Co.
C. C. Turner Jr.-1965-Chief Engineer-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Nick Evers-1965-Co-Manager/Commercial Manager/Program Director-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Robert L. Berrwitt-1965-Co-Manager-Promotions Manager/News Director-Avon Broadcasting Co.
Charles A. Esposito-1970-President/Chief Engineer-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Peggy Cook-1971-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Chuck Shane-1971-General Manager/-Sales Manager-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Walt McLendon-1972-Program Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Mel Williams-1972-News Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Eddie Lee-1974-Music Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc.
Edward Conklin, Jr.-1974-News Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Ed Perry-1974-Sales Manager-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Louis M. Neale-1976-Sales Manager-Avon Electronics Services, Inc. 
Bruce Strenth-1976-Program Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc.
Charlie Coffman-1976-News Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc.
Scott Harleman-1976-1979-Production Director-Avon Electronics Services, Inc./Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Bret Atkins-News-1977-1978-Avon Electronics Services, Inc.
Robert D. Stoehr-1978-President-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Duke Roberts-1979-General Manager-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
D. Hansen-1979-Station Manager-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Dan Alexander-1979-Program Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
J.M. Tanner-1979-Music Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Tony George-1979-News Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Steve Kennedy-1979-Chief Engineer-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Dale Gregory-1980-Program Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Connie Page-1980-Music Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Charlie Vail-1980-News Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Dave Lane-1980-Promotions Director-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Boyce D. Lancaster-1980-Sales Manager-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Howard Massey-1980-Chief Engineer-Florida Broadcasting Corp.
Hershel Stone-1981-Program Director/Sales Manager-Florida Outdoor, Inc. 
Leroy Johnson-1981-Music Director/News Director/1982-Sales Manager/Music Director-Florida Outdoor, Inc. 
Harry Sharp-1982-Program Director/News Director-Florida Outdoor, Inc. 
Bobby Anderson-1982-Promotions Manager-Florida Outdoor, Inc. 
William A. Stokes-1984-President-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Charles Castle-1985-General Manager/Chief Engineer-Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Andrew L. Banas-1990-President- Florida Broadcasting Corp. 
Robert Cubero-1992-General Manager/General Sales Manager/Promotions Manager/News Director-Lee Broadcasting, Inc.
Paul Rebman-1992-Chief Engineer-Lee Broadcasting, Inc.
William M. Histed-1996-President-Histed Media Group
Robert Cubero-1992-Vice President/General Manager/General Sales Manager/Promotions Manager/News Director-Histed Media Group
Esther Cubero-1992-Chief Operations Manager-Histed Media Group
Paul Rebman-1992-Chief Engineer-Histed Media Group
Maribel Ruiz-1992-Operations Manager/Program Director-Histed Media Group
Pearl Lee-1992-President-Lee Broadcasting
Steve Gile-1999-President/General Manager/Promotions Manager-Histed Media Group
Steve Rezka-1999-Chief Operations Manager- Histed Media Group
John Hinkle-1999-News Director- Histed Media Group
Joe Fisher-2000-General Manager-Histed Media Group
Reverend Robert Jones-2000-General Manager-Anscomb Broadcasting.
Joe Fisher-2002-General Manager/2003-President/General Manager-Anscombe Broadcasting Group Ltd.
Patricia Valentine-2003-General Sales Manager-Anscombe Broadcasting Group Ltd.
Robert Jones-2003-Operations Manager/General Sales Manager/2005-Operations Manager/General Sales Manager/Program Director-Anscombe Broadcasting Group Ltd.
Lou Miller-2005-Chief Engineer-Anscombe Broadcasting Group Ltd.



Other names in WAPR history: , , , , , , , , , , , ,  , , , , , , , , , , , , ; , , ), Peggy King (sales manager-1985), Mike Ivey (PD-1985), Truman Thomas (music director-1985), Sandy Harrison (promotions-1985), Andy Dennon (news director-1985), John Patten (PD-music director-1986), Shirley Castle (promotions-1986), Scott Terry (news director-1986), Andrew Banas (GM-1990), James Fuchs (sales manager-1992), David Womack (news director-1992), Wes Belisle, and John Wright.

WKHF-AM 1390 Avon Park – Lee Broadcasting (Pearl Lee, president) acquired Avon Park’s one-kilowatt (.077 kilowatts at night) WAPR in 1992 and, the following year, switched the calls to WKHF. The station aired a contemporary Christian music format from studios at 801 U.S. Highway 27 South in Avon Park, and a tower and transmitter site at 1733 Lake Pioneer Road in Avon Park.

In 1994, Lee flipped WKHF’s calls to WAVP (AVon Park).

Other names from WKHF history include Bill Fowler (GM-1993), Quick Coddington (chief engineer-1993), Richard Holdsworth (PD-1993), David Womack (news director-1993), G.W. “Gibby” Sullivan (GM-1994), James Fuchs (sales manager-1994), and Charles Castle (chief engineer-1994).

WAVP -Avon Park -1957 Frequency: 1390 Kc Power: 1 Kw.. d. Owned By Avon Bcstg. Co. Address Jacaranda Hotel Tel.: GL 3.4549 Independent General, Station Mgr. Jchn W. Wright Chief Engineer Jerry Brush