KACU, Abilene’s public radio station, commenced its fall pledge drive last weekend with an increase in donations.

This will be the first of two pledge drives this year; the second will be in the spring.

KACU opened its phone lines on Oct. 18 with a goal to raise $40,000 by the end of the fundraiser. “Experience Abilene” was the fundraiser’s theme, and it ended Friday.

“We are still waiting on the rest of the mail to come in because it typically takes about a week to get here, so we do not have a final amount just yet,” said Nathan Gibbs, General manager or KACU.

Gibbs took on the role as general manager last year and is also an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication as well as director of operations for ACU’s television production studio. This was his third time to host the KACU pledge drive.

“In comparison from the 2014 spring pledge drive to the fall pledge drive so far, there was a 12.5 percent increase in the average gift price. It rose from $128 to $144.”

The pledge drive is a necessary event that goes toward funding KACU.

“It’s always good to see pledges renew their donations, and those that are giving are giving more, but it’s great when new people start making contributions,” Gibbs said. “There was a 73 percent increase in new contributors this fall.”

Funds they receive from pledge drives allow KACU to continue bringing quality public radio to the community.

During the pledge drive, KACU had phone lines open and had a link on their homepage directing visitors and listeners to “Give Now” to show their interest in the station.

To show gratitude for their audience and donators, KACU gave prizes to those who contributed to the fundraiser.

Haley Remenar, a student worker at KACU, helped with the drive.

“With the theme being Experience Abilene, we had people such as employees from local news stations and loyal listeners come in and talk,” said Remenar, freshman convergence journalism major from Albuquerque, New Mexico. “We also had prizes for those who donated which had to do with attractions in Abilene. A couple prizes they could get were tickets to the Grace Museum or the Paramount. The prizes depended on how much money the person donated.”

KACU used the company Celebrity Attractions to give back to those that donated. Other prizes included a chance to go to Frontier Texas and Bringing Broadway.

Those that enjoy listening to the program will have another chance to donate during the next pledge drive in the spring.