KVPI WAS TOPIC AT ROTARY CLUB MEETING

APRIL 19, 2016

    The Ville Platte Rotary Club today (Tuesday) heard from KVPI officials at its weekly meeting.

    General Manager Mark Layne shared vintage photographs of KVPI including a photo of DJ Bootsie Cappell sitting at the control board in the 1950’s, another photograph of Jim Soileau, Charlie Manuel and another announcer broadcasting at the Tournoi in the 1960’s and  Jim Soileau and the late Dan Andrus in an early publicity photo of La Tasse de Café.

   Layne announced that KVPI-FM had won “Radio Station of the Year” by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters for the sixth year in a row for our community service programming. He thanked the business community for their support through the years.

   Special guests at the meeting were Dr. Rhonda Pucheu , President of Ville Platte Broadcasting Company and her husband John Pucheu, Vice President of the company.

   John shared a brief history of KVPI whose original stockholders included Dr. Roland Fink, Dr. Pucheu’s father, Lionel DeVille, and two sets of brothers: Joe and Vincent Riel and Tom and Paul DeClouet.  KVPI AM went on the air in 1953 with KVPI FM signing on in 1966.

   John Pucheu, who also serves as President of the Eunice Rotary Club, invited the Ville Platte Club to attend the second annual Experience Louisiana cultural event coming up in October in Eunice sponsored by the Eunice Rotary Club.