History

The vision for a local Christian radio station in the Hastings came in 1994 when a small group from Port Macquarie and Kempsey got together to form a committee whose task it was to establish a station and apply for an appropriate broadcasting licence. The vision came to fruition when the first test broadcast, from studios in Rhema Newcastle, went to air. The signal from Newcastle to Port Macquarie was provided by a landline and the first transmission site was at Red Hill near Telegraph Point.

Ian Worby was the first President and Station Co-ordinator/ Manager, and supervised many subsequent test broadcasts from various locations, finally settling on the top floor of a building in William Street opposite St Thomas’ Anglican Church (this building has since been demolished). After a few years of moving from place to place, the studios finally moved into “Rhema House” at Hamilton Green (198 Hastings River Drive) where we are currently located.

Construction of Rhema House

We appreciated the assistance of many volunteers under the supervision of Bax Builders, especially the late Dennis Bax, who laboured tirelessly to get the building up and running. It has been a major blessing that the station moved into our own premises around the turn of the century.

Today

The station has undergone many changes in volunteer staff over the years but has kept to its original vision of broadcasting the love of God throughout the Hastings region. Rhema’s broadcasting licence covers the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council area but the station can be heard from Taree in the south to Kempsey in the north and west of Wauchope. The current General Manager is Werner Egger.