It wasn’t an easy decision, but the timing just felt right, says Pennti Junni.
The 83-year-old has been delivering a weekly Finnish language radio show in some form or another in Thunder Bay for 48 years. Sunday morning will mark his final show on CKPR, as age and failing health have caught up to the veteran broadcaster.
When he first took to the airwaves in 1963, on CJAB, John F. Kennedy had mere months left to live, John Diefenbaker handed the Canadian reins of power over to Lester Pearson and the Toronto Maple Leafs were in the midst of three straight Stanley Cup wins.
“I’ll likely be missing it for awhile at least,” said Junni, taping his penultimate show last Thursday in a cramped studio at CKPR’s Hill Street headquarters. “It’s been just once a week, usually Friday nights. But Friday seemed to be the day of the week that the week was ending all the time because it was definitely something you kept in your mind.”
Junni is as old school as they come in a business where mp3s have replaced records. He still records his show on reel-to-reel tape, a format that makes the Flintstones look modern.
But it’s not the method of his delivery that mattered over the years. It’s always been about the content. During his heyday – he took over the show when his predecessor lost interest – he forged a network of contacts that stretched across the Atlantic.
One of the only links to the homeland for the world’s largest Finnish population outside of Finland itself, Junni provided the news of the day, sports scores and access to music and culture that couldn’t be found anywhere else.
Junni said it wasn’t easy finding content in those pre-Internet days, especially the music.
“We had trips to Finland and we’d come back with a bunch of records. The Finnish book store was selling some records in the early times,” he said. “Right now there are some CDs, but there were times when there wasn’t anything.
“We depended on friends who went to Finland to bring some. And we got some as gifts.”
CKPR program director Bill Malcolm said a radio show in any format is an incredible accomplishment, but Junni’s Songs of Finland has been truly special over the years.
“Pennti connected listeners to their former homeland and loved ones. Whether it was the latest overseas hit, news of the big hockey game or a long-distance dedication, his program touched many,” Malcolm said.
Songs of Finland’s final broadcast is scheduled to air Sunday morning at 6 a.m.
The 83-year-old has been delivering a weekly Finnish language radio show in some form or another in Thunder Bay for 48 years. Sunday morning will mark his final show on CKPR, as age and failing health have caught up to the veteran broadcaster.
When he first took to the airwaves in 1963, on CJAB, John F. Kennedy had mere months left to live, John Diefenbaker handed the Canadian reins of power over to Lester Pearson and the Toronto Maple Leafs were in the midst of three straight Stanley Cup wins.
“I’ll likely be missing it for awhile at least,” said Junni, taping his penultimate show last Thursday in a cramped studio at CKPR’s Hill Street headquarters. “It’s been just once a week, usually Friday nights. But Friday seemed to be the day of the week that the week was ending all the time because it was definitely something you kept in your mind.”
Junni is as old school as they come in a business where mp3s have replaced records. He still records his show on reel-to-reel tape, a format that makes the Flintstones look modern.
But it’s not the method of his delivery that mattered over the years. It’s always been about the content. During his heyday – he took over the show when his predecessor lost interest – he forged a network of contacts that stretched across the Atlantic.
One of the only links to the homeland for the world’s largest Finnish population outside of Finland itself, Junni provided the news of the day, sports scores and access to music and culture that couldn’t be found anywhere else.
Junni said it wasn’t easy finding content in those pre-Internet days, especially the music.
“We had trips to Finland and we’d come back with a bunch of records. The Finnish book store was selling some records in the early times,” he said. “Right now there are some CDs, but there were times when there wasn’t anything.
“We depended on friends who went to Finland to bring some. And we got some as gifts.”
CKPR program director Bill Malcolm said a radio show in any format is an incredible accomplishment, but Junni’s Songs of Finland has been truly special over the years.
“Pennti connected listeners to their former homeland and loved ones. Whether it was the latest overseas hit, news of the big hockey game or a long-distance dedication, his program touched many,” Malcolm said.
Songs of Finland’s final broadcast is scheduled to air Sunday morning at 6 a.m.
