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September 6, 2011 Prayer-in-the-Air™ Announces MADD Promotion!
Not only does Prayer-in-the-Air™ provide a great service to families and communities, as well as assist in many ways the host cemetery or funeral home from which it broadcasts, for a limited time, PITA will also provide a valuable fundraising and awareness effort for Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD.) With each new or renewed Prayer-in-the-Air™ subscription, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the good works of MADD in the name of the hosting facility. In addition, Mothers Against Drunk Driving intends to use Prayer-in-the-Air™ as a vehicle to reach families and communities mourning the loss of a loved one because of drunk driving. MADD reports that while they still have a long way to go, significant progress has been made in the total elimination of drunk driving, and they’d like to shed a positive light on an otherwise troublesome topic.
Prayer-in-the-Air™ recently interviewed Jan Withers, National President of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. “It was one of the most touching interviews I’ve conducted to date,” expressed Paul Beran, PITA Executive Producer. “Ms. Withers took us back to the year she joined MADD when her daughter Alyssa was killed by a drunk driver.” “In your darkest moments, hang in there. Reach out for support, there is light. You will carry your loved one with you throughout your life.”
Listen to Jan’s full interview by logging on to prayerintheair.net.
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May 1, 2011 Catholic Diocese Cemetery Puts Prayer-in-the-Air™
The Catholic Cemeteries Association of the Diocese of Pittsburgh has approved a three year pilot of Prayer-in-the-Air™ for one of their largest cemetery locations. It is the Queen of Heaven Cemetery in McMurray, PA. "We may add one or more locations in the next fiscal year," added Annabelle McGannon, CCA Executive Director. There are fifteen member cemeteries in their association, in all. The next cemeteries slated to receive Prayer-in-the-Air™ include Christ Our Redeemer (North Side Catholic), Ross Township, PA; and Calvary, Hazelwood, PA. “Everyone thought the program had merit and we are anxious to see how people respond to it,” according to McGannon.
“There is nothing in the industry that even closely resembles Prayer-in-the-Air™. Part advertising. Part community relations. Part revenue stream. You can't imagine how many different ways this program will benefit you," says Paul Beran, PITA Executive Producer, "...nor the market advantage it will create, unless you attend one of our free webinars."
PITA's low-power FM broadcast airs 24/7 from participating cemeteries and funeral homes with touching testimonials, professional advice, uplifting music, memorial tributes, and more. Commuters listen to this unique radio program over their car radio while visiting or driving near member cemeteries and funeral homes. They're guided where to tune by colorful roadside signage. "We expect to reach fifty (50) participating locations by the end of this year! Thank you for your continued vote of confidence," concludes Beran.
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April 15, 2011 Billy Graham Media Partnership Announced
Prayer-in-the-Air™ is proud to announce its media partnership with the world renowned Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Every quarter, Prayer-in-the-Air™ broadcasts a new collection of uplifting and informative recordings timely for the season, and relative to the listening audience at the cemetery or funeral home. In addition to local and regional authors, ministers, and counselors, PITA will now be able to include new and exclusive interviews with members of the Billy Graham organization, including classic segments recorded by Billy himself, and Franklin his son.
“We’re thrilled to be able to partner with Prayer-in-the-Air™ in providing quality content”, reports KiYong Kim from the Ambassador Agency, representing the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. “We’re happy for them to use 'Decision Minute,' and any other ministries their audience may be interested in.” When asked what the partnership means to Prayer-in-the-Air™, Paul Beran, PITA Executive Producer, added “It’s an honor when an organization as prestigious as the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association gives their blessing. The quality of our program’s content just took a huge leap upward. We acknowledge their worldwide leadership in radio and television ministry, and hope to gain inspiration from their example.”
What listeners can look forward to hearing in the upcoming Spring broadcast, includes a Memorial to the Unborn, a segment dedicated to the support for Families of Suicide, a salute to the Men and Women of the Armed Forces, and an impressive variety of segments from the Billy Graham organization. For more information on Prayer-in-the-Air™, log on to www.prayerintheair.net. For more on the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, go to www.billygraham.org.
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March 1, 2011 New Segments to the Memory of the Unborn Announced
Each Spring, after the snow melts and flowers begin their return to life ritual, Prayer-in-the-Air™ launches its new season of interesting and timely interviews, discussions, and meaningful life and death content. This Spring features several landmark interviews in the “Memory of the Unborn.” Starting with a jaw-dropping interview with Sandra Cano, “Mary Doe” of Doe vs. Bolton (companion case to Roe vs. Wade,) listeners will learn how drastically a person’s life can change when it starts out “unstable.”
Sandra hopes to convey just how upset she is that her name is associated with the laws that govern abortion in this country. Sandra mourns the loss of so many babies as a result of this law, and she wants to share her story so others may be spared. Following Ms. Cano’s interview is a special new song dedicated to the unborn, sung in the first person of a child whose life was cut short by “choice.”
In addition, Prayer-in-the-Air™ is proud to feature an interview with Bob Block, founder of the Florida Memorial to the Unborn. Starting, perhaps, a new trend in cemeteries, Mr. Block recounts how he came to recognize the need for a Memorial for the Unborn, and how his group was able to build a well-visited facility within a small cemetery in their hometown of Naples, FL. What listeners can look forward to hearing in the upcoming Spring broadcast, in addition to a Memorial to the Unborn, is a segment dedicated to the Support for Families of Suicide, a Salute to the Men and Women of our Armed Forces, and a variety of impressive segments from the Billy Graham organization.
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June 1, 2010
Prayer-in-the-Air™ presents exciting new guest speaker line-up starting Memorial Day.
Advertel just completed a full revision of their Prayer-in-the-Air™ audio program in time for Memorial Day, including some fabulous guest speakers! If you thought they were good before, you’ve got to hear them now! National and international guests include:
- Naim Ateek – Explains the complexity of establishing a lasting peace in the Middle East, this Palestinian Anglican Priest is the founder and director of the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalem.
- Gerald Jampolsky, MD -- Teaches the power of unconditional love and forgiveness. Founder of the Attitudinal Healing Center in Hawaii.
- Kevin Kersten SJ -- Speaks on forgiveness and letting go with an explanation of Catholic traditions. Has a PhD in International Communication from the University of Wisconsin, Master’s degrees in Theology from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, Television Production and Aesthetics from San Francisco State University, and English Literature from St. Louis University.
- Alvin K. Berkun – Speaks on the forgiveness of sins in our final hour, with a tradition that dates back 3,000 years. Past International President of the Rabbinical Assembly, a worldwide organization of 1600 conservative rabbis.
- Greg Voss – Speaks on the adjustments of young people with the loss of a family member, student, or friend. President of the University of Pittsburgh Association of Chaplains.
- David Hall – Explains how he became official balladeer for the only traveling replica of the Liberty Bell. Retired military officer voluntarily brings and tolls the bell in honor of fallen heroes with absolutely no cost. (I met him in San Antonio, too.)
- Tom Fodi – Air Force Chaplain for the 911 Airwing Command in Pittsburgh PA. Explains how the Chaplaincy helps our heroic men and women face the possibility of making ultimate sacrifice, as well as their families.
Have a listen at participating Prayer-in-the-Air™ locations, or log on to PrayerInTheAir.net. Subscribers are encouraged to keep these new program segments on the air until the next scheduled Prayer-in-the-Air™ production later this summer.
For your funeral home or cemetery to become a Prayer-in-the-Air™ subscriber, contact Paul Beran at pberan@advertel.com, or call 1-888-ADVERTEL (238-3783), ext 107.
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May 15, 2010
Advertel, parent company for Prayer-in-the-Air™, has unveiled a national church bulletin ad campaign.
The J.S. Paluch Company and Advertel have embarked on a national awareness campaign for Prayer-in-the-Air™ that will appear in numerous church bulletins throughout America starting in June. This campaign will effectively showcase participating cemeteries and funeral homes. Non participating cemeteries and funeral homes will be unable to respond to customer requests for the free 3-month Memorial Tribute touted by the ad campaign. Only Prayer-in-the-Air™ subscribers will have the means to offer this exciting benefit.
Log on to PrayerInTheAir.net for more information.
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May 1, 2010
Advertel, producers of Prayer-in-the-Air™, has been retained to create new telephone recordings for Matthews International, the world's leading bronze and marble supplier to the death care industry.
As of June, 2010, you will hear a new voice on the other end of the phone at Matthews International. Advertel, producers of Prayer-in-the-Air™ has been retained by this prestigious international manufacturer of bronze and marble products for the death care industry, to produce a series of new telephone recordings that will play to customers waiting on-hold. Advertel is also the parent company of nationally acclaimed ADS-ON-HOLD®, serving the telephone media needs of businesses around North America since 1983.
For more information on Prayer-in-the-Air™, go to www.PrayerInTheAir.net. For more on ADS-ON-HOLD®, go to www.adsonhold.com. For more on Advertel, go to www.advertel.com. Or call 1-888-ADVERTEL (238-3783).
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April 1, 2010
Advertel releases a new 1-hour webinar series designed to explain all the many benefits of Prayer-in-the-Air™ for both funeral homes and cemeteries.
Advertel Inc., developer of Prayer-in-the-Air™, announces a new 1-hour webinar series that helps explain all the benefits of Prayer-in-the-Air™ to funeral directors and cemetery managers throughout the country. “At last month’s ICCFA Conference, I could have retired if I got a dollar from everyone who came up to me who described how good an idea Prayer-in-the-Air™ is!” exclaimed Paul Beran, the program’s Executive Producer and Advertel President. “But it’s not just a good idea, it’s a public relations tool, a branding tool, a revenue generator, and maybe even a life saver to a listener who may be distraught over the loss of a loved one. Advertel’s new webinar series is totally free to attend, entitles the attendee to several valuable bonuses if he or she becomes a subscriber, and only requires about an hour of their time.”
Contact Beran at pberan@advertel.com to schedule your attendance at the next free Prayer-in-the-Air™ webinar, or call 1-888-ADVERTEL (238-3783) ext 107.
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March 15, 2010
Advertel announces in the Memorial Business Journal that it will roll out its national Prayer-in-the-Air™ program at the ICCFA Conference in San Antonio.
Advertel Inc., developer of Prayer-in-the-Air, a local, low-power radio broadcast of inspirational programming specifically intended for the cemetery and funeral home industry, will be debuted at the ICCFA Conference in San Antonio to mark their national roll-out campaign.
In addition to presenting samples and testimonials of this exciting new marketing program, Advertel President, Paul Beran, will discuss ideas on how Prayer-in-the-Air can be used to promote preneed sales and generate additional revenue. “Visitors to the cemetery and funeral home are prime candidates for buying pre-need. This is the intended target audience for Prayer-in-the-Air. But, by including the availability of paid family dedications and tributes, the hosting cemetery or funeral home can create a new revenue stream that can really add up,” said Beran. Heard on the local FM radio dial by visitors to cemeteries and funeral homes, Prayer-in-the-Air was originally developed to comfort the bereaved, as well as provide helpful messages regarding services available at that facility.
With the addition of dedications and tributes, Prayer-in-the-Air becomes a personal program for any visiting family member or friend of the deceased. Prayer-in-the-Air is also intended to be broadcast over the facility’s telephone hold button and/or web site, which will boost awareness of the program. “If it increases traffic to client websites, it will increase their search engine rankings, too,” Beran added. “We believe Prayer-in-the-Air has the potential of drawing family members and friends back to hear their loved one’s tribute many times.”
Hosted in a relaxed talk show format, bereavement messages are delivered by local clergy as well as nationally known author and psychologist “Doctor Katie” McCorkle. In radio-interview style, the cemetery owner or funeral director is also afforded an opportunity to present a history of the establishment, its service philosophy and other family support services.
Edward J Defort, Editor
Memorial Business Journal
PO Box 8066
Trenton, NJ 08650
609-815-8145
www.memorialbusinessjournal.com
edefort@memorialbusinessjournal.com
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March 1, 2010
Nationally-known radio talk show host and licensed psychologist throws her support behind Prayer-in-the-Air™.
To all Funeral Home Directors and Cemetery Professionals. Bringing with them a variety of psychological and spiritual needs, you see families at their most vulnerable. What a challenge it is to help them through the decisions they must make, and also respond to their deeply personal needs! I am pleased to participate in the Prayer-in-the-Air program because of the opportunity it represents to support your business and your clients’ needs.
I remember well what a gift it was to my siblings and me that my mother had made, and paid for, all the decisions about her memorial service and burial well before her death. At a challenging time, all we had to do was implement her instructions. We were spared some of the anguish all families experience at the time of a death in the family.
Prayer-in-the-Air represents an outreach opportunity for you to encourage families to make pre-need arrangements. This spares their loved ones of the emotional and financial stress which is often experienced at the time of a death, especially a sudden or unexpected death. It also holds the potential to prevent family conflict over final arrangements, and to clarify what each person wants. Certainly, expanding your pre-need outreach makes your job easier!
For your clients, the grieving process often extends well beyond the funeral or memorial service itself. Prayer-in-the-Air offers a comforting presence and healing perspective during their most private moments with their loved ones who have passed on.
The positive effect of Prayer-in-the-Air may be expanded further by also offering your clients spiritually-centered grief coaching services, such as those provided by Balanced Heart™ Coaching nationwide (Tollfree: 1-866-DR-KATIE). You are the one they will have to thank for that support opportunity!
As you know, a significant feature of the grieving process is memorializing the lost loved one by sharing stories, memories, and the grief experience itself. The vignettes included in Prayer‑in‑the‑Air offer another opportunity for families to share their personal stories and experiences with others, thus creating a greater sense of community support among grieving clients.
I hope you will consider featuring Prayer‑in‑the‑Air as a community service, a pre-need outreach, and a blessing to make your own job easier.
Katharine C. McCorkle, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist
Founder, Balanced Heart™ Coaching
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February 15, 2010
Prayer-in-the-Air™ is featured in Memorial Business Journal.
Advertel, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pa., has developed Prayer-in-the-Air, a radio broadcast of inspirational programming that can transmitted within and around the cemetery, and heard on the FM radio dial by visitors to cemeteries. By collaborating with several cemetery owners and counselors, Prayer-in-the-Air has been developed to comfort the bereaved, as well as provide helpful messages from the cemetery proprietor to help acquaint visitors and phone callers of other services available at their facility.
Prayer-in-the-Air is also intended to be broadcast over the facility’s telephone hold button and/or web site. Hosted by a familiar Pittsburgh area radio celebrity, bereavement messages are delivered by clergy and nationally known author and psychologist “Doctor Katie” McCorkle. In radio-interview style, the cemetery owner or funeral director is afforded an opportunity to also present a history of the establishment, its philosophy and other family support services available. At the end of each message is always a friendly invitation to stop by the reception area to pick up a free gift. For a list of participating cemeteries, as well as audition a sample of Prayer-in-the-Air, go to www.prayerintheair.net.
Edward J Defort, Editor
Memorial Business Journal
PO Box 8066
Trenton, NJ 08650
609-815-8145
www.memorialbusinessjournal.com
edefort@memorialbusinessjournal.com
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February 8, 2010
Harry C. Neel, President of Jefferson Memorial Park in Pittsburgh PA, lends his comments on the new Prayer-in-the-Air™ concept by Advertel.
To My Friends in the Cemetery and Funeral Industry. Jefferson Memorial Cemetery and Funeral Home has teamed up with Paul Beran, CEO of Advertel to use “Prayer in the Air.” We believe adding this private radio station on our property will be not only a great added service to our families but may become a valuable tool to expand our marketing outreach. We are certainly excited at the prospect that our preneed suggestions will be heard by our prime targeted audience¾our families and visitors.
Working with Paul we tailored the program into a series of 2-3 minute vignettes; including scripture passages, religious or inspirational music, some history of the cemetery and its artifacts, as well as some brief comments about the benefits of preneed arrangements. Knowing that it only takes 2-3 minutes to get from any entrance to any part of the cemetery we wanted the segments short enough so that a visitor could, at a minimum, listen to one on the way in and another on the way out. Hopefully, if they like what they hear, they will sit and listen to more. The entire program takes about 20 minutes. To keep the program fresh and interesting Paul will be changing and updating the content about every 90 days.
To advertise the program, Advertel provided “Prayer in the Air” signs that we placed at each entrance and Paul was able to get a press release published. In addition, we have added it to our web site and made reference to it in our newsletter.
We were unable to really kick off the program until early winter and winter came on fast this year. To see if this concept would work we included in the program a request for our listeners to come in and fill out a critique form and receive a free give (a $5 restaurant card). Though we quickly got snowed in, obstructing some of our signage, we have had some early and positive feedback about our radio station. We are optimistic that when winter subsides and visitation increases that “Prayer in the Air” will meet our expectations.
Harry C. Neel, President
Jefferson Memorial Park and Funeral Home
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February 1, 2010
Advertel is proud to announce that Hindman Funeral Services, Mountain Memory Garden Cemetery and Bethel Mausoleum in Hindman Kentucky have become their newest Prayer-in-the-Air™ subscribers.
Hindman Kentucky “After reading about Prayer-in-the-Air™ on-line, and calling Jefferson Memorial Park in Pittsburgh to hear what they thought of the program, we knew instantly that this is what we needed to set us apart from our competition,” claims Bill Terry, co-owner of Mountain Memory Gardens in Hindman KY. “We’ve got a competitor, here, that attempts to match us step by step for family referrals.” “It’s not about price, it’s about families” adds Danny Terry, owner of Hindman Funeral Services, and proprietor of Mountain Memory Gardens. Prayer-in-the-Air™ effectively conveys that message for them.
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January 20, 2010
Advertel joins the ICCFA (International Cemetery Crematorium and Funeral Home Association.)
Rick Platter, ICCFA Supplier Relations Manager, supports the concept of Prayer-in-the-Air™. “We’re excited, here, to see such a new approach to marketing in our industry,” Platter expressed. We’re happy to receive Advertel as a new ICCFA member, and to schedule their appearance at the upcoming conference in San Antonio.”
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January 11, 2010
The Pittsburgh Post Gazette runs a feature story on Prayer-in-the-Air™.
Words of Comfort Fill the Air at Pleasant Hills Cemetery
Radio Program Broadcasts Religious Messages
By Dave Zuchowski
Drive past Jefferson Memorial Cemetery in Pleasant Hills with your radio tuned to 88.7 FM and you'll hear a one-of-a-kind broadcast. "Prayer in the Air," a program designed to provide comfort to those visiting the cemetery, is the brainchild of Paul Beran of Brentwood. Using a localized FM radio transmitter no larger than half the size of a DVD player, Mr. Beran broadcasts an endless mix of devotional messages and religious music interspersed with thoughtful messages narrated by clergy, psychologists and local celebrities over the air waves.
The roughly 30-minute program was launched in November and is broadcast 24 hours a day, seven days a week on a continuous loop. Mr. Beran plans to change the programming four times a year to keep it fresh.
" 'Prayer in the Air' is helpful to those suffering the loss of a loved one because it is a very positive medium available at very difficult time," he said. He said he did not know of similar programming.
Mr. Beran came up with the idea for "Prayer in the Air" after the funeral for his mother, who died at age 85 in March. "On the day of her internment, I thought this would be the last day I'd ever see her," he said. "Deciding to turn on the radio to listen to something spiritual and comforting, I was unable to find anything."
Mr. Beran has been president of Advertel, a marketing company, for nearly 30 years and uses his marketing expertise to improve the way clients present themselves on the telephone. He redesigns prerecorded portions of business calls with broadcast-quality, caller-friendly greetings. In recent years, he has added an FM component to his service, which he believed could also be used to help those visiting a cemetery after suffering the loss of a loved one.
For advice on the project, he consulted Katie McCorkle, radio talk show host and a licensed psychologist at the Balanced Heart Healing Center in Cranberry. They worked to ensure that the program would broadcast "the right things to help the bereaved," he said.
When he approached Harry Neel, president of Jefferson Memorial Cemetery and Funeral Home in Pleasant Hills, Mr. Neel was receptive.
To provide some of the devotional narrative, he asked the Rev. Ron De Louis, of the Greater Grace Church in McKees Rocks, to assist. The pastor recorded a segment of Chapter 3 from Ecclesiastes. The Rev. Michael Suslowicz, pastoral vicar of St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Bethel Park, also helped with the programming.
Walkers and joggers who come into the cemetery for its beautifully landscaped grounds can listen to the program on portable FM radios with earphones. "We have almost five miles of hard surface roads winding through the cemetery," Mr. Neel said. "My grandfather, Harry C. Neel, was a horticulturist before he founded the cemetery and planted every tree indigenous to the state on the property. He planted just about anything that would grow in this climate."
Over the years, the cemetery staff added statuary, including a bronze statue of George Washington, five original Roman urns from the city of Pompei and six granite columns saved from the demolition of the Bank of Pittsburgh.
"Our programming is intended to be part of the cemetery ambiance," Mr. Beran said. "What people hear on their radios compliments what they see on the grounds."
Feedback has been positive. Mr. Beran said that visitors welcome the "Prayer in the Air" concept and that a recently widowed man told him the programming helped him get through the holidays.
In the future, Mr. Beran hopes to take his project to other cemeteries across the nation and plans to introduce the idea to those attending the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association convention in San Antonio, Texas, in March.
"Prayer in the Air" also can be accessed via the Internet at www.prayerintheair.net.
Reach freelance writer Dave Zuchowski in care of suburbanliving@post-gazette.com. First published on January 21, 2010 at 6:26 am.
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January 4, 2010
Press Release: “Help For Bereaved Comes From ‘Air’”
PITTSBURGH PA: For at least one Pittsburgher, 2009 marked the loss of his 85-year old mother. So, a visit to the cemetery would certainly be in order for Paul Beran, president of Pittsburgh based Advertel, Inc. “Except, what if the cemetery were 3,000 miles away in Seattle?” asked Beran. “This is where we ended up laying mom to rest last April. It also meant that, on the day I flew back to Pittsburgh, I knew I wouldn’t be returning to Seattle anymore, and that was a bit hard for me to accept.”
To help Beran sort through his thoughts of his mom, as well as maintain the solemnity of his final visit, he frantically searched up and down the Seattle radio dial from his rental car, to hear something inspirational or uplifting. “Nothing came close in commercial radio to what I needed to hear at that moment,” Beran said.
It was from that experience that a new marketing idea for cemeteries was born. “Prayer-in-the-Air,” the brainchild of Beran’s advertising company in the South Hills, is designed to serve as an outreach to bereaving friends and family visiting their loved one’s cemetery. This locally produced program is complete with quotes from Catholic and Protestant clergy, original Christian music, and the inspiration of nationally known author and psychologist ‘Doctor Katie’ McCorkle of the Balanced Heart Healing Center in Cranberry.
“Prayer-in-the-Air is a brand new concept for us,” reports Vanessa Botti, Marketing Director of Jefferson Memorial Park in Pleasant Hills. “It offers a 20-minute program of 2-3 minute segments that deal with the issues of grief, spiritual reflection, and uplifting music.” One recent visitor to the cemetery reported that Prayer-in-the-Air helped him make it through the holidays after the recent loss of his wife, citing the program content as “Excellent!”
So, next time you drive through the maze of winding single lane roads at your local cemetery, don’t be too surprised if a small sign invites you to tune your car radio to a special assigned frequency on your FM dial. That’s where you’ll hear “Prayer-in-the-Air.” Your list of favorite places to visit in the winter may not include your local cemetery. But, if you’ve got a loved one to visit after their final reward, ‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ can make your visit far more enjoyable—or at least, less painful.
Hosted by a well-known local radio celebrity, Prayer-in-the-Air also affords the cemetery owner or funeral director an opportunity to present a historic perspective of the facility, as well as list other family support services available. At the end of each message is always a friendly invitation to stop by the reception area to pick up a free gift. ‘Prayer-in-the-Air’ is also intended to be broadcast over the facilty’s telephone hold button and/or website.
For a list of participating cemeteries, as well as to audition a sample of ‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ go to www.prayerintheair.net.
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November, 2009
Press Release: Advertel launches Prayer-in-the-Air™ at Jefferson Memorial Park, largest cemetery in Western PA.
PITTSBURGH PA: “Help for the bereaved comes from an unexpected source,” reports one visitor to a local cemetery. As you take a drive through the maze of winding single lane roads at your local cemetery, don’t be too surprised if you’re invited to tune your car radio to a special assigned frequency on your FM dial. That’s where you’ll hear moving and inspirational messages intended for friends and family of the recently departed. ‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ as it is called, is a locally produced program, complete with quotes from local clergy, Christian music, and the professional guidance of nationally known author and psychologist ‘Doctor Katie’ McCorkle.
We all know that the list of ‘favorite places to visit,’ usually doesn’t include the local cemetery. But, if you’ve got a loved one to visit after their final reward, ‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ can make your visit far more enjoyable¾or at least, less painful.
By collaborating with several cemetery owners and counselors, ‘Prayer-in-the-Air’ has been developed to comfort the bereaved, as well as provide helpful messages from the cemetery proprietor to help acquaint visitors and phone callers of other services available at their facility. ‘Prayer-in-the-Air’ is also intended to be broadcast over the facility’s telephone hold button and/or website.
‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ the invention of Pittsburgh-based Advertel, is the culmination of a 25+ year history in the telephone media and advertising industry. With digital recording studios, a vast array of production expertise and outstanding voice-talent pool, they’re able to produce a recording of stellar audio quality. ‘Prayer-in-the-Air’ is, after all, a radio broadcast transmitted within and around the cemetery, which in some way, competes with neighboring radio broadcast stations. That’s why Advertel has recruited some of the finest voice talent in the industry as well as the spiritual calling and dedication of local clergy.
‘Prayer-in-the-Air’ carries a blend of inspirational messages, poetry, religious devotions and Christian music, revised quarterly to reflect the seasons. Hosted by a familiar Pittsburgh area radio celebrity, bereavement messages are delivered by clergy and Dr. Katie. In radio-interview style, the cemetery owner or funeral director is afforded an opportunity to also present a history of the establishment, its philosophy and other family support services available. At the end of each message is always a friendly invitation to stop by the reception area to pick up a free gift.
For a list of participating cemeteries, as well as audition a sample of ‘Prayer-in-the-Air,’ go to www.prayerintheair.net.
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