Lewis Samuel 'Tink' Kanoy devoted his life to connecting people through radio technology. He died yesterday morning in his home at Salemtowne. He was 93.
He was born in Winston-Salem March 9, 1917. He weighed about five pounds and his father gave him the nick-name, 'Tink'.
Tink grew up as radio technology was developing. He worked thirty years at WSJS prior to and after World War II. His passion for this form of communication drew him to share his expertise with 88.5 WFDD, the then student-run radio station at Wake Forest University. In the early 1970's, he became the station's first full-time chief engineer and he kept it on air 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. He also played a significant role in increasing the station's signal power to 36,000 watts to service 32 counties in the Piedmont.
Tink was also a ham radio operator and a devoted Moravian. He combined these passions to assist Moravian missionaries in South America and in other remote areas of the world. He'd use ham radios to connect missionaries to friends and family in the states and with doctors in Winston-Salem. This radio-bridge aided missionary doctors as they treated patients.
A memorial for Lewis Samuel 'Tink' Kanoy will be held at Fairview Moravian Church, Tuesday, September 7 at 2 p.m.
88.5 WFDD · Your NPR News & Triad Arts Station from
Wake Forest University · wfdd@wfu.edu 1834 Wake Forest Road #8850 · Winston-Salem, NC 27109 · 336-758-8850
88.5 WFDD, the NPR® news and Triad Arts station broadcasting from Wake Forest University, is the only public radio station of its kind located in the Piedmont Triad. It broadcasts news, information, and public affairs programming covering the arts, people, and institutions in the area from both its Winston-Salem and Greensboro studios.
The state's charter NPR® member, 88.5 WFDD is the longest continuously broadcasting public radio station in North Carolina. It is a member of the North Carolina Public Radio Association.
