Rathdrum radio station wins national Station of the Year honor again

A Rathdrum-based radio station with listeners across North Idaho has landed a national honor again, bringing a small-market success story to one of country music’s most visible stages.

Today’s Christian Country, heard locally on KYMS 89.9 FM, was named Station of the Year for the second straight year on April 6 at the 30th annual Inspirational Country Music Association Awards at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. The award placed a Kootenai County station alongside a national field of faith-based country broadcasters and underscored how far the signal reaches beyond Rathdrum.

The station’s footprint runs from Bonners Ferry and Sandpoint south through Coeur d’Alene to St. Maries, giving the recognition a regional reach that is unusual for a local broadcaster. Today’s Christian Country was listed on the ICMA winners page with KYMS, WCDG and WCRY, showing that the honor reflected a broader network, not just a single frequency in Idaho.

That network extends beyond North Idaho. Today’s Christian Country identifies sister stations WCDG 88.7 FM in Dahlonega, Georgia, and WCRY 89.9 FM in Blairsville, Georgia, part of a multi-station operation tied to Legacy Broadcasting. Lee Lancaster, identified by the station as general manager and co-founder of Legacy Broadcasting, also hosts the Jeff & Lee Morning Thang, giving the station a familiar local voice as well as management leadership.

Today’s Christian Country says it is a listener-supported, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) ministry, built around uplifting music, meaningful programming and faith-based outreach. Its history page traces the original KYMS call letters back to Southern California in 1975, with the station going dormant after 1995 before being revived in Idaho in 2009. Legacy Broadcasting bought 89.9 KYMS in 2011 and made it a flagship station.

Federal Communications Commission public files list KYMS as a non-commercial FM station licensed to Rathdrum, with a main studio address at 1456 Hwy 53. For Kootenai County, the latest award is more than a trophy on a shelf in Nashville. It is proof that a locally rooted station can build enough audience, consistency and identity to be recognized on a national stage.