View source for Mennonite Broadcasts, Inc.

Mennonite Broadcasts, Inc., a subsidiary operating agency of the [[Mennonite Board of Missions (Mennonite Church)|Mennonite Board of Missions]] (MC) and controlled by it, was established in 1956 as successor to [[Mennonite Crusaders, Inc.|Mennonite Crusaders, Inc]]. Headquarters and studio in 1957 were located at 1111 North Main Street, Harrisonburg, [[Virginia (USA)|Virginia]], where a fulltime staff of seven to ten persons was at work. The officers in 1957 were Lewis Strite chairman, Daniel Suter vice-chairman, Richard Weaver secretary, Harley Rhodes treasurer, all of Harrisonburg. The mission board controlled the agency by recommending and approving members of the board of directors. Broadcasts in 1956 were <em>[[Mennonite Hour (Radio Program)|The Mennonite Hour]], Luz y Verdad </em>(Spanish, originating in [[Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico]]), <em>Menonaito Awa </em>(Japanese, originating in [[Japan|Japan]]), and Navaho Bible Hour ([[Arizona (USA)|Arizona]]). The Heart to Heart program, a women's broadcast originating in Harrisonburg, was affiliated, though financed and administered independently. A European broadcast in several languages was to begin in 1957 (French, Italian, and possibly German and Russian). The mission board purchased the headquarters building in 1956. Mennonite Broadcasts was financed through voluntary contributions, largely received from the radio audience. It did not receive mission funds.

An extensive publishing program was also carried on, including the periodical publications, <em>Mennonite</em> <em>Broadcasts Informer </em>and <em>Prayer Calendar, </em>and booklets containing collections of radio sermons, as well as study booklets for the Bible correspondence which it conducted in English, Spanish, and Japanese.

In 1957 Mennonite Broadcasts was broadcasting over seventy stations in the [[United States of America|United States]] and foreign countries. Of this number, fifty-six were in the [[United States of America|United States]], two in [[Canada|Canada]]; others were in Ceylon, Costa Rica, [[Ecuador|Ecuador]], [[Jamaica|Jamaica]], Liberia, Tangier, [[Panama|Panama]], [[Philippines|Philippines]], [[Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico]], and [[Vietnam|Vietnam]].
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