KTOY was the NPR station at 91.7 FM staffed by the radio students at L.H. Bates Vocational Technical Institute of Tacoma (as it was then known). In this recording from 1972 we hear the voices of Chris Lindstrom on news, Dewey Boynton and Fred Elliot on sports, and yours truly as the dj. This gets into some embarrassing territory for me, but as my instructor, the Late, Great Chuck Ellsworth used to say, “Well, the audience had to hear it!”
Runtime: 5:40
More about LH Bates
Jason Remington • September 28, 2026
The School…
It was named for LaVerne Hazen Bates (1904–1982), commonly called L.H. Bates or Verne/Vern Bates.
He was hired in 1944 as director of what was then the Tacoma Vocational School (later Tacoma Vocational-Technical Institute). After he retired in 1969, the Tacoma School Board renamed the school the L.H. Bates Vocational-Technical Institute in honor of his service. It later became Bates Technical College.
Bates started as a printer and printing instructor in Spokane-area schools before moving into vocational education leadership. He also served as Washington’s employment security commissioner (appointed 1951) and director of the Department of Labor and Industries. (Wikipedia and BatesTech)
Jason Remington • February 28, 2023
What became of Chris Lindstrom? I think he worked with Robert O. Smith at KTAC FM. Rick Nordlund? Another name I recall from my time at KTOY during that period.
lonergan • January 5, 2022
Actually, Sam, the whole check sounds pretty good to me, especially for a training station. “Bright and tight,” as we used to say. I was student manager of University of Chicago’s FM, and we seldom sounded this good.
Jason Remington • January 4, 2022
I remember it well. And the guys heard on this aircheck were fellow classmates of mine as well. Shortly after this, I believe Lindstrom went to KTAC FM for a short while, when Robert O. Smith programmed it as a progressive rocker. I thought Fred Elliot made a fine newscaster, but lost track of him.