A man who did yeoman duty as a New Hampshire radio announcer for three decades died January 5, 2021 in a Nashua hospital. Kevin C. Farwell was a lifelong Gate City native and had been in declining health for nearly two years.
Born on Nov. 11, 1952, Kevin was destined to be on the radio. He outgrew childhood asthma and developed a naturally bass voice. He graduated from Northeast School of Broadcasting in Boston in 1971, immediately finding employment at WKNE/WNBX FM in Keene. By 1974 he was back in his beloved Nashua working at WSMN alongside the likes of Ed Lecius, Al Rock, Maury Parent and Frank Teas.
During his career Kevin’s resume contained many New Hampshire call letters, notably WKBR Manchester, WJYY and WNNH both in Concord, WBBX Portsmouth, WKXR Exeter and WMVU Nashua.
Kevin had been at Greenbriar Healthcare in Nashua since May of 2019. While confined with edema of the legs, COPD and congestive heart failure, he remained unfailingly upbeat and was very connected to the outside world via his radio. Kevin would have confirmed that he was slow to adapt to the computer age but he could still tell you about every personnel change, call letter swap or format flip in New England. He longed for the days before computer-generated playlists and corporate ownership.
In addition to radio, his other major love was Boston sports. It didn’t matter which season it was – he rooted for all of them. Kevin and his brother, Dana, took several field trips around the country to visit different stadiums. On a trip to Cleveland he enjoyed a bonus – a side trip to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. On another, he visited Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Grille in King of Prussia, PA.
Heaven’s radio station has a new voice and he’s operating 16″ turntables at an analog console with rotary pots. Kevin Farwell was 68.
Ed Lecius
January 31, 2021 at 8:11 amKevin lived for radio. Despite being replaced by technology a few times, he always managed to bounce back. A class mate and co-worker, he made his name in the Fifth Estate.
Robert Cohen
February 5, 2021 at 6:34 amKevin was a real gentleman and a credit to the broadcasting industry. We were proud to call him a friend and a worthy competitor during the seven years we were interim operators of crosstown WOTW AM-FM Nashua.
Rony Camille
February 16, 2021 at 3:28 pmI worked with Kevin during the summer of 2004 at WOTW/WSNH as a fellow board operator.
True professional who loved the industry and his community.
My condolences to his family all who knew him well.
Dale Sanborn
April 2, 2021 at 3:23 amHad the pleasure of working with Kevin at WNBX-FM — back in 1971….the again at WJYY, WNNH…..
And….yes…..WZID/WFEA (just after WFEA moved into their Commercial St. studios from Merrimack….)
We shared a lot of “war stories” over the years — and “vintage” radio was Kevin’s forte! He could talk for hours about WLW, KDKA, XERF, etc.
Radio was a better place with Kevin in it!
RIP, my friend…..:(
Ken Cail
April 1, 2022 at 7:03 pmHad the pleasure of working with Kevin in a number of locations. He was always a great team player. I don’t believe he ever missed a shift that he was called upon to perform…sometimes at the last minute when others couldn’t be there. He did every shift in the book without hesitation or complaint. My best memories with Kevin are when we worked together on Nashua Pride broadcasts on WSMN. He would be doing the hard work back at the studio while I would be at the game calling the action and having fun. A true radio treasure!