10 Questions with ... Ty McFarland

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

No one's exempt from the mental pictures of Houston's devastation this past September as Hurricane Harvey put one of America's most-populated cities largely underwater. Most of us watched from our laptops, TVs or phones-often in real time-as Houston residents and helpers desperately scrambled to safety via boats and high ground. Some of our industry peers, however, actually lived through it. If Ty McFarland wasn't such a humble guy, always bent on the understatement, you'd think his own Harvey experience account is a bit...extreme. Surely, he and others in his neighborhood and KSBJ family would much prefer it hadn't taken such dramatic turns, if they had a choice.

Nearly a half-year later, Ty graciously shares about the impact Hurricane Harvey continues to have on his life and what it reassured him about the value of his family and great radio.

1) Will you briefly share your radio-career path that brought you to KSBJ?

I've worked at KTSY/Boise, WGTS/Washington DC (two separate times), KTFY/Twin Falls, ID, and K-LOVE Network. I'm a blessed man to have worked with so many talented people over the years.

2) Considering you've lived in several different parts of the US, what have you particularly enjoyed about living in Houston?

Well, first off, the weather is actually pretty awesome, three seasons out of four. You hear so much about the heat, and it's all true, but it's only for one season. It's the middle of winter right now, and the high today is 68. The best part of living in Houston, though, by far, is the people. I have never lived in a part of the country that is as friendly as Houston.

3) In September, Hurricane Harvey devastated much of Houston. How did it impact you and your family personally?

We flooded-house and cars. Four and-a-half feet of water in our house, and it was high enough to reach to mid-windshield on our vehicles. Around seven or so of us from KSBJ had a similar experience, and many with other damage. Everyone in Houston knows someone who came out of Harvey worse than they did, so I'm not trying to minimize what happened to my family, or others, in any way. It was pretty catastrophic, but I am thankful that our lives were spared, and that we were surrounded immediately by co-workers, friends, and family, who loved us back to restoration. Everyone who flooded could tell you stories.

4) Can you point to one moment during all of this that you were most tempted to feel hopeless?

We had our ugly cry, I think it was in the evening, after the second day of demo-ing the sheetrock and cabinets and "stuff" in our house-after everybody had left. If your house floods like that, you know that taking sledge hammers and crow bars to your home has to be done, and done quickly, to save the house, but you go from a beautiful home and a normal life, to just mud, water, and destruction, pretty quickly. It's a lot to deal with. There's some shock. You're not crying for the stuff, the loss, you're just dealing with everything all at once. We were never hopeless, but I was shocked, sometimes overwhelmed, and I know I've got some Harvey PTSD lingering.

5) No doubt. Conversely, do you recall a moment when you most felt the hand of God over you during these tough circumstances?

Definitely. We had to be water-rescued from our water rescue. My wife and daughter, myself, holding our dog and cat, along with the family that rescued us were moving along the water just fine in their boat. Very quickly, conditions changed, and our boat lost control in a rip current of floodwater. We were slammed broadside into several trees, water rushed in over the sides, and we had a minute or two at most before the boat sank all of the way.

Someone else was calling 911, so I grabbed my cell phone in my pants pocket-which was already starting to get wet-and texted the last three people who had texted me and just said "In danger, please pray." I didn't have time to look up names or write any explanations. I came to find out later, that several of those folks did pray and asked others to pray.

I knew that there were no boats on the water near us, and we were looking everywhere up and down the water, and yelling for help. Nothing. Just nothing. Fast-moving water, danger with tree limbs and all kinds of stuff in the water, and a sinking boat. There's just no help on the way. Out of what seemed like nowhere, God sent Rusty and his friends on a jon boat. They performed a dangerous, and very skillful rescue, ramming their boat against ours at just the right angle, with the right speed, in treacherous water, so that we could get on their boat. As we're leaving in their boat, we're watching our boat go under.

People can say whatever they want about good 'ol boys in bass boats, but I will always have a huge spot in my heart for all of the Harvey heroes, out making rescues. Rusty, Jeff and friends had been told to go home hours before. The dramatic helicopter rescues, etc., had all happened the day before and they said, "no, we're going to stick around and see if anyone needs us." God heard everyone's prayers, and he sent a volunteer boat to rescue us, and there's not a doubt in my mind.

6) For those of us not living your day-to-day life, can you help paint a picture of your neighborhood at this point, several months after the disaster?

There are probably about 70 or so houses in my neighborhood, and maybe 10-15 families living in the neighborhood right now. Most are still living with someone else. That gives the neighborhood a really weird feel. For the most part, my family is living in the upstairs portion of our home, since downstairs is just sheetrock at the moment. Work is being done on all of the houses in my neighborhood, so various contractor trucks come and go all the time. All the mounds of debris you saw on TV are gone, but some people's lawns still look pretty sketchy, and seeing damaged mailboxes and curbs, and that type of thing is still really commonplace. The neighborhood just looks run down. But inside those homes, even though it's slow, there's rebuilding going on. There are early signs of newness, and freshness everywhere.

7) What does the rebuilding process look like, particularly for you and your family?

It's just slower than you hope for, even with everyone who plays a part doing their job quickly, it just takes time. One foot in front of the other. We [KSBJ] did an online perceptual survey with our listeners in December, and of those affected by Harvey, a third of them told us that they thought they'd be fully recovered within the next few months, and another third of them said "within the next year." That sounds about right.

8) What is something you've learned about your wife in the midst of that experience?

I've always known that my wife, Tonya, was so many good things, but man, you see her go through something like this, and it's when the chips are down, you see how truly strong someone is. She's resourceful and smart, and she's had to deal with the brunt of this, as I've gone back to work. Her job, every day now, is at home, dealing with the aftermath. I get a few hours each day to get away from our home, go to work, and play "normal," but she still lives it, all of the time. So, I'm grateful for her hard work, her love for our family. She lives it out. She's just awesome.

9) What is something you've learned about yourself?

Well, this experience has really been way more about what I've learned about others, more so than learning about myself. I've learned that if you ever have to go through a natural disaster, choose Houston, Texas, because the people are amazing. I won't even attempt to name names-the list is too long. But the support and love we've received from people we know-and people we don't know-has been astounding. I do want to say "thank you" on behalf of everyone at KSBJ who needed help, to anyone and everyone in the industry who may have prayed for us, or helped out with relief through Christian Music Broadcasters. Thank you! We are very grateful. [Christian Music Broadcasters] and KSBJ have been absolutely amazing. I've learned that God is completely faithful. I've learned that the safest place to be in a disaster is in God's hand.

10) As a ministry-minded organization, what has been KSBJ's most important takeaway, regarding how to best serve listeners in the wake of the disaster?

I don't think we should ever discount the power of radio, and the power of the Christian music format. Our licenses say that we're there to operate our stations "in the public interest, convenience and necessity" airing programming that is responsive to the needs of the community. And it's disasters like Harvey where we really see what that looks like. Providing hope, encouragement, and connection to God is HUGE, and it's very real after a disaster, and it's so important. Back to that online perceptual I was talking about: when we asked people "Where did you turn for inspiration and comfort during and after the Hurricane?" the number one answer was "Prayer." The number two answer was "Christian radio." That ranked higher than "my pastor," "Bible reading," "Church Fellowship," and "Worship Services."

I think that's for very practical reasons. Radio is always everywhere people are, and the Church wasn't so much reading their Bibles, fellowshipping, and having worship services, after Harvey, as it was helping people out, and living out the gospel. I've never seen anything like it. If you want to know what the gospel looks like, check out what the church in Houston did after Harvey. I also want to say how proud I am of the KSBJ team for their amazing service to Houston after Harvey. Serving Houston is pretty much in KSBJ's DNA, it's in the bone marrow of the people here, and it really showed. Houston broadcasters, as a group, same thing. Kudos to broadcasters all over the city.

Is there anything people can still do to help?

Absolutely. God hears every prayer, and we know they make a difference, so definitely, please keep praying. My heart goes out to everyone who was affected by Harvey, Irma, or Maria, but I am just devastated as I hear what's still going on in Puerto Rico right now. I would say that if you want to give and help, please find an organization doing "boots on the ground" work in PR and make a donation. Puerto Rico had it harder than Houston in many ways, and the need there will be great for many months and years to come. Don't forget about Puerto Rico.