"I have only been a part of the Gearheart family for the past three years and have NEVER meet an individual that had (has) impacted me, as a person, as Dr. Don Bevins. I have fond memories of Hillbilly Days, Local Media Events and just hanging around the office and will miss him. He was a true ICON for the mountains of Eastern Kentucky and a Powerful, Powerful Radio Personality that we MAY NEVER witness again in this OR ANY lifetime. Christina and I will think of you always and our heart goes out to your family, your friend, Heath"

**Note: Funeral services for Bevins will be held at 1 p.m., Thursday, at Lucas and Son Funeral Home, Pikeville.**

APPALACHIAN NEW-EXPRESS ARTICLE:

"Iconic radio personality passes away at 61"

With his striking baritone voice and an ability to befriend almost anyone, Donald “Dr. Don” Bevins became an icon to his community and an integral part of its culture.

But, on Sunday, Bevins died at 61, leaving behind a legacy of music and community involvement.

He returned home, which led to his big break a few years later.

In 1975, Bevins hit his stride, when he got a job at WECL, a new radio station opened in Elkhorn City by Allen Epling and his father.

Follow up:

That, too, almost didn’t happen, according to Epling.

Bevins, who was then a DJ at WLSI in Pikeville, brought an audition tape by to the Eplings to apply for a job. Allen Epling was familiar with Bevins, having attended Pikeville College with him, but was hesitant, based on the demo tape, to hire Bevins.

“To be honest with you, that first tape, I thought was terrible,” Epling said.

But Epling said he later relented, and brought Bevins on board, a decision he doesn’t regret.

“Don was the heart and soul of WECL,” Epling said.

Bevins began as a daytime D.J., but asked for some freedom, which Epling said could really only be given late at night. Epling didn’t know initially what he had done, but soon found out that he had made a good decision.

“It turns out that he kind of developed his own style and a following and it just grew and grew,” Epling said. “It turned out that he was our most popular D.J.”

Bevins began playing new and different artists for the time, artists that were far from the mainstream, like Bob Seger, but who would eventually become the mainstream.

And, Epling said, Bevins’ encyclopedic knowledge of music allowed him to be unique and connect with the audience.

“If he would put an album on of Bob Seger, he would tell you, before the album started, Bob Seger’s life history, and he would tell you how the album was created, who the band members are and a history of the music that nobody else could do,” Epling said. “And I don’t know how he got all this information. He was in the true sense of the word, a music professor.”

In the 2008 interview, Bevins said he felt WECL and the music he played there filled a cultural hole in the region.

“It was the only place you could get real rock ‘n’ roll music,” he said. “You would get pop music on the other stations, or country music. While they were playing Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, I was playing Neil Young or Roxy Music.”

Epling said he often encouraged Bevins to look for a job at a bigger station.

“I realized that when Don was at the radio station that ECL was not good enough for him,” Epling said. “And I encouraged him.”

Bevins left WECL in the late 1980s, when it took on an easy listening format, and went to a station in Charleston, W.Va.

While in Charleston, Bevins was contacted by Paul Gearheart, who was seeking help in starting up a new radio station — WXLR — and a cable access television station — WPRG.

Paul Gearheart’s son, Adam Gearheart, became not just a co-worker to Bevins, but a friend.

Adam Gearheart was a teenager just out of high school when he began working at WXLR and WPRG, where he became a coworker and, eventually, a friend to Bevins.

“We traveled to a lot of concerts together and did a lot of things outside the office,” Gearheart said.

Bevins, according to Adam Gearheart, took the fledgling cable access television station and made it into something different.

“When he got here, it just kicked into high gear,” Gearheart said.

Bevins scoured the newspapers for the biggest stories, and sought them out on his own, attending meetings and events. But, Gearheart said one of Bevins’ strongest assets for working at the television station was his ability to listen to people.

“Whether he was interested or not in people’s stories, he would sit there and hear them out,” he said. “He never met a stranger.”

And that, Gearheart said, came from the fact that Bevins loved the area where he grew up and made his life.

“He was a good-hearted country guy,” he said. “He was proud of his roots here in Eastern Kentucky.

“We’ve lost a legend, that’s all there is to it. His voice and his dedication to our mountains is second-to-none.”

In the 2008 interview with the News-Express, Bevins spoke of how much he loved doing the video work at WPRG. But his first love remained music.

And he didn’t just play other people’s music on the radio. Bevins was one of the founding members of Stepin’ Stones, one of the area’s most popular native rock groups for decades.

Martin Slone, a cofounder of the group, which continues to play regularly, said Bevins initially sang and played the organ for the band. Bevins, according to Slone, brought the “Rolling Stones” sound to the group, and continued to bring a lot of energy to the band’s recent performances.

“He, like all of us, had maybe slowed down some, but he had a lot of energy and got a lot of enjoyment from it,” Slone said.

In the 2008 News-Express interview, Bevins said he believed he had ended up where he was supposed to be, acknowledging how big a part of his life rock music made up.

“That’s who I am,” he said. “You can’t deny who you are. I was born to rock. Thank God, I’ve been lucky enough to do it without being tied to corporate playlist or anything like that. In my heart of hearts, I think I’ve made a lot of people happy by being an entertainer.”

By Russ Cassady Staff Writer, Appalachian News-Express

Addtional Website Articles:
*The Medical Leader
*Allvoices.com
*The Lexington Herald-Leader