By Amy White
The Texas Catholic
Dave Palmer did not set out to work in Catholic communications. In fact, the long-running executive director of the north Texas office of the Guadalupe Radio Network said that, at an earlier time in his life, he could not have conceived of bringing together his love for radio and the Catholic faith into one job. But for about two decades, Palmer has stood at the helm of Catholic radio in north Texas, broadcasting the good news of the Gospel to millions of listeners.
God’s path
Looking back on his career, Palmer can see God’s hand through it all—even the early days, he said, when he did not know where he was being led.
“I just wanted to get behind a microphone, or just wanted to broadcast,” he shared, “but I never knew what I wanted to broadcast.”
Palmer tried a few different paths before he landed on Catholic radio. He worked at a Top 40 radio station; he was a TV weatherman in Mississippi; he even tried his hand at standup comedy for a stint. Through each of these jobs, Palmer retained the “bug” for communications; but he had not yet developed a strong passion for the Catholic faith. That changed, however, after he began thinking about his future vocation.
“As I was searching for a potential spouse, it became very clear to me that I didn’t know my faith,” he explained, “and the kind of woman I was looking for wanted somebody who knew their faith.”
Palmer felt drawn to learn more about Catholicism and soon began to fall in love with it. With a newfound zeal for the faith, he made a career change in 2001: He began teaching theology at Bishop Dunne High School. While there, he joined the ragtag St. Francis Xavier Society, whose goal was to bring a Catholic radio station to north Texas.
“All the sudden, the media and the faith could come together,” Palmer recalled, “and I could do both of the things that I love both at the same time.”
Through his involvement with the society, Palmer became executive director of Radio Xavier in 2004, then soon after joined the north Texas office of the Guadalupe Radio Network. Currently, GRN has 47 stations in its network and a potential listening audience of 31 million people.
“I think God was directing me to the path of eventually falling in love with my faith,” Palmer reflected, “and then already at that point having a number of years of experience in radio and television, a little bit of stand up, which I think helped out when I finally found what it was that my purpose was.”
Voices of Faith
Dave Palmer, executive director of the north Texas office of the Guadalupe Radio Network, has been a prominent voice in Catholic radio for almost two decades.
In this episode of Voices of Faith, Palmer shares the story of how he became a Catholic communicator in north Texas and learned to bring together his love of broadcasting and the faith.
Sharing a message of hope
Now a familiar voice in Catholic communications, Palmer said the best part of his job is hearing the impact that Catholic radio has in people’s lives.
The stories are countless: One listener approached Palmer in tears to say that, after listening to the station, she realized for the first time that God loved her. Another said that she got connected to a group that the station promoted and, as a result, eventually converted to Catholicism. One man, deep in depression, told Palmer that he had listened to the station late one night while up drinking and heard a message that touched his heart; he returned to church the next weekend.
“At any given moment—we broadcast 24 hours a day—the right person at the right time could be listening to it,” Palmer said. “People are getting different things out of it, and they’re hearing the message that they need to hear.”
Palmer expressed gratitude that he could use his platform to promote uplifting messages, including by sharing about the good work of pro-life organizations in Dallas-Fort Worth. The Catholic Pro-Life Community chose Palmer as its 2023 Pro-Life Person of the Year in recognition of his contribution to promoting a culture of life on air.
Sissel Anderson, the north Texas assistant at the Guadalupe Radio Network, has worked alongside Palmer for nearly eight years. She has seen him wear many hats at the station— hosting shows, raising funds, and keeping the station running smoothly.
Anderson said that, through everything he does, Palmer approaches his work with a sense of curiosity, humility, and a genuine love for people.
“He has interviewed all sorts of people: He’s interviewed politicians; he’s interviewed movie stars; he’s interviewed the organist at a local Catholic church, the parish secretary, all sorts of jobs,” she said, “and he treats all of them extremely the same… ‘I care about your story, and I want it to be known.’”
Almost weekly, the people Palmer interviews will say “this is the best interview I’ve ever done,” Anderson added. “They feel like their voice is heard.”
Reflecting on the power of Catholic communication, Palmer emphasized the importance of remaining connected with God.
“It’s not just hard work; it’s prayer life and it’s devotion; you can only do so much on your own power,” he said. “We want to get that message out there, and then trust in the Holy Spirit that that person who needs it is going to tune in.”
Cutline for featured image: Dave Palmer has broadcasted the good news of the Gospel to millions of listeners across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex over his nearly two decades as executive director of the Guadalupe Radio Network’s north Texas office. (AMY WHITE/The Texas Catholic)
