35 Years

   I'm not exactly sure of the date, but it was 35 years ago this month I started my career in radio. It was in the small town of Peace River in Northwestern Alberta in February 1979 I clicked on the mic for the very first time as a D.J.
   In a station like that, you get to do just about everything, with the possible exception of sales and commercial copywriting. And that's pretty much what I did for the year and a half I was there. Northern Alberta is a beautiful area, and the town itself had a charm to it as well, being in the Peace River valley.
   After about a year and a half (and getting into the news side of the industry) it was Prince George B.C to work in radio, and anchor the late night TV package for about a year.
   After leaving the Central Interior, I was out of the industry for a few years, but got back in in 1985 in High River, Alberta. From there, it was Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Regina and now Yorkton Saskatchewan.
   Has this industry been good to me? It certainly has. Where else could you work and be able to talk to newsmakers of the day. And ask pointed questions to them? In my time, I've interviewed Premiers in 4 provinces, 2 men who would eventually become Prime Ministers of Canada, celebrities etc.
   But that's not what keeps me coming back morning after morning. It's what a lot of people call the "daily grind". Doing local stories. Talking to local people. That, to me, is what the industry is about. Don't get me wrong. It was a great opportunity to be able to ask Marina Oswald-Porter (widow of JFK assassination suspect Lee Harvey Oswald) a couple of questions some 20 years ago at a symposium. But it's being allowed the opportunity to speak with and tell the stories of local people that drives me.
   I just hope I have another 10 or so years ahead of me.

TTFN