By Staff
This morning was our beloved hometown radio station's last day on the air. What a sad morning it was.
We had a small radio in the office so we could hear the final morning show, and what a show it was!
RC highlighted some of the area's best athletic games over the years and a number of other memorable stories were shared. Listeners of the radio station were able to call in and give their final thoughts – some family members of station employees, others just avid listeners over the years. They shared fond memories, laughs and a lot of "thank yous" for years of excellent broadcasting.
I didn't know everyone at the radio station, but I had the honor of getting to know RC and Rob a little better over the past few years. I cannot say enough about what these guys have done, not only for the morning show, but for high school sports as well. It has given some people the opportunity to listen to games that for some reason they were unable to attend. It gave our area athletes a chance to be recognized by another source other than the newspaper. Most importantly, it kept this community up-to-date with how our area teams were doing.
RC, Rob, Chris and my father, Larry, did a wonderful job covering some of the area's best games. If a game didn't turn out as expected, they always found a way to make it more interesting. What a great group of guys!
I also had the pleasure of playing softball with these guys this past summer, as we were all on the same softball team. RC did not play, but did a fine job of giving us our little cheering section, which sometimes consisted of him and maybe two other people. He was always cracking some kind of a joke, mostly toward his son. We had a lot of fun and hopefully we all will be back again next year. There is not one bad thought that comes to mind from last season- well, except that Rob was the strikeout king of our team, but I know he already caught his fare share from that issue from his father, so I will let it rest.
I really would like to thank these guys for helping me out when I first started writing full time for the paper. If I needed stats, Chris or my father would be right there to help me with any information I needed. I even rode with them a few times to some games that were a distance away.
My most memorable night would have to be the night, just this past year, when the Niles and Benton Harbor football teams played. Who could forget that game? The score reflected a basketball game and it was truly a night of disbelief.
Toward the end of the night, my father and I, who had been standing on the sidelines for most of the game, walked to the press box and entered the room, where RC and Chris were announcing the game. It was at the point of the contest where touchdowns turned comical and everyone wanted to see just how high the score could get -remember, the game was more than three hours long at this point!
We got to the press box and RC and Chris were just cracking up laughing. RC was making joke after joke and Chris could hardly contain himself. It was a great way to end a very long night. I listened to the rebroadcast the next morning just to get another laugh.
Speaking of laughs, did anyone here RC's version of "My Way?" I think he should audition for American Idol with that song! Just kidding, you did a fine job.
WNIL and all of its employees will be greatly missed. It's so sad to see yet another piece of Niles' history gone, but we should all be thankful for the years of fine broadcasting and music this station has provided. I wish everyone at the station the best and hopefully this will not be the end of your wonderful careers in broadcasting!