The Mail-Journal, Volume 26, Number 34, Milford, Kosciusko County, 7 October 1987 — Page 6

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THE MAIL-JOURNAL — Wed., October 7,1987

Communitycorner

Chris Roberts was a 'radio child'

I By CARLA GAFF Staff Writer When you're only 15 years old, tired of school and your only dream centers around being on the radio, what can you do? Well, you could do what Wawasee Lake resident Chris Roberts did — get a job in a radio station as an underaged, white minority employee. “The way I have it figured,” explained Chris, “if you can find someone who’ll hire you, teach you, and pay you at the same time, then go for it.” He stated he'd had troubles in school, was only interested in his electronic classes, and basically was ready to get out into the real world. He started seeking a job by visiting all the radio stations in the Cleveland, Ohio, area. Profile “I knew what the lobby of every radio station in town looked like — I’d been to them all so often seeking a job,” he said. “But it was kind of the catch-22 bit, where everyone wanted someone with experience but no one was willing to give you a chance in order to get experience. ” At the age of 15, Chris landed his first job*at a radio station in Cleveland. The station was known for its rhythm and blues and Chris was the only white employee. WABQ, as it was called, was located in a rather rough section of town. Racism was a prominent issue then, and Chris was forced to park his car, or get a ride as far as the “safe” section of town and be escorted to the station from there. “I was actually a white newsman on the air when Martin Luther King was shot,” said Chris, “a lot of weird things happened then and I just happened to be there.” lie went on to say he also covered the Kent State riots and was not at all surprised when it happened. “I didn’t think it was that big of a deal back then," commented Chris, who was barely 19 years old at the time. “We were living in exciting times and didn’t even know it — with the riots, Vietnam war, and the shootings of Kennedy and King. I guess that kind of tells you where I was with news back then, but I like to think I have a better nose for news now.”

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FULFILLING A DREAM — WOWO Radio, 1190 AM. morning show disc jockey Chris Roberts is fulfilling a dream. Chris has been a part of the radio scene since he was 15 years old. He modestly states that what he's done can be done by anyone aggressively following a dream. Chris is shown here getting ready to tape a show. (Photo by Carla Gaff > He went on to say he was hired in to his first job as an engineer/newscaster with no experience or schooling in news or writing. “The boss asked me if I recognized any of the equipment at the station and if I thought I could fix it if it broke down,” said Chris. “I

Wawasee Kiwanians install new officers

Wawasee Kiwanis Club install ed new officers and entertained wives of club members at a Ladies Night Banquet. Friday. Oct. 2, in a local restaurant. Also during the evening presentations were made for service to the club. Officer inducted were: President — Phil Hoover President-elect — Larry Mar tindale Vice president — Don Strauss Secretary — Terry McDonald Treasurer — Ted Mahnensmith Dennis Yoder. Lieutenant Governor for Kiwanis, inducted Mike Johnson and Tom Hodgson as new members of the board of directors. Dave Holderman, Goshen, past district governor, and Bill Dawson, Nappanee, district governor, along with their wives, were also present Herschel Wells, outgoing president, presented Pam Pletcher of Wawasee High School with a pla que of appreciation for service with the Kiwanis Key Club and 'Mahnensmith for his work with the Builders Club at Wawasee Middle School. Appreciation plaques were presented to Phil and Sixta Hoover and Larry and Pat Martindale for their service with Jhe Little League program Clair

Mohler and Jack Oswald were also presented with appreciation plaques for work with the Interclub program Wells also presented a plaque to McDonald as Outstanding Kiwanian of the Wawasee Kiwanis Club McDonald had previously received recognition Primary Moms learn about the youth center . Christa Francis, director of the Lakeland Youth Center, told of the various programs and activities at the youth center at the October 4 meeting of Syracuse Primary Mothers Club. The meeting was in the home of Pam Westfall with 10 members and one guest, Carol Nicolai, present During the short business meeting, it was announced the children’s Halloween party is planned for October 24 with mothers encouraged to dress up with theirtfiildren. The bake sale was announced as being October 31 at Thornburgs with Lori Knisley presenting information on Brite Music on November 16. Mrs Westfall opened the meeting with the club collect and Georgia Lemberg read the minutes of the last meeting. Sylvia Gargett and Diane Grothaus, co-hostesses, served hot cider and doughnuts. The next meeting will be Oct. 19, at 7 p.m., in the home of Mrs. Gargett. Kim Conrad will be demonstrating toys. Prune shrubs It’s time to prune summerflowering shrubs. Some shrubs only need flower heads removed

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simply told him, ‘sure.’ He then asked it 1 could goon the air too, and I said, ‘I never have, but I’d like to.’ And, so I was hired.” In the beginning Chris received most of the news he gave out on the air from scanners, police radios, tips, TV, wire services and other sources, but seldom went out to cover the news. He did a lot of collecting information frominside sources and rewriting. He was working 18-19 hours a day, between going to school, working at the station and “moonlighting” at a number of places. It was at that time that he began working at an area TV station on the side, hiring in as a camera man, moving on to floor director, then technical director and eventually even directed a number of small shows. During that time, he also helped build one of the first instructional school systems for Parma School Corporation “I was having such a great time and making good money that I really never thought of the hours I was working,” commented Chris, “I guess I didn’t actually think of it as work.” Chris graduated from Valley Forge High School, but didn’t actually consider going to college, because he was doing just what he wanted to do. Working at a radio station. ‘ ‘ Not going to college has never stood in my way, ’’said Chris. He went on to say he doesn’t have any inclination to go back to college for radio or journalism, but, “if being a doctor didn’t take 12 years, I d consider it. That’s not to say I have a real interest in the medical field - but if I wertfegoing to go back to school, it’d be some type of glaring light idea in a different field.” At this time, Chris is doing the morning show on WOWO with Dugan Fry, plus serving as program director for the station. He’s been with the Fort Wayne station for 14 years. He and his wife, Rena, have lived in the area full time for over a year and were summer residents before that time. They stated they enjoy the area and even liked their first winter at the lake. Though they have no children at this time, Chris and Rena spend a lot of time with their two springer spaniels, and Rena stated “They’re our babies.” Chris said that right now he’s pretty busy preparing for a promot'onal trip to Epcot Center where he'll be scuba diving with sharks while doing a live broadcast. He conveyed he has never gone scuba diving before, and when he was asked to do the broadcast the first thing he said was, “aren’t there sharks in that tank?” Although he was assured there are definitely sharks in Walt Disney ’s Living Seas, he now feels confident that the feat is 100 percent safe and is looking forward to the trip A childhood success story is hard to come by these days Rut perhaps even harder to find is a successful person with not only the faith and modesty of a child, but also with a genuine belief that what he’s done can be done by anyone willing to seek after his/her dream. A radio child — Chris Roberts — plans to continue doing what he enjoys — living on the radio.

at the district meeting at French Lick when the Wawasee Kiwanis Club was named the Outstanding

Jim Evans speaks to Kiwanis Club

Jim Evans addressed the Wawasee Kiwanis Club Saturday morning, Oct. 3, regarding United Way. United Way is largely all volunteer, commented Evans, who stated there are one or two paid staff members in Warsaw, but practically no overhead expense. “So what is collected by fund drives goes back to the people in the area. The United Way Campaign in Kosciusko County is well organized.” There is an industrial division, a business division, several professional divisions, school divisions in addition to the division of which Evans is captain. That division has a goal of $5,200 in Syracuse which will be raised from individuals and small businesses. The county goal this year is $550,000, which will be used for some 22 United Fund agencies, two of those are in Syracuse. They are the Lakeland Youth Center and the Lakeland Daycare Center. Although the Syracuse goal is $5,200, more than that will come back to those two agencies. Evans commented more than that will be raised in Syracuse from industry and professional areas. Some funding is received each year from the McNamera fund, a trust fund set up by a bequest to the United Way of a large block of stock by a wealthy benefactor. The interest each year pays for staff salaries and other necessary expenses. This makes it possible for 100 percent of what is collected by fund drives to come right back to the county in which it is collected. Evans said as a community, "We receive more than we give to United Way. The McNamera Fund interest makes this possible. In addition to the two agencies, the Lakeland Youth Center and Lakeland Daycare Center,

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which receive funding from United Way, there are also various individuals who benefit as needs arise. Silver Thimbles meet in Price home Mrs. Philip Price of 5 Camelot, r 1. Milford, entertained members of the Silver Thimble Club of the Milford Apostolic Christian Church on Monday evening, Oct. 5. The 16 persons present were taken through the newly-built home of the Prices. Mrs. Glenn Price was a guest. Mrs. Robert Lee Beer, president, opened the meeting. The club collect was repeated, and reports were given by Mrs. Sam Beer, secretary, and Mrs. Philip Price, treasurer. A thank you note from Walter Wuthrich was read. A birthday card shower was suggested for Mrs. Oscar Graff’s 93rd birthday which will be on October 14. The charity box was passed. “Happy Birthday” was sung to Mrs. Carlton Beer and Mrs. Ray Haab. “Happy Anniversary” was sung to Mrs. William Troup and Mrs. Carlton Beer. Mrs. Philip Price read “Seasons” for the devotions and the hymn, “Creation,” was sung by the group. Game prizes were brought to the meeting and will be given to Lakeland Loving Care. The hostess served her guests coconut and banana pie, AsianRussian hot tea and 7-Up. Mrs. Jesse Beer received the door prize. The November meeting will be with Mrs. Robert Cockburn, 18 Camelot Drive, r 1, Milford. The annual election of officers will be held during this meeting.

CALENDAR Week Os October 7 To October 14 WEDNESDAY Syracuse-Wawasee Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors 7:45 a. m., in South Shore Golf Club Syracuse-Wawasee Chamber of Commerce Luncheon 12 noon, in South Shore Golf Club _— Syracuse Lions Club 6:30p.m., in the Beacon Restaurant North Webster Town Board 7 p.m., in the Town Hall Teen AA Under 20 Group 7 p.m., in St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, Syracuse Alcoholics Anonymous 7:30 p.m., in Episcopal Retreat House, South Shore Drive, Lake Wawasee, Syracuse, closed meeting Alanon 7:30 p.m., in St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, Syracuse Syracuse Jaycees 7:30p.m., in Lakeland Eagles Order of the Eastern Star 7:30 p.m., in Milford Masonic Lodge THURSDAY ' Wawasee Community Toughlove 7 p.m., in Lakeland Youth Center, Syracuse. Parent support group for parents troubled by their teenagers behavior North Webster Lions Club Board Meeting XfiSElSk 7 p.m., in North Webster Fire Station Shady Ladies Bunco Club /pTA flkyA 7:30p.m. XJWW Turkey Creek Conservation Club 7:30p.m., in the Clubhouse Kappa Omicron Chapter, Beta Sigma Phi Sorority 7:30 p.m. FRIDAY ' Milford Kiwanis 6:45 a.m., in Milford Community Building Syracuse-Wawasee Retail Merchants Division Ba. m., in Englans Family Restaurant Alcoholics Anonymous Car! Sheperd Memoriral Group 7:30 p.m., in Episcopal Retreat House, South Shore Drive, Lake Wawasee, Syracuse, open meeting Heart of'Lakes Squares 8-10:30p.m., in Syracuse Elementary ’SATURDAY Wawasee Kiwanis 7a. m., in Gropp’s Syracuse FSBMilford Area Development Council, Inc. jflN 9 a.m ~ in Milford Community Building VFW Ladies Auxiliary, Syracuse 1 pm. SUNDAY Alcoholics Anonymous Fireball Group 10 a.m., in North Webster Fire Station, open meeting. Milford Senior Citizens Carry-In Dinner 1 p.m., in Milford Community Building Alcoholics Anonymous Sunday Night Recovery Group 8 p.m., in North Webster United Methodist Church, closed meeting. Alanon Sunday Night Group 8 p.m., in North Webster United Methodist Church, closed meeting. MONDAY Lakeland Kiwanis 6:45 am., in North Webster Church of God meeting room Milford Town Board 9:15 a m. in Arbogast Center, Bashor Home, Goshen. Milford United Methodist Church will serve the coffee and the program will be given by Nancy Munch, director of food services for Bashor Home. 6:3op.m.,inthetownhall - F.O.E. Men's Meeting, Aerie 3760 7 p.m., in Lakeland Eagles, 404 Sycamore St, Syracuse Columbian Reading 7:30p.m. Federated Women’s Club Ladies of the Round Table 7:30p.m. Alanon Milford Family Group 7:30 p.m., in Milford United Methodist Church Alcoholics Anonymous Milford Group 7:30 p.m., in Milford United Methodist Church, closed meeting. Alcoholics Anonymous North Webster Group 7:30 p.m., in North Webster United Methodist Church, open meeting Milford American Legion Bp.m. TUESDAY Learning Adventures For Fun 8:30-12 noon, in Calvary United Methodist Church, Syracuse Alanon Just For Today 9:30 am., in St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, Syracuse Syracuse-Wawasee Rotary 12 noon in the Beacon Restaurant .wTLPjp Home Arts Club 1:30 pm Syracuse Business and Professional Women’s Club 6:30p.m. Adult Children of Alcoholics 6:30p.m., in North Webster United Methodist Church Wawasee School Board 7 p.m., in administration building Sugar N’ Spice 'Bl Club 7:30p.m. Lakeland Art Association 7:30 p.m., in Cardinal Center, Warsaw Milford Masons 7:30 p.m., in the Masonic Lodge Warsaw Chapter of the Compassionate Friends 7:30 p.m., in the Justice Building community room, Warsaw. A support group for bereaved parents. Anyone who has experienced the death of a child is encouraged to come. Syracuse Coin Club 7:30 p.m., in Lakeland Youth Center Syracuse Civil Defense 7:30 p.m., in Civil Defense Building, Dolan Drive WEDNESDAY Goodwill Club * . 1:30 p.m., in the House of Friendship Syracuse Fire Department Fire Drill 7 p.m., fire drill at the fire station Lakeland Eagles Auxiliary Meeting Aerie 3760 7 p.m., in Lakeland Eagles, 404 Sycamore Street, Syracuse Teen AA Under 20 Group 7 p.m., in St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, Syracuse Alcoholics Anonymous 7:30 p.m., in Episcopal Retreat House, South Shore Drive, Lake Wawasee, Syracuse, closed meeting Alanon 7:30 p.m., in St. Andrew’s United Methodist Church, Syracuse