WAAY TV New Employee 1968

First Snowy Impressions

As we approached Hamton Cove, it was getting difficult to see. The windshield wipers were struggling to clear the snow off the Ford Mustang's windshield. We stopped at a service station at the foot of Monte Sano mountain. We pulled behind the building where the pavement was protected from the heavy snowfall and put snow chains on the Mustang.

"We will go to Lewters Hardware and get you a set of chains", the driver told me.But he cautioned, " If you lose them, you will have to buy the next set yourself".

As we turned off Hwy 431 onto Monte Sano Blvd, the snow was already a couple of inches deep.
"How do you know where you are going ?" , I asked.
"Follow the power lines." the driver said.
I was wondering to myself, "What have you got yourself into now?"

When we pulled into the TV station parking lot, there were three cars outside the building.

Seeing no tracks in the snow, I asked, "How did they get here?"

"That's the receptionist, the production manager, and the owner's cars." "They all live up here on the mountain".

"Let's go in and I will introduce you to them and to the most addictive job you will ever know."

And that was my introduction to WAAY-TV on that snowy January 3, 1968.

Cactus was the Mustang driver and M.D. owned one of the cars parked outside WAAY- TV

Don Roden

. . . and now, the rest of the story. In the photo below, from that actual day, you can see Cactus in the driver's seat and Don is riding "shotgun" as Cactus said.