[W8MWA] FW: Charles W Stuchell K4CWA -- SK

[Bob West]

THIS IS FROM DAVID MITCHELL K8DM

Cheers,
...Bob West WA8YCD

WVSARC PLANNING MEETING -- OCTOBER 12, 2013 at the Parkersburg Hamfest
From: david_mitchell71 at yahoo.com
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 18:38:25 -0400

Hello Bob – Thank you again for telling me about Charlie’s passing. Jenny and I tried to get down to the funeral but the business demands here have been astronomical and we just could not put a plan together to make it happen. I did talk to his wife, Carol, this evening and expressed my condolences. I thought that you and some of the other hams in Morgantown might be interested in the article below from the Bristol (TN) Herald Courier newspaper website. Charlie was quite a celebrity in the Tri-Cities area. Please feel free to pass the article along to others. It you are so moved, I am certain his wife Carol would like to hear some of your personal reflections on Charlie. She can be reached at (423) 538-4811 He will be missed, David Veteran broadcaster Stuchell dead at 64Posted: Sunday, September 1, 2013 10:08 pm  Charlie Stuchell was an institution on local airwaves for much of the past four decades but now his microphone is silent. Stuchell, 64, died Sunday morning at Bristol Regional Medical Center after a long illness. The wisecracking radio newsman was most widely known for his traffic reports – keeping motorists aware of trouble ahead – and providing live reports from some of the region’s major news events. He most recently served as news assignment editor for WXBQ radio in Bristol , Va. “On the news side, Charlie Stuchell was one of the best friends Bristol Motor Speedway and dragway ever had,” BMS spokesman Kevin Triplett said Sunday. “If we had a press conference it was unusual for him not to be there ready and willing to help us – for decades.” Triplett said vintage photos show Stuchell interviewing drivers at the speedway back in the 1970s. Born in Morgantown, W.Va. , Stuchell moved to the region after graduating from Fairmont State College and began working for WXBQ-FM. He left for a time to work for other stations but returned in 1990 and remained there ever since. “When I first started on the desk at the TV station, I would lean on Charlie,” WJHL TV’s Doug Counts said. “If I needed directions to someplace or to know if something was worth covering, I would call Charlie. He would always answer my questions and then call me back an hour later to see if I needed something else.” In a 2008 interview with the Bristol Herald Courier, Stuchell said covering the fire that destroyed the former John Sevier Hotel in Johnson City was his most memorable story. “It was Christmas Eve 1989 and I had just gotten married on Dec. 15,” Stuchell said at that time. “My wife didn’t know what to think. It was snowy and cold, just terrible weather. And I was down there [in Johnson City] for like 30 hours straight.” WXBQ Program Director Bill Hagy called Stuchell “an institution” in that 2008 story. Stuchell was a volunteer with Bristol Life Saving Crew and active in a ham radio organization despite a number of health issues. Counts said Stuchell always seemed to be in a good mood. “He was always smiling and cutting up,” Counts said. “Charlie meant a lot to a lot of us. He will surely be missed.” dmcgee at bristolnews.com  This picture came from the ham radio operator in Morgantown ---    		 	   		  
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/w8mwa/attachments/20130918/a53f59a8/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 52452 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/w8mwa/attachments/20130918/a53f59a8/attachment-0001.jpg>