Today Marcy and I were thrilled to be part of the on-air tributes to our friend Dave Bevington, as he steps away from full-time work at WMVO/WQIO Radio in Mount Vernon.

Dave has been an important influence in my professional career and a good friend over the years.

When I was a 4th grader at Pleasant Street Elementary School in 1979, I met Dave for the first time.  He spoke to our class during a career week about radio.  That was one of the first times I thought about broadcasting as something I might want to do.  Little did I know that 12 years later, as a recent college graduate with a broadcasting degree, I would be hired at WMVO as Sports Director and have to fill Dave’s shoes!

That first year was an incredible post-college learning experience as I was literally thrown into the fire doing Mount Vernon High School sports and whatever else the station needed.  Dave took a couple years off from radio and was running a business in town, but was still a constant encouragement to me.  I made my fair share of mistakes and flubs…and I’m sure there were days when the listeners wished Dave wouldn’t have left…but thanks to people like Dave, Ron Staats, Charlie Kilkenny, Rodger Hill and parents and fans of the Yellow Jackets, I survived that first year and worked to get better and better each year.

A few years later, Dave and I finally got the chance to work together as Ashland Broadcasting merged the old K-Country (98.3/107.7) with WMVO and WQIO.  We had a great run together for several years until I left in early 2005 to join MVNU.

I remember sitting around with management trying to make a decision about where to put “Sports Roundtable” when 98.3 went to a Top 40 KISS-FM format in 2002.  We knew the value of the program to the community and honestly, the region.  Putting Dave’s show on WQIO was probably one of the smartest decisions I was ever a part of, even though at the time it went against traditional “radio programming” strategy.  Putting a sports show on a station targeted to 25-54 females?  Crazy.  But it worked.  It made sense. And it’s still going strong today!

Dave has always been someone I could trust.  He’s a great family man.  He’s wise, sharing his life experiences and advice with those who are willing to listen, and doesn’t shy away from what he believes.  Seeing him renew his relationship with God has been so exciting. Plus, he’s got a great sense of humor and we have so many hilarious stories that will last for years to come.

Dave, my friend, I wish you many blessings during this transition period.  This one’s for you!

-Joe