BOISE, Idaho — Boise! THANK YOU!
First things first, I owe you all a huge THANK YOU! I drove out here sight unseen in 2014 without knowing a single soul within thousands of miles; but boy oh boy, I am so incredibly grateful I took the step of faith to come out here. The journey has been so fun, rewarding, and fulfilling these last eight years, and I owe a huge thank you to all of you for accepting this guy from the land of cornfields with open arms ever since I arrived!
I won’t lie, I have written, deleted, and rewritten this thank you message several times now. No doubt, I am excited about the future ahead, but it’s really bittersweet because my wife Paige and I are leaving a city, community, and group of people that we absolutely LOVE. We are so grateful for our time here in the Treasure Valley, it has been FILLED with abundant blessings, amazing people that we now call family, and countless incredible work opportunities. Words will never be able to appropriately sum up our sincere gratitude and love for this city, community, and all of the amazing people we have met.
What an absolute JOY these last eight years have been. From a Fiesta Bowl to the Kohl Center to a really cold Super Bowl week in Minny to the beaches of Honolulu to an epic spring night in Riggins to Prineville and Portland to Fort Collins and Dallas to San Jose and Logan and everywhere in between, this job has taken me all over the country. I consider myself one of the luckiest guys in the world to have a front-row seat to all of the amazing games, moments, teams, coaches, and athletes that make the Gem State so darn special. This job has provided the opportunity to share stories about what makes the Treasure Valley so special. A special thank you to all of the families that have taken the time and opened the door for us to tell their stories-- families like the Ingersolls, Schiffhauers, Ozomahs, and Brileys to name a few.
To ALL of the players, coaches, administrators, SID’s, trainers, EQ staff members, GA’s, arena and facility workers and security, I can’t THANK YOU enough. It has been my great pleasure to cover and share all of your success over these last eight years. On a personal level, because of all of your achievements, you have provided so many amazing work opportunities, and brought so many incredible memories to my professional and personal life that I will forever cherish. Thank you for always being so gracious with your time. Win or lose, in the good moments and the tough times, you always took time to take care of us media members, and I am truly grateful for this, and appreciative of the amazing relationships that developed over the years. I am honored and so thankful for my time these last eight years, covering all of the amazing programs and wonderful people at Boise State, C of I, NNU, U of I, ISU, CSI, Steelheads, Hawks, as well as all of the special high school programs, coaches, and athletes that make covering prep sports in the valley so much fun.
A huge thank you to Kate Morris, Doug Armstrong and Lisa Chavez. Because of your belief in a youngster that barely had any anchor experience, I was blessed with the opportunity of a lifetime.
Thank you to all of the amazing co-workers past and present at KTVB. It has been an honor to work alongside all of you. Dee, Carolyn, MJ, Kimbo, and all of the awesome weekend anchors over the years like Al pal, Gretch, and Shirah. To our current news team, thanks for always being so supportive and awesome to work with. Also wanted to say a huge thank you to the people behind the scenes that make everything run smoothly. You all are the real MVP's. A big shoutout to Steve Hnatiak; you directed so many of JT and I's shows over the last eight years and became an awesome friend as well, thanks for everything. Big thanks to all of the awesome producers I've worked with as well. D-train, Ellen, you guys were always so easy going and happily gave sports more time whenever we needed it. And a special shoutout to Dani Alsop. Dani is like my third sister. She's an amazing producer, who also helps make sure Friday Night Football and Bronco Roundup Gameday show don't go off the rails. Her voice in my ears these last eight years always brought a smile and a sense of calmness knowing she had everything under control. As amazing as she is at her job, she's an even better person and friend.
Thanks to all of the other awesome media members that have helped make my time here so memorable. We’ve spent countless hours together, and you guys have always been so kind to me. Because of you, I looked forward to working each and every day.
A special Thank You to JT. One of the best compliments I could get over the years was that it looks like JT and I are good friends and have a lot of fun together. That's because we *are* great friends and have a lot of fun together. He's a second brother to me. He was in my wedding, I was in his. You, Camille and Collins took me in from day one and have always been there for us. There's not a better boss in the world. You also won't find a harder or more talented worker in this biz than JT. I will miss the shows, the daily jokes and laughter and stories, the late-night edit sessions on fall Fridays before a big gameday show, the countless hours in a car or plane or hotel together, but I think what I'll miss most is just the daily interaction and joy we shared with each other every day for the last 2,831 days. You, Camille, Collins and your parents are family to Paige and I. We love you and can't thank you enough.
Lastly, I just want to thank you all that make up this city and community. These last eight years have been such a joyful ride. When I lost my sister last fall, I had so many of you reach out to Paige and I to express your condolences. Your kindness showered us in love and support in a way that we will never forget -- Thank you. Selfishly, I hope I’ve come to be known as a guy that brought a lot of joy, smiles, and fun to your living rooms each night; someone who you knew absolutely loved his job. Above all else, I hope you will remember me as someone who was really nice, treated you with kindness and empathy, and just tried to be salt and light in this world.
THANK YOU, Boise, for everything. Paige and I are forever grateful and we will ALWAYS love and cherish our time here!
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