LON TEGELS
News Director
ltegels@wlio.com

Lon Tegels has been in broadcast news business for more than 23 years. He joined WLIO TV in April 2003. In addition to his duties as News Director, Lon has been a reporter, photographer, sports anchor, and assignment manager. He is a graduate of Iowa State University. A native of Story City, Iowa (near Des Moines) Highlights of his career include breaking the "Heaven's Gate" mass suicide story while working in for NBC in San Diego. Other highlights include the announcement of the Jacksonville Jaguars as the 30th NFL team while working for WTLV in Jacksonville, FL. He has covered the Superbowl, National League Championship Series between the Padres and Braves, Republican National Convention and Hurricane Andrew. And you can't work in television in Iowa without covering the Iowa Caucuses. He's covered three.

He has won numerous awards including one for a documentary on Flight 232. The DC-10 Jet Airliner that crashed at the Sioux City Gateway Airport in July of 1989. It's the one where you've seen the clips of the tumbling jet on fire. It was the plane that crashed and 189 of the 285 passengers survived.

Lon has worked in TV stations across the country. From Boise, Idaho to Ft Myers., Florida. From Hartford, Connecticut to Evansville, Indiana. He's worked every position in the newsroom.

Lon thought when he came to Lima that life was going to slow down. His first week here it was announced that the President was coming to visit the tank plant. So much for breaking into a new job slowly. In addition to the tank plant, President Bush came back to Ohio in 2004 a number of times. Maybe the most challenging was when President Bush visited Lima Senior High and a a thunderstorm swept through the area.

Since Lon's arrival many things have changed including the amount of live coverage the station now provides. Each year the crew takes News Journal @ noon and 6pm on the road to the fairgrounds to the Allen County Fair. Live Coverage now includes producing the shows from the Futures Golf Classic and Square Fair. Lon says is biggest achievement is improving the quality of staff now on the air and the look of the newscasts.