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Hall of Fame 2000John McDonald |
Born in Chanute, Kansas, John graduated from Abilene High School in 1964 and immediately joined the Navy.
Serving on the USS Guam based in Norfolk, Virginia, he visited with staff members of a Norfolk radio station who were doing a "Ship of the Week" program aboard the Guam.
John recalls: "They told me that all they did was sit and talk...and I liked to sit and I liked to talk, so it sounded like the perfect career choice for me. They didn't tell me that one day I would start work at 5a.m. and get home at 8 p.m. or the long trips to do play-by-play and sign on at 5 the next morning."
Soon after his naval stint, he met with John Howard at KGFW in Kearney who hired John to do the 7p.m.-Midnight shift. That was in 1968.It was also an important year for John when he also married Judy.
Eventually, John became Program Director and doubled as Sports Director doing play-by-play. Moving into the Sales Department, John was then promoted to Manager of KGFW in 1974. In 1979, he added KQKY and in 1998, KRNY to his station group in Kearney.
Older son Jeff, and his wife Holly, live in Springfield, Missouri. Younger son, Jason, and his wife Staci, live in Omaha.
John served his community well over for many years including: Past Chairman of the Kearney Area Chamber of Commerce, Past President of Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation and Past President (with Judy) of the Kearney High School Booster Club.
John served two-three year terms on the NBA Board of Directors and was a Past-President of the association. He passed away in June, 2009.