I took this picture of our beloved Squeaki in 2014. I’m sad to say that our girl
has crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
My personal radio journey has taken me to several different cities since I first
left Myrtle Beach, and it seems we always took in few critters wherever we
were. Wichita, where I was the local morning host on the True Oldies channel,
was no exception. I had moved from Illinois, and my wife was back home
selling our house. That’s what we did every time I accepted a position in a new
market.
It was February 2, 2011 when Beverlee, my boss came into my studio and said
there was a cat named Chow Mein that I had to see at the Humane Society of
Kansas. She said she’d be perfect for me in my apartment. After work that day
I drove there to see this cat. There was a room inside called “Kitty City,” where
they’d bring the cat in to meet you. I was in there alone when the door opened
and this young cat bounded into the room and immediately jumped into my lap.
We hung for a few minutes and she purred the entire time. It was then the door
opened again and a young mom with two kids came in, and they immediately
saw me and the cat and the kids wanted to hold her too. I knew if that
happened I might not get her back so I held on and told them that I was
adopting her. They were disappointed until another cat was let in for them to
see.
I knew she didn’t seem to be a Chow Mein, but I didn’t know what I’d change
her name to. The next time my wife drove in to visit me she was happily
surprised at our newest family member. We had two that had recently passed
in Illinois, and she had to take of them by herself, and there were no animals at
home anymore. After listening to the cat for a few days, we decided on the
name Squeaki because she sounded like a squeaky toy. When I would back to
see my wife in Illinois, Squeaki made the trips with me and was a perfect driving
companion.
In 2012 my wife was diagnosed with lung cancer and I needed to take care of
her. I secured a new, nicer apartment in Wichita for the three of us, and
brought her back from Illinois. She and Squeaki became inseparable. When I
would come home in the afternoon, especially in the last couple of years of her
life, she would be in bed, either asleep or watching TV, and Squeaki was always
with her, her head on my wife’s shoulder.
In early 2013 I was let go in Wichita, after station management decided to
change formats. Fortunately, after just about a month of being unemployed I
was rehired by the same company in Illinois that released me in 2008, so the
three of us headed back to Illinois.
I lost my beloved Patty in January 2017, and Squeaki I were alone with no family
in the area. If she hadn’t been there when I got home after work, I don’t what I
would have done. That lasted for two years and I honestly think I wouldn’t have
made it without Squeaki to come home to. In January of 2019 I accepted the
offer to host mornings on EASY Radio back home in Myrtle Beach, and Squeaki
came down with me. My family and childhood friends were there and it was
great to reconnect. A radio friend once told me there’s something special about
doing radio in your hometown. I eventually met a former coworker, Renee, at a
COC event, and we hit it off. We worked together after college and hadn’t seen
each other in over thirty years. We became a couple, and she fell in love with
Squeaki too.
We lost her the other day and she was in my arms when she passed. We just
received her cremains, and at the moment I can’t even look at the urn, it hurts
too much. We’ve been through a lot together, and there is a huge hole in my
heart. One day it’ll be better. What a blessing she was.
