I had the privilege of working with Chris Talbot for two years as part of the management team for what has been most recently, the Island Radio division of Pattison Broadcast Group. Many of you likely never had the opportunity to meet Chris - if I remember correctly, he spent his entire career in Port Alberni, which is a small, relatively isolated town on western Vancouver Island.

Chris was a gentle man, with love for his community and a passion for radio. In my humble opinion, he personified everything that was good about this business. Working with a TINY operating budget (and a ton of mandated voice tracking) he showed amazing commitment to keeping the airwaves full of local content, including the partnership and live broadcasts of his beloved BCJHL Port Alberni Bulldogs. This was a man would fight to turn away out of market advertising revenue - because he believed it would take away from the Port Alberni economy.

I was also fortunate to have been there the morning The Peak flipped to FM and signed on in their brand new studio. The sense of pride and excitement Chris and his team exhibited that day was extremely moving. The Peak staff is small and extremely loyal - most having worked there almost as long as Chris. I can't conceive the shock, grief and sadness this group of dedicated professionals must be feeling today.

However, in closing I would like to share a funny story with you that Chris shared with me. In the final days before the Pattison takeover became official, someone from corporate had overlooked getting the transmitter transfer agreement signed. The agreement was with an old Port Alberni farmer who had leased his land years earlier for the transmitter site. Chris was instructed to get this document signed within the hour. Problem was, the farmer was harvesting and wouldn't come in off the field to sign. Chris had to go chase the farmer down in his field with the Peak station vehicle to get the farmer to sign off.

RIP Chris, you will be missed.

From Today's Alberni Valley Times
http://www.canada.com/albernivalleytimes/news/story.html?id=841c6035-ef24-4bf4-b2e6-9f81c731ebe0

He will be sorely missed
Community mourns loss of family man and Peak Radio Station manager
Julia Caranci
Alberni Valley Times
Tuesday, June 17, 2008

A local media figure known as a strong supporter of all things Port Alberni has passed away suddenly, leaving behind shocked and saddened friends and family.

Chris Talbot, operations and sales manager at the Peak Radio Station, died unexpectedly of a heart attack on Sunday.

On Monday, co-workers and friends expressed their disbelief and remorse.

"He was more than a boss, he was a friend," said an emotional Peak Radio afternoon show host Jolie McMullan. "He was always there if you needed that shoulder to cry on."

McMullan worked with Talbot for seven years, and said he will be sorely missed; as a person, a supervisor and a long-standing promoter of the city.

"More than anyone, he really wanted to see Port Alberni boom," said McMullan.

Paul Larsen worked with Talbot closely for five years, until the Jim Pattison Broadcasting Group purchased the station in the summer of 2006.

"We spent an awful lot of time together when I lived in Nanaimo," Larsen said, adding news of Talbot's sudden death both "shocked and saddened" him.

He reiterated McMullan's sentiments: Talbot loved Port Alberni and worked very hard to promote the city and make the station a successful venture that highlighted local events and employed local people.

Larsen, who now owns his own radio station in the Lethbridge to Medicine Hat region of Alberta, said right now his heart goes out to Talbot's family and staff at the local radio station.

Talbot not only worked to promote the city in his role as radio station manager, he also volunteered for social programs like Raise-a-Reader, which encourages and promotes literacy for all ages.

In an e-mail sent to his colleagues at North Island College, principal Tom Weegar, who worked with Talbot on the Raise-a-Reader campaign, expressed his sorrow on hearing word of Talbot's death.

"This is very sad news ... Chris was a wonderful supporter of literacy issues, and he worked closely with me on our Raise-a-Reader steering committee," Weegar wrote. "Chris has also recently joined the board of the Port Alberni Association for Community Living. Obviously, this is a very tragic event for the Alberni Valley."

In a subsequent conversation with the Times, Weegar pointed out Talbot was always one of the first to arrive at committee meetings, and was "100 % enthusiastic about Raise-a-Reader" from the moment he was approached to support the program.

Weegar planned to drop by the radio station yesterday to express his condolences.

"My thoughts and prayers are with the many, many friends and family that Chris leaves behind," his message concludes.

Rob Bye, the current general manager of Island Radio, the Pattison company that owns the Peak, spoke with the Times via telephone from a B.C. Ferry. He was on his way to Port Alberni to meet with staff at the station.

"He was a great manager," Bye said of Talbot. "He was a real pleasure to work with."

Bye also pointed out that Talbot had "a real passion for the business" and was always keen on motivating his staff.

He concluded there's no option but to focus on attempting to move on from this tragedy in the coming weeks and months.