Nelson Sears

Nelson Sears (1926–2021) was an American television broadcaster. He reported news and weather for the television station WGAL in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Later on, he became a program manager.

Early life

Sears was born in 1926.[1] According to Sears, he was raised in York, Pennsylvania.[2] His father died when Sears was five years old, and Sears was raised by his blind mother.[2] In 1943, aged 17, he joined the United States Navy during World War II.[2] He participated in the Normandy landings but never landed because a mine struck his boat.[2] Later, he served in the Pacific Ocean and participated in the Battle of Okinawa.[2]

Career

After being discharged in 1947, Sears studied at the American Television Institute in Chicago. He joined WGAL in January 1949,[3] two months before the television station first went on the air.[3][2] He worked as a news anchor, weather reporter, reporter, program director, and promotions manager.[4][1] Sears was promoted to program manager in 1966 and remained a full-time anchor until about 1977.[3] He returned to the air for large events such as the Three Mile Island accident in 1979.[3] The Intelligencer Journal says Sears brought The Oak Ridge Boys to mainstream appeal when he sent a tape to Mike Douglas.[2]

Sears retired from WGAL in 1994 after 45 years.[3] He returned to WGAL in March 2009 for its 60 year anniversary special.[5] In December 2016, Sears was inducted into the WGAL Hall of Fame.[6]

Personal life and death

Sears had a wife named Sara. He had two sons, Randall and Russell. As of 1994 he had two granddaughters.[3]

Sears was a chairman of the board of directors of the American Red Cross, Lancaster County Chapter.[7] Sears was a chair of the Urban League of Lancaster County.[8] He was a trustee of Millersville University.[9]

Sears died in December 2021, at the age of 95.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c "WGAL pioneer Nelson Sears passes away". WGAL. Dec 5, 2021. 7 December 2021. Retrieved Dec 7, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Flannery, Thomas L. (1994-05-20). "Sears' television career began at the beginning". Intelligencer Journal. p. B-8. Retrieved 2026-02-06 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Wohlson, Marcus R. (1994-06-30). "Retiring WGAL program manager saw station grow from 1st days". Lancaster New Era. pp. B1, B2. Retrieved 13 March 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Lancaster That Was: In 1994 newsman Nelson Sears retires after 45 years with WGAL". LancasterOnline. 30 June 2019. Retrieved Jun 30, 2019.
  5. ^ Stark, Eric (15 March 2009). "WGAL celebrates 60 years of broadcasting with TV special". LancasterOnline. Mar 15, 2009. Retrieved Sep 11, 2013.
  6. ^ Lemon, Kim (16 December 2016). "'WGAL Hall of Fame unveiled, honors founders of the station". WGAL. Dec 16, 2016. Retrieved Dec 16, 2016.
  7. ^ "Nelson Sears Gets Post: Board Chairman Elected by Red Cross". Lancaster New Era. 1975-05-20. p. 30. Retrieved 2026-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Little, Barbara (1995-06-14). "Urban League honors 2 local men". Intelligencer Journal. pp. B-1, B-2. Retrieved 2026-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ O'Connor, David (1999-01-20). "'Binge drinking' panel says task difficult, not impossible". Lancaster New Era. pp. B-1, B-7. Retrieved 2026-02-07 – via Newspapers.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.