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After three decades of giving legions of loyal fans their wake-up calls, WFLS radio personality Brian Strobel is ready to sleep in. He's retiring at the end of the year Date published: 12/15/2007 By Gwen Woolf Loyal radio listeners couldn't tell, but Brian Strobel was nervous.
It didn't matter that he's been the voice of WFLS' morning show for 30 years, or that his day had begun in entirely normal fashion. He was feeling just fine and he'd already had his orange juice, vitamin pill and glass of Carnation Instant Breakfast. He'd arrived at the station at 4 a.m. as usual, gone on the air at 5, and done his famous "Dooby Doo" wakeup song at 6:05. He had a mug of Taster's Choice instant coffee by his side. The routine was the same as every other weekday since 1977. But Friday, Dec. 7, was different. At 6:20 a.m., as he stood in the studio overlooking the still-dark world along Washington Avenue, Strobel took a deep breath for strength and leaned into the microphone. "I have decided to leave the morning show," he announced to his audience. His voice wavered but Strobel plugged on. "I want to thank you for listening to me over the years. But you just come to a point in your life when you say it's time to pass the torch I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do, except that I'm going to spend the first week in January doing the leaves in my yard." Off-air, he wiped away a tear and breathed a long, relieved sigh. "Whew," he said. "I'm such a wimp." Longtime career Yes, it's true. Brian Strobel is a wimp when it comes to the community he loves, and he does love the nice folks who start their days listening to him on the radio. But he is far from wimpy in terms of the mark he has made on his adopted hometown. Strobel will retire from the radio station on Dec. 31, wrapping up a 40-year broadcasting career that has earned him a special place in the hearts of devoted fans, to whom he is a friend, not just a familiar voice. "Oh, Brian, tell me it isn't true!" demanded one of the many listeners who called in that morning to express their shock, their love and their best wishes. "Put that Brian on the phone," commanded another. "I know you're 60, but you're not old enough to retire," she said.
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