Once upon a time there was a man like any other man, who when he found out his wife was pregnant, decided of all things to keep a weather diary. During the pregnancy this man kept a record of the weather until his wife gave birth to a son. The man never continued that diary after the birth of his son. Fast forward many years later and this young boy grew up, went to school, and began a career in broadcast meteorology. Now one can dismiss this as coincidence. Or as I believe, that there are no coincidences and that peoples lives cross paths for a reason. Alan as we know was something new in the world of television as being one of the first television meteorologists to appear in New York Television in the 1970s. He went on to Satellite News Channel and the ultimately to New Jersey 101.5 where he spent much of the last 20 plus years bringing weather forecasts to the state of New Jersey.
Just a little background. When I was a teenager I had 2 dreams. One was to work in television and the other was to be like Alan Kasper. I can remember vividly his broadcast the night of January 19th 1978 when on the 11pm news he was the first to raise accumulations for New York to 6 to 8 inches while everyone else kept waiting for a change to rain that never happened. The man knew how to forecast! In 1979 while interning at the National Weather Service I picked up a phone that was on hold by mistake! It was Alan on the other end. Coincidence? We spoke for a bit and before the phone call was over, he told me he had a spot for an intern at channel 2. And there began a wonderful close friendship that continues strong to this day. We worked together at New Jersey 101.5 as I filled in for him and worked weekends.
Now retired Alan no longer has the 1am alarm to drive to work. Sunday is his birthday and I just want to wish him a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Enjoy your day and the many years ahead. We speak of getting lawn chairs and driving up to Lake Ontario and sit facing the wind while snow squalls come rolling in off the lake!!! This is something we absolutely have to do!