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Joe Torsitano - KAJO Chief Engineer, Webmaster

Joe Torsitano

Being a "behind the scenes" kind of person I'm not used to talking much about myself.  I'll probably say more than you want to know.  But here it goes.

Life for me started in Alturas, CA.  Being raised by a railroader meant we moved some.  By the time I finished high school I'd been through Tucson, AZ, El Paso, TX, and Chico, CA.  Although I was all set to go into railroading myself after high school, I found out about the campus radio station and TV program which I was in through my senior year.

I went to community college for a couple semesters.  But a friend convinced me the Chief Engineer's position at a new FM station in Elko, NV, would be much more fun.  And so my full-time career in broadcasting started just before I was 19.

After Elko came Burney, CA, Redding, CA, Carson City, NV, and Sacramento, CA.  Each move was a move up until I became Regional Engineering Manager for the largest radio station company in the country.  But I wasn't able to spend time with my family like I wanted, so I took a position as staff engineer for a large Christian radio network.

As our kids grew I wanted to get them out of the "large" city atmosphere and get back to a more rural area like where I spent most of my life.  An engineering position with a large talk radio network was our ticket.  However my family (especially my wife) needed me at home more than that position would allow, so I went into semi-retirement and focused on my quickly growing Internet business.

I wanted to keep my hands in radio some way, so I applied for a part-time position at KAJO.  After a couple months I got a call that KAJO's long time engineer was leaving and if I would be interested in that full-time position.  I was incredibly excited to be able to use my long time engineering skills along with my computer and Internet experience at a station like KAJO.  I didn't have to be in the area long to realize these people do radio RIGHT, the way it used to be, and I wanted to be a part of it.

If I were to give even more detail it would be incredibly evident how God led me through my whole career with perfect timing.  He put me where I needed to be, when I needed to be.  God is never late but rarely early.

My high-school sweetheart wife and I have been married for 23 years (it takes a VERY special woman to put up with a broadcast engineer this long).  We have two terrific teenage boys, two dogs, a cat and a sun conure (a very noisy but beautiful bird).   We attend River Valley Community Church.  We live in the home of our dreams on the edge of Grants Pass.  Camping is our favorite get-away activity.  When the TV is on we're probably watching Numbers, House, Bones, Cold Case or shows on DVD like Firefly, WKRP in Cincinnati, Northern Exposure or Mystery Science Theater 3000 (preferably the ones with Joel).

Like most engineers I'm interested in electronics and computers.  I'm still very interested in railroading.  For over ten years I was frequently a volunteer at the Nevada State Railroad Museum.  I'm also a licensed private pilot.

 

 

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