I received shocking and sad news at work Thursday. My beloved friend, Chris Rogers passed away earlier that day.
He was only 51. A father and a friend. I was in shock and so were many of my co-workers.
I met Chris when I started working at WAPT in 2002 and we quickly became friends, especially since my friend Omari had told me how great it was to work with Chris when he was in Jackson.
Chris was one of the greatest photojournalists I've worked with in my career. Chris made work fun, knew everyone in Jackson and knew a lot about our business. Many of the people Chris worked with here in Mississippi and in Tennessee are now in larger markets and on national news, like Robin Roberts on Good Morning America.
But aside from the professional stuff, Chris loved to cook, party and entertain. The parties Chris and his brother, Christoff, threw are legendary for their FUN FACTOR! They were usually twice a year and anyone in the TV biz and anyone of their friends made a point to be there for the food, music and the chance to kick it with Chris Rogers!
Chris and I also loved to club it too. I'm pretty sure the picture of us you see above was taken in a club. Probably Crystal's Lounge.
Chris and I shared a love for TV shows too: LOST and Nip/Tuck. I wondered if Chris was looking forward to the LOST season finale like I was.
Chris and his family embraced me too. I've had Thanksgiving meals with his parents and visited their church. My heart goes out to his parents, his brothers and most of all his daughters, Christie and Tina.
For the last two years Chris has been in and out of the hospital for complications from his diabetes and last year he had a defibrillator implanted in his chest to regulate his heart. Chris' oldest daughter, Christie, told me it appears the device did not work or function well Wednesday afternoon when Chris started feeling weak and collapsed at his home.
I could go one for awhile about Chris. My biggest regret was that he was on my mind earlier this week and I didn't get around to calling him. That's my fault and a reminder to reach out to folks when they're on your mind.
You never know what tomorrow brings.
But I know Chris loved me. And I loved him.
1 comment:
Its hard for me to imagine working at 16 without seeing Chris from now on. He was truly one of my favorites at the station. The thing I loved most about him was that you always knew where you stood with him and he was always real. I knew when he gave a compliment about a story or show- I knew I did a good job. Im blessed and honored to have known him and am thankful to have memories of him that will last a lifetime. Everything- from him always driving over the front lawn in his truck each day as he left work, to our nick-names for one another- he'd call me Buckey- I'd call him French Fry... Oh and I can't forget the infamous napkin around the neck as I'm reading the lead story incident. You don't get the opportunity to meet people like Chris often in life and I'm thankful I got the chance to know him. My thoughts are with all his family and friends...
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