Courtesy the Morning Star

(November 9, 2010) Don Wiitala used a tape recorder to do his first high school sports broadcast more than four decades ago.

Although that was only for practice, and was of a pre-season scrimmage that never aired, the real broadcasts weren't much more sophisticated in the beginning.

When he first started doing games live in 1966, Wiitala used rented equipment and was a little unsure of himself.

But, technology has advanced by leaps and bounds since those first tentative broadcasts.

Now, game updates are available in real time on the Internet by going to the radio station's website.

WLJN 89.9 FM listeners are taken into the middle of the huddle as the quarterback barks out the signals, and can hear the thud of pads as the linemen wrestle for control of the scrimmage because of new on-field microphones.

It's a completely different game in many ways than the one Wiitala grew up playing, and then followed up as a broadcaster in the 1960s.

Working at a radio station in management and sales, Wiitala had never been on the air before.

But he knew sports, having played football, basketball and baseball in high school.

Don Glowicki, the former Elk Rapids – and eventual Michigan Hall of Fame – football coach, got him started doing games.

Glowicki came to Wiitala and asked if the new radio station (WLDR) would be interested in broadcasting Elk Rapids football.

"We didn't have any equipment at the time," Wiitala said. "We rented some equipment.

"Elk Rapids had a pre-season scrimmage in Mancelona and I got one of the on-air personalities – who had done some color (commentary) – to help out..

"So, we went up there and just did this into a tape recorder. Dick (the on-air personality) just kind of carried the ball. I just kind of called the play.

"My wife said that every time I got done with a play, I'd go 'Okay, Dick,' that was kind of the beginning."

Glad connection

After the Elk Rapids football season was over – that was before the current playoff system was implemented – WLDR, which Wiitala eventually owned, picked up Traverse City St. Francis boys basketball.

Three years later, Elk Rapids football was on the way out after a school millage initially failed.

When it was finally passed just before school opened, the football team had only a couple of weeks of practice.

That year, Elk Rapids had to cancel two or three games.

The radio station couldn't wait.

"At that point, we said we wanted to do football, and St. Francis had asked us to come and do all of their games," Wiitala said. "So, we picked it up around 1969. I think we also still ended up doing a couple Elk Rapids games."

Wiitala covered other teams as well, including the year Benzie Central's boys basketball team made the state finals at Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor.

"Over the years, we also did a lot of games in the Superior Dome (in Marquette)," Wiitala added.

"We actually did the first year of the playoffs. Back then, Traverse City had one public school and made it. They made it to the state finals and got beat by Livonia Franklin at Western Michigan."

St. Francis has kept Wiitala busy, qualifying for the playoffs 21 straight years, including this season.

Although the Gladiators lost in the first round this year, that hasn't happened often.

The Gladiators were looking for their third straight state championship under coach Greg Vaughan, a former player.

Before that, Larry Sellers won two state titles and guided the Gladiators to the finals two other times.

His son, Josh, assumed the head coaching job when Larry retired and won a state title before stepping down and moving out of state.

From Bulldog to Spartan to TC

It's been quite a ride for Wiitala, who was born in Muskegon and went to school in Mesick after going to Kaleva Elementary in the third and fourth grade.

"My dad's relatives and everything are in the Kaleva area," Wiitala, 74, said.

"I didn't play any football after I got out of high school. I went to Michigan State for a year. My wife was working up here in Traverse City, and that was the pull to get me to come to Traverse City."

Wiitala has three children, a son (Mark, 54) who lives in New Hampshire and two daughters (Amber, 52, and Lisa, 49) who still reside in Traverse City.

He has six grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

"The years go by, and the kids keep coming," Wiitala said with a chuckle.

Wiitala doesn't do basketball games anymore, but looked forward to it back in the day.

He wasn't an avid outdoorsman, so the winters were pretty long for him outside of calling the games.

"Boy, that was nice to have a game Tuesday and Friday," Wiitala said. "It was a release from my regular job."

Everything just kind of came together when Wiitala turned 65, and his wife urged him to sell the station and retire.

"I missed it greatly when I first got out ... but, not anymore," Wiitala said of his retirement. "Now I play golf in the summer, and it gives me an outlet.

"I also do things for my daughters here in town, and I enjoy that. I grew up on a farm, so we knew how to do things with our hands."

Steadfast anchor

Wiitala has missed only three games during his 45-year broadcasting career, and one of them was when his daughter got married on a Friday night.

He's also done games when he wasn't at the top of his game.

"There's been times when I've gone and couldn't hardly talk, which was bad for me," Wiitala says with a laugh. "People said 'Boy, that didn't sound like you, Don.'

Wiitala explained one of those experiences

"We picked up the Glen Lake boys team when they were going for the state championship, and I think they played the first game on Thursday night.

"Boy, my voice was going out. The one guy said let me introduce to the Michigan State trainer. The trainer took me into the back where they did their training.

"So, he gave me some stuff to help my throat. He mentioned a couple of things I could get over the counter, and he added 'don't talk.' I didn't talk all day Friday. Saturday, we did the next game and we came out okay. I got it done."

As long as he continues to have good health, along with an understanding and supportive spouse, Wiitala will continue to get ‘it done.’

And that’s good news for those who can’t make the games in person, are unable to attend for health reasons or are just listening across the country via the Internet. To them, Wiitala’s familiar voice always brings the game home, or carries a little bit of home to wherever they are.

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