Katie Birchler retires after 52 years with?WHCO

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[After fifty plus years of radio and newspaper Katie Birchler has decided to call it quits. She was the writer of "Katie's Kolumn" in the Sparta News-Plaindealer and on WHCO 1230. Her final radio show was heard on the morning of Wednesday, July 8 during a special edition of the People Speak.

Birchler got her start working for the Steeleville Ledger. At that time the editor of the newspaper also owned a theater that was right beside where the paper was. Also, at that time the city wanted to put up no parking signs at anytime signs down the side of the street. However, the newspaper editor wanted them to only be no parking during show times. Ironically, Birchler's husband was on the city council and grew mad when they would not put up no parking signs for anytime. Birchler ended up getting fired because she would not put the signs up. After that, Birchler went up to the Sparta News-Plaindealer and told them that she wanted to write a column. The Plaindealer asked her what she wanted to name it and she did not know, so the Plaindealer said that they would call it "Katie's Kolumn." Birchler went on to work there for many years.

For many years Birchler's column ran once a week on the radio and ran weekly in the newspaper. Recently, however, it had been cut down to a once a month cooking column in the Sparta News-Plaindealer.

When she joined the Sparta News-Plaindealer she was told by Mr. Morgan to write how you talk. She took his advice and it is very evident to everyone when you hear or read one of her columns.

Along with that, what makes her writing appealing is that she writes about what is happening and anything else. She pretty much writes about whatever she can think of. She said that she recently wrote about flip flops.

"I write about whatever comes to mind," said Birchler.

Birchler said that everything in radio and newspaper has changed so much since when she started out. She said she can remember when everything for the newspaper was done in one shop, but now a lot of it is done outside of the office.

She also said that computers and technology has made a huge difference in how things are done now compared to when she first started up.

Birchler said that over the years she got to meet many interesting people. One of these times was when she wrote about Minnesota Fats.

She also said that she has received many awards from the Illinois Women's Press Association and the Southern Illinois Editorial Association.

Her decision to retire does not come purely from the fact that she is getting older. Instead it also comes from the fact that her husband passed away last year and that she recently got her knee replaced.

The husband that recently passed away was her third husband. She was first married to Edison Fiene and had two children with him in Steeleville before he passed away. She was then married to Representative Vincent Birchler before he passed away, and then finally she was married to Paul Heires who passed away in the last year.

Birchler said that she will miss the urge of doing a program or column whenever something catches her fancy. She also said that she enjoyed all of it and will miss it, but she feels that it is time to retire.

Birchler said about the column and writing, "The secret of it, is just putting down what you feel."