Good luck Pat Benton, and thanks...

The Du Quoin Evening Call today adds its congratulations to those of Southern Illinois for 44-year radio talk show host Pat Benton on his retirement.

Benton has hosted the newspaper's Taste of Home show in the past, but certainly moreover, his work through the Poshard Foundation for "Pat's Kids" is epic.

The Magic 95.1 morning talk show host announced his retirement effective Dec. 20 on Tuesday.

Pat's career started on Oct. 2, 1968 on an all Spanish station in Chicago.

He continued to work in radio while serving in Vietnam and throughout college.

In 1994, Pat was hired by River Radio to host the morning show on Z100.

In 2000, Pat he moved to Magic 95.1 where he has hosted the weekday morning Celebration of Life for the last 13 years.

His work to champion the cause of thousands of underprivileged children across Southern Illinois has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. "My only hope is that this year's Pat's Kids will be a big one," he says.

Operations manager Tom Miller doesn't look forward to the tough search ahead for a replacement.

Benton's last show is scheduled for Dec. 20. River Radio is encouraging everyone to go to Magic 951.com and leave a farewell message to Pat or share your favorite Pat story on the Magic 95.1 Facebook page facebook.com/pages/Lite-Rock-Magic-95.1.