[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Page 6124]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          TRIBUTE TO TAD FELTS

 Mr. MORAN. Mr. President, in a rural State like my own, where 
many Kansans live more than half an hour from the nearest neighboring 
town, communities are stitched together by what they hear on the radio.
  For more than 40 years, Tad Felts has been broadcasting high school 
athletics and reporting north central Kansas news for KKAN-KQMA radio 
in Phillipsburg, but after several decades chronicling hundreds--or 
more likely thousands--of sporting events, Tad decided a couple years 
back it was time to watch a few more games from the bleachers rather 
than the press box. Now, this month, he will retire from radio 
altogether.
  Tad first started his radio career in Garden City at KIUL as a high 
school sophomore in 1948, working after school and at night for free. 
During his time at KIUL, his main duties were cleaning the floors and 
playing records. While he was a student at Fort Hays State University 
in 1951, Tad worked at KAYS radio station in Hays and upon graduation 
at KLOE in Goodland. Tad found his eventual home with the team at KKAN-
KQMA in Phillipsburg in 1972.
  Given his decades of experience in broadcasting, Tad knows the 
business well and takes great joy in teaching others. Gerard Wellbrock, 
the sports director of KAYS radio in Hays and the voice of the Fort 
Hays State University Tigers said this about Tad: ``He was a good 
mentor, I learned so much from him. The work ethic, how to deal with 
people, the relations you build with athletic directors and coaches. 
It's hard not to like Tad. And you learned a lot about work, and life, 
just by being around him.''
  In gyms across north central Kansas, the KKAN-KQMA banner can be seen 
at high school basketball games, wrestling tournaments, and State 
championships. In fact, it is because of Tad's dedication that the 
radio station is so often present. Families who can't make the game in 
person, often because they are working long hours on the farm, 
especially appreciate local radio hosts being there because they can 
still catch the details of the game.
  In rural America, entire communities revolve around how the high 
school sports team is doing. It is a common topic of conversation while 
standing in the checkout line at the grocery store or while dining at a 
neighborhood restaurant.
  By no means is Tad a one-trick pony, though. Cherished equal to his 
sports reporting are his updates from the field during wheat harvest 
season, in which Tad will drive straight up to a farmer in his combine 
and record an interview from the cab. This is in addition to the full 
slate of city council and school board meetings, county fairs, and 
annual parades.
  For years, Tad's knowledge and sunny disposition has greeted folks 
tuning in to local radio. One former peer of Tad's said this about the 
significant impact he has made: ``KKAN-KQMA Radio has played an 
integral role in the lives of people in the Phillipsburg area, and Tad 
has always been a driving force behind that station's programming and 
its scope of community service.''
  His professionalism was recognized by his peers when Tad was inducted 
into the Kansas Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2010. 
Inductees to the hall of fame are selected based upon their 
contributions to the broadcasting profession, their broadcast career, 
and their recognition and awards received, and Tad is an extremely 
deserving recipient.
  Today I want to express my gratitude to Tad Felts for helping to 
strengthen the close bonds of rural communities through his years of 
faithful service. I want to congratulate him on a job well done for the 
past nearly six decades. Tad's been a tremendous friend to me over the 
years, and his work has served as a bedrock for many of the communities 
I grew up in and care deeply about.
  Tad, I wish you all the best and thank you for everything you have 
done to improve the lives of so many in our great State.

                          ____________________