GARY RIMA

This week, our Iowan who impacts sports is this year's winner of The Iowa Sports Broadcaster of the Year award.  He is the voice of the Universty of Northern Iowa Panthers men's football, basketball and baseball teams.  That sounds simple and straight-forward enough, right? If only things were always that simple and straight-forward in the broadcasting career of Gary Rima.

Gary was a 13 time varsity sport letterwinner at Starmont High School near Strawberry Point, Iowa.  Almost a year after Rima graduated from high school, he left his job as a grocery store stock clerk (after talking with his former high school guidance counselor, in one of the store aisles) and decided to enroll in the broadcasting program at Brown Institute in Minneapolis. He stayed only two weeks and decided to come back home to Iowa, where he would soon marry and start a family. It was then, in 1973, Gary decided to follow his passion of sports and music and start contacting local radio stations about job openings. An Independence radio station told Rima to put together a demo (practice) tape for their football play by play job opening. So Gary, armed with an old clunky cassette recorder, stood at the top of the bleachers of a Starmont junior high school football game that his dad was coaching and proceeded to call the play by play of that game, into his recorder.  He admitted that it wasn't of very good quality, but it would have to do. It must have been good enough, because the station called a few days later and told him to get ready to broadcast the next week's high school football game. A short time after that, he was offered the radio station's job of Sports Director and he was able to fulfill his passion for music by also being offered and accepting the job of disc jockey. As Rima stated it, "Dave, I was living my dream".

Gary's future was about to get even brighter.  A few years after Rima began broadcasting at the Independence radio station, KOEL am and fm in Oelwein came calling, with a bigger and better offer. They wanted to make him their full-time sports director (no more music) at their much stronger and larger ranged signal. Gary accepted KOEL's offer and for over 15 years, covered high school sports, throughout northeast Iowa for KOEL.

In the early 90's, UNI was looking to replace their retiring long time men's football, basketball and baseball broadcaster. Rima was offered the job and accepted it. He is currently still at the broadcasting helm for those UNI men's sports. Gary once again stated to me, "Dave, I am living my dream". By persevering and following his plan, Rima has attained most of dreams and goals. 

QUICK HITTERS

1. My favorite musician:

Billy Joel (Elton John is a close 2nd)

2. My favorite tv show:

Seinfeld

3. My favorite movie:

Rudy

4. My idol when I was growing up:

Gene, my dad

5. My favorite sports memory:

broadcasting UNI's 2005 loss in the Football Sub-Division National Championship Game

6. My favorite memory in life:

The birth of my first child (the other three were also special, but there is nothing like your first)

7. The one person I'd like to meet:

After much deliberation...Kevin Costner, because of his work in, "The Field of Dreams"

8. My advice to kids:

enjoy your youth by trying as many activities as you can

9. My advice to parents:

support your kids in whatever activities they choose, along with disciplining them

Continued success to Gary Rima.