On Friday, November 1st, my producer and long-time friend, Debi Davis, will produce my show for the last time (on a regular, daily basis). I am saddened to see her go, but I am happy for the new opportunity that is in front of her.
Truth is, Debi and I have been talking about her leaving for the better part of this year, but she needed the right opportunity to make it happen. Deb gets up at 1:30AM each weekday to get ready for show production and to assist our news department. Truth is, she is invaluable to the operation of our station and none of us yet, know how we will find someone so capable.
Such an early morning schedule does not afford much of a night life, especially an early evening night life when her grandkids are participating in after-school events. To say that Debi is a devoted Grandmother would be an understatement of epic proportions. All of us at WLOB are sad to see her leave and excited that she will finally get some semblance of a normal life back, whatever normal means.
My wife, Dee Dee, and I have known Debi longer than anyone we know in Maine. We moved here from Florida in the mid-1980s. We bought into a small marketing firm when we got here, and Debi was the office manager. The 1980s, as those of you who were young adults then remember, were a wild and fun time and Dee Dee, Debi and I had some great times together, at the office and after we had all knocked off from work.
After some time, she moved on to a job in downtown Portland and we did not see each other for a while. In the mid-1990s, I randomly ran into Deb at the grocery and after talking for a while, asked her to become the office manager of some companies I owned. Once again, we worked great together, and I trusted her as few others.
In the late 1990s, this time it was my turn to move on and I sold those companies. Once again, I thought that was the last of our professional collaboration, but opportunity, once again presented itself.
Cheri Gaudet, Debi Davis & John Gaudet
In 2012, after a few years of hosting her own talk show on WLOB, she took over as the producer of my weekday morning show and once again, the tandem was back at work together. At the end of the summer in 2017, my wife, Dee Dee, joined us in studio to handle our social media marketing and the trio was back together again.
Needless to say, but I will anyway, Debi Davis has been one of the most important people in my life. She is honest to a fault – brutally, I would say on some days. She is loyal and always wants what is best for what she is doing and the people she is doing it with. She is a trusted friend.
You never know what path God will take you down, or who you will meet along the way. I am grateful God put Debi Davis in my path.
Her new job will give her back her social life and allow her to support her grandboys in all their events, not just the ones that happen before it gets dark. I am happy for her and her family.
I feel compelled to mention she is married to one of the best people I know, her husband Mike. I know he is glad to get his wife back from her crazy WLOB schedule.
I was thinking about it the other day. We are both getting older. Will this be the last time we work together? Based on our history, I think the three amigos probably have one more run in us because our time is done.
I don’t know where that will be or how it will work. I simply look forward to that day.
Ray Richardson is the host of the Ray Richardson Show on WLOB Radio. He has authored three books, written a newspaper column for over a decade and is a contributor to Richardson Magazine.
Ray lives with his wife of 34 years, Dee Dee, in Westbrook Maine. They have four grown children (8 when you count the spouses), and blessed with one granddaughter.
