A KPCW journalist will sign off late in 2026, ending a 36-year run with the public radio station.
Leslie Thatcher, the senior news director, announced the retirement on air Monday morning. She started at the radio station in 1990 and has lived in the area since 1980. Thatcher resides in Prospector.
The radio station said in a statement that Thatcher is the last remaining person on staff whom the late Blaire Feulner, the station founder, hired.
Thatcher said in her on-air announcement that she has “enormous gratitude for the people who have trusted me with their stories” and said she is confident that “talented, young reporters will carry forward the important work of the station.”
Thatcher declined an interview request and said she may consider granting one at the time of her retirement in December.
The radio station said Thatcher is expected to remain the host of the “Local News Hour” during the rest of her time at KPCW. A celebration is planned later in 2026.
Bob Richer, a former chair of the KPCW board of trustees, praised Thatcher’s work. He is a former member of the Park City Council and the Summit County Commission. As an elected official, he was regularly interviewed by Thatcher.
“Most importantly, she’s been a part of our community, and she’s contributed in many ways to making Park City and Summit County a better, more informed place to live, work and play,” Richer said in a prepared statement.
KPCW Executive Director and CEO Juliana Allely described Thatcher’s role in building the radio station’s reputation.
“I think part of why KPCW is so trusted is it’s a voice, a real live human you are hearing in the moment, asking the tough, insightful questions of our elected leaders and community nonprofits,” Allely’s statement said. “That voice has been Leslie.”
Allely added thanks to Thatcher: “You’ve been waking up the Wasatch Back for nearly two decades, telling us the weather and traffic before many of us have finished our first cup of coffee. You’ve warned us about construction, icy roads and animal crossings as we made our way to work, school drop off or the mountain. You’ve grilled countless elected officials, elevated the work of our many community nonprofits and engaged with interesting and accomplished athletes, authors, filmmakers, and the everyday person who has a captivating story to tell. Your curiosity, professionalism and deep knowledge of the Wasatch Back are woven into the fabric of KPCW. We thank you for all you have done for KPCW and this great community.”
The 36-year tenure of Thatcher paralleled an extraordinary era of news in Park City, running through the boom years of the 1990s, the 2002 Winter Olympic era, the Great Recession and the pandemic. The KPCW statement said Thatcher began at a time “when the newsroom relied on a rotary phone and an electric typewriter.”
KPCW said it will soon begin a search for Thatcher’s successor as host of the “Local News Hour.”