Alumni Profiles - J. Cabot Rea '78
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| Cabot Rea ' 78 (left) and Vernon Pack '50 (right) stand with Petie Dodrill at the VOICEcorps benefit recently held in Columbus, Oh. Cabot crooned as Bing Crosby and Petie portrayed Hedda Hopper in the play styled as a 1942 Christmas Eve radio broadcast. |
Home: Westerville, OH
Occupation: News Anchor (WCMH Columbus)
Hometown: Westerville, Ohio
Major at Otterbein: Music Education
What have you been doing since your graduation from Otterbein?
After receiving my Bachelors in Music Education from Otterbein I taught music in Newark for nine years. During that time I also married my college sweetheart, Heather, a former Owl. We met in Opus Zero. I began working part time as a third string sports anchor at WCMH in December 1985. In June 1987 I was hired by the station fulltime. In 1988 I began Field Anchoring the 5:30 live show and traveled all over Central Ohio doing live shots from hot air balloons, trains, with chefs who were brought unannounced into homes to make gourmet feasts from whatever was in the cabinets, pumping iron with Arnold Schwarzenegger. You name it and I did it. I did serious shows as well at hospices or flood ravaged areas of Ohio. It was a wonderful five years and I had the opportunity to meet inspirational people everyday. In 1992 I began co-anchoring "on the desk" and in 1994 I began anchoring the evening newscasts with Colleen Marshall.
What interests and/or hobbies do you have?
I love to play golf. I play the guitar at Quest Community Church (formerly New Albany Community Church.) The senior pastor is my former roommate from Otterbein, Rev. Bob Buchan '76. In 2001 I went back to school and received a Masters of Music in Voice Performance from The Ohio State University. I get opportunities to sing here and there . . . with the Westerville, Springfield and Columbus Symphony among other groups. I get much more nervous about singing publicly than I used to - it must be my age, the lack of a teleprompter . . . or both!) I have three children ages 23, 19 and 16. My kids are incredibly important to me and I enjoy watching them perform in plays and concerts . . . or in my son's case his latest video production. I have also had the privilege to serve as an Adjunct Professor at Otterbein teaching broadcast performance or writing. On two occasions my class was at 8:00 a.m. Life has a way of coming full circle. I still remember struggling to make those 8:00 classes as a student!
What is a special Otterbein memory?
I certainly have fond memories of the theatrical productions such as Cabaret, Showboat and Westside Story. Working with "Doc" Dodrill and "Pop" Thayer and two summer theatre seasons also remains close to my heart. My warmest memories come from the choir and Opus Zero tours -- most notably the Concert Choirs tour of England and Switzerland in Dec. 1975. But the greatest thing that ever happened to me at Otterbein by far was meeting the woman who has been my wife of 27 years, Heather Leach Rea '78.