Many of you have seen the KPTS documentary Black & Gold: Remembering the WSU Plane Crash. Last year at this time, we were on the mountain shooting interviews with survivors of the 1970 WSU plane crash. Randy Jackson, Dave Lewis, and Rick Stephens became very special to us. They were willing to expose themselves emotionally as they shared the deep wound and burden they carried with them after the crash. This week, Randy Jackson passed away after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Randy was special. He touched the lives of students at Robinson Middle School and inspired so many youngsters in our community. He was a quiet man who chose to lead by example. Randy was willing to share his story with us. Randy cared deeply for others and did everything possible to make us better. Thank you Randy for a life well lived and an example worthy of following. We will never forget. All of us at KPTS extend our sympathy to Randy’s wife Gayle and the Jackson family.

Last week we were in the beautiful Colorado mountains near Silver Plume. Our production crew returned to the scene of the plane crash of the 1970 Wichita State football team. We interviewed the father of one of the players who died in the crash and three players who survived. The players shared recollections of that tragic day, how they struggled with injuries down the mountain and the welcome sight of construction workers heading up the mountain to provide assistance. We spoke to some of the members of the recovery team who emotionally shared their memories of that horrific scene.
While these interviews were emotional and painful, each person thanked us for giving them a voice and for telling this story.  We were honored to share with them the experience of returning to the crash site.
Our documentary, Black & Gold: Remembering the WSU Plane Crash, will premiere at Wichita State on October 2, 2009 and will air on KPTS the following week.
Click here to visit our web page dedicated to this documentary. You’ll find links to photos, video clips and other related links.