Mike Heard is like family to so many in Southwestern Montana. That even goes for the people who never met him.

For the better part of four decades, Mike has come into our living rooms to broadcast the weather on the KXLF and KBZK newscasts. He is good at what he does, and he is so very likable on camera.

Last week, however, Mike made his last appearance on KXLF and KBZK. In a statewide downsizing, Mike saw his position eliminated, and he was callously let go after 38 years with the Montana News Network.

The man who gave so much loyalty to the company was shown none in return. He wasn’t even really given a chance to say goodbye.

Now, at the age of 58, Mike is looking for a new job. That is a strange feeling for a guy who has pretty much worked his entire life. It started when he worked to help pay his way through Butte Central, where he graduated in 1986.

The road of many jobs eventually took Mike to KXLF, where he worked as a cameraman starting in 1988. He took the job to help pay his way at Montana Tech.

Eventually, he turned that role into an on-camera position, and he started broadcasting the weather at KXLF in 1990. Other than a little more than a year working at KPAX in Missoula, Mike had been on our Butte airwaves ever since. He also earned a degree as a broadcast meteorologist and became the chief meteorologist for KXLF and KBZK.

This morning, I drove to Elk Park to sit down with Mike for a great conversation. Listen in as Mike talks about his humble roots that showed him the value of an honest day’s work. Listen as he talks about how he got into working in television and how that career evolved into something he just seemed to be born to do.

Listen to Mike’s passion for the weather and serving all the communities of Southwestern Montana. Listen as he says what he couldn’t say during his last days at KXLF and KBZK.