Humble is defined by Webster's dictionary as having or showing a consciousness of one's shortcomings; modest; lowly; unpretentious.

But anyone familiar with WRSW 107.3 on-air radio personality Blake Miller might say the best definition of the word "humble" is Miller himself.

"The important things in my life are God, my wife, my family, my job," Miller said Monday. "I'm very fortunate, I feel very fortunate to have the life I do."

His childhood, he said, was "excellent" and he never needed anything. When he told his parents his dream was to go into broadcasting, they supported him. Whatever he was interested in, or whatever his brothers were involved with, his parents were there to support them.

"My parents taught me to have God in my life and make family important. I feel very fortunate to have the life I had and hopefully it will continue. I just come from a great family and my family's always been important to me. When my wife (Kim) and I have kids, I hope I can give them the kind of life my parents gave me. ... My mom and dad are my biggest heroes."

Of course, those who know Miller also may define him with the use of his two nicknames - "Speedy" and "Chuckles."

Speedy because he likes to stay busy and is always looking for something at WRSW to keep him busy working. Chuckles because he always has a smile on his face and enjoys having a good time.

Miller said, "The best part of working here is that everyone here likes everyone else. Everyone is dependent on everyone else. I like having that responsibility. I like staying busy. I prefer to stay busy. ... I don't want to sit around and do nothing."

He began his job at WRSW on Sept. 16, 2000. Since then, he's developed a fan base. His fans - and he does have fans who send him Christmas and birthday presents - will call him during Ladwig's Warsaw Nissan All-Request Show not only to request a song, but also to talk to Miller.

He's begun to recognize some of the callers, his fans, by voice. There's the guys who call from Zimmer. There's John. Otis. One guy calls from a Columbia City factory.

"It's pretty humbling," said Miller. He's learned what his listeners want to hear. "They want to hear rock 'n' roll," he said, though there is the occasional call for something out of the ordinary.

The radio wasn't Miller's original dream when he decided to go into broadcasting. He saw himself more as a television kind of guy.

When Miller was in high school, his father operated the public announcement system at the basketball games. Miller also did some commentary for a basketball game. He decided broadcasting was his future.

At Ball State University, Muncie, he was an anchor and reporter for the student-run television station.

While a student, he got a job at Channel 21, Fort Wayne, where he ended up working for approximately 1-1/2 years. At Channel 21, he edited tape for newscasts before being promoted to assignment desk editor.

"That was more of a demanding job," Miller said.

After graduation, a television station offered him a job. In Michigan. Ten hours away from home.

But Miller was getting married. And he and his wife didn't want to be too far away from their families. So Miller continued to work for Channel 21 part-time and worked part-time for a gas station. Eventually there came a point where Miller told his wife that if he didn't get a broadcasting job within a month of their wedding, he'd get a full-time job at a factory.

Not too long after that, he got a job with WRSW.

"When I first started here," he said, "I wanted to use this as a platform for something bigger. Now that I've been here for over a year, I can see myself staying here a while."

He admits to having fun at work. A lot of fun. "I love it. I love this. I can't think of doing anything else."

Miller shows up at work at 8 a.m. and goes on-air at 9 a.m. He does a couple of weather watches every hour and introduces a few songs until the request show starts at 12:30 p.m.

Until 2 p.m. Miller takes requests from listeners - who, he said, usually want to hear music from the 1970s and '80s. "They like the '70s and early '80s maybe. I know they like rock 'n' roll. Absolutely."

After the show is over, Miller does a couple of weather watches every hour while recording commercials and public service announcements in a back room.

"Production is the big thing in the afternoon," Miller said. A 30-second commercial may take a couple of takes while a 60-second commercial may take a half hour to get it right.

"It usually doesn't happen on the first try," Miller said. "... I'm the kind of guy who doesn't want something on the radio that sounds like crap. ... It's a reflection on me."

At 4 p.m. he does the news on WRSW - he "really likes doing the news." He also records the 5 p.m. news for Cow Country.

His day, he said, encompasses "a little bit of everything and that's the way I like it."

Another part of the job he likes, he said, is the support he receives. He admits to not knowing a lot about music before joining WRSW but Matt Bair and Charlie Miller, he said, really helped him with that.

"I know more about music than I did a year ago when I started here," Miller said.

"This is the best job in the world and the people I work with help a lot with that."

Though Miller likes radio - a job he calls so fun he can't believe they actually pay him to do it - he does have one other interest. Go-carts.

"If I'm not talking about my wife, about radio, I'm talking about racing. ... My wife, radio, go-carting - that's the order right there."

For anyone interested in going into broadcasting, whether radio or television, Miller offers this advice: "I advise try to get an internship, try to get as much experience as you can. This is a business of who you know. ... All you have to do is open your mouth ... You can't be afraid to have dreams." [[In-content Ad]]