Long before Jason Parrish was calling Bridgeport his home, he more than likely had already been in your home. Not as a prowler or some sort of covert agent of the government – of course he wouldn’t tell me if he was – but as the chief meteorologist for WBOY thousands of folks here in Bridgeport and beyond listened to what he had to saw almost daily as they planned their days.

 

For Parrish, a 1992 graduate of Clay-Battelle High School, returning to his home state on what, for him at least, is a permanent basis to WBOY in 2005 was what made him one of the most recognizable individuals in North Central West Virginia. Add on the fact that’s he pretty engaging, easy going and excellent at his craft and you probably can understand why he’s been so trusted by the community for nearly a decade now.

 

Here’s the thing: Come Dec. 19, Jason Parrish the meteorologist will be no more. It will be his last day on the job that likely tens of thousands of people have known him for doing.

 

The man who got his undergraduate degree in broadcasting from West Virginia University in 1997 and Meteorology certification from Mississippi State in 2000 will soon be Jason Parrish the pharmaceutical representative.

 

Yes, those pharmaceutical jobs often take you away from the home front, but things will be changing in a big way that will talk about later. And yes, he’ll still be staying put in Bridgeport despite having what one might call a sick and twisted ironic moving day to this community when one considers his line of work.

 

“We were living in the Quiet Dell area in 2012 and we actually made our move on the weekend of the derecho. It was just a horrible weekend,” said Parrish.

 

For those that don’t remember, the derecho was the freak storm system that leveled Bridgeport and many parts of West Virginia in June of 2012. It’s considered one of the worst weather events in decades and the weatherman already had some pretty serious plans that entire weekend.

 

Consider this: His family is moving that weekend and there’s no power or items available in most locations, it’s his birthday, he’s in a wedding as well at the Stonewall Resort and is working via the phone with weather personnel at WBOY, going into work and I’m sure there was more.

 

“We only had the one day to move because the people that bought our house were moving in,” said Parrish. “We’re trying to move to a new home and everywhere you look there are trees lying across the road.”

 

Not only did Parrish not learn to dislike weather and his job at that moment, he somehow didn’t hold a grudge against his new home in Bridgeport. Instead, he’s fallen in love with it.

 

“We love it here. We love our neighbors and the kids love the school system. Unless something major comes up, we plan on staying here. It’s been a lot better since that first day, in fact, it’s got that small town atmosphere that you saw in a place like Mayberry,” said Parrish who is an admitted Andy Griffith show junkie.

 

While Andy Griffith and the rest of the crew will remain the same, I can assure you – and Parrish – that his life will change. If there’s one thing I think Parrish anticipates, but won’t fully comprehend until it happens, is just how much of a life-changing event it will be when he goes from working nearly every evening of every weekday to having most evenings free to spend with his family. While those late hours are some folks’ cup of tea, it was a lifestyle that wore yours truly down. For years, I worked every evening and most weekends as a sports writer and when I went to a more regular work cycle – and I didn’t have a family at the time like Parrish – my life changed for the better in ways I never expected.

 

Of course, Parrish never had any idea he’d end up looking at his final days in this business at this point when he started way beyond the comforting hills of West Virginia. He worked his first job in Casper, Wyoming while still finishing up his meteorology certification.  He was doing weekend weather there for KTWOTV and it’s where he got his broadcast feet wet.

 

Ironically, not only did Parrish return to the Mountain State after about six months in Casper, but it was here in Bridgeport in the fall of 1997 where he was the morning weather anchor at WDTV. He stayed there until the spring of 1999 and then, due to family, moved to Wisconsin.

 

“I actually went there without a job, but ended up getting a job at a station doing some fill-in weather work and doing forecasting work for companies that needed it, like paving companies,” Parrish said.

 

Parrish’s early career nomadic lifestyle continued with a move to Huntsville, Alabama, in 2000 in the early spring. There, he worked for WAAYTV and did weekend weather for two years before he took a position that – for someone in his field – was a dream job.

 

“I saw a radio position had opened up at the Weather Channel and I applied for it and actually got the job,” said Parrish. “I just transitioned into radio, which led me to Atlanta.”

 

The move to the home of Ted Turner, the Braves and oppressive summer humidity came in 2002. He was there for three years until he got a phone call from another familiar name here in Bridgeport.

 

“Dave Stingo called me and told me that had a chief (meteorologist’s) job opening at WBOY if I was interested and I figured I should at least entertain the offer,” said Parrish. “When I got there I really thought the station was nice and then I started thinking about the benefits of coming home. I realized mom and dad could watch me every night along with a lot of other positives so I took it. Granted, a big part of coming back was that I was no longer doing television at the Weather Channel, was working weekends and I wanted back on TV fulltime. But another big part of it was to come home.”

 

And he came home in June of 2005. Two months later, he met his wife Nicki and in August of the next year he was married.

 

“I suddenly felt rooted and still feel that way,” said Parrish, who along with Nicki, is the father to Delaney and Coleton Marsh and Gavin Parrish. “I hope that doesn’t change and don’t see that changing.”

 

One thing that may fade with time is Parrish’s visibility in the public’s eye. Although he’s comfortable in his skin being recognized, there’s part of that he knows he’ll miss and part of it that he’s fine leaving behind.

 

“It’s flattering knowing that people watch and that 99 percent of the people approaching you are nice, gracious and complimentary. I guess that shows that maybe I’m doing something right so I’ll miss that a little bit, but I’m ready for a change,” he said. “I’ve been working early mornings, weekends and late at night for as long as I can remember.

 

“I know I’ll miss the people I work with because they’ve been so nice to be around. They’re good people,” he continued. “The benefit is that this will allow me to get more quality time with my family. When you get right down to it this move is about Nicki and our family. In the end, that’s all that matters. That’s what life is about and I’m ready to start a new chapter.”

 

On Jan. 12, Parrish will open the pages of a new career. And in honor of the job he’s leaving behind, I can safely say the forecast for his new job with Takeda Pharmaceuticals is calling for success.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Jason Parrish, right, with co-workers Scott Grayson, left, and Albert Zipp. Middle photo shows Parrish doing another part of his job entertaining groups at the station. In the bottom photo Parrish and his wife Nicki are shown with children, from bottom, Gavin Parrish and Delaney and Coleton Marsh. Photos courtesy of the Parrish family.