I was born in Gary, Indiana in 1959. I died in the 5th grade production of HAMLET, but show business has been with me ever since.
I've been performing as a stand-up comedian since 1989 with appearances on A&E, FOX, and SHOWTIME. I decided to give radio a shot when I came to SUNNY 95 in 1994. Thinking it would last a year - tops. After 11 years, I'm amazed that my bosses haven't caught on to the fact that I have no idea what I'm doing.
I also have a feature film to my credit, playing the lead in the indie crime thriller, BOTTOM FEEDERS, which is available on DVD.
Shawn Ireland - It may have been an inevitability that at some point along her career Shawn would pop up at Sunny 95. Heck, she’s been on the radio at different stations in Columbus for almost 20 years with only a diversion in Toledo, and San Diego! So when Sunny 95 came calling, it seemed like the perfect time to team up with Dino Tripodis, another Columbus mainstay whom she has known for almost as many years. Besides that, her kids needed to eat! Since that reunion started, Shawn has enjoyed her role as the sparring, sister-like co-host to the ever ornery, Dino. Shawn feels perfectly qualified for the job with her training regimen: Time spent raising her teenage son, Graham, and tweenage daughter, Cydney! Shawn contends that “Live, Laugh and Love” is her motto for getting through life. But she’s smart enough to have a default too, it’s called “faking it”!
I am proud to have played a role in bringing the AMBER Alert program to Central Ohio in 2001 and am happy to be able to continue the work with the Mid-Ohio AMBER Alert, serving as its president from 2004-2006. That is nothing compared to the joy I experience May 21, 2005, when I became a grandfather for the first time. Natalie Amanda lives with her mother in Little Rock, Arkansas. In my spare time I enjoy swimming, sailing, hiking and skiing. I was awarded the Thurber Treat Prize for Humor Writing in 1999.
I was born in a barn and raised in a small town in Western Iowa. My hometown is Stuart – “the home of 1,600 good eggs and a few stinkers.” No joke – the sign on the way into town actually says that. Rachael Ray once visited Stuart for her show $40 a Day…but had to spend a whole week there. Poor girl.
When I was a senior in high school, I escaped rural Iowa, and landed a job in the thriving metropolis of Des Moines. My eyes were opened to a new world in the city – a world with skyscrapers (18 stories seemed tall), stop lights, and Starbucks Coffee (when Des Moines finally got one in 2003). For those five years, radio became my life…I worked at Sunny 95’s sister stations – working on-air overnight shifts, setting up tents, hanging banners, being the “man about town,” and even playing bands with names like Puddle of Mudd and Devil with Cheese on a rock station...where I was affectionately known as “Stewie.” Don’t ask.
Anyway, to make a short story long, I packed up the John Deere in February of 2007 (OK, it was a horse and buggy), and headed east. My U-Haul ran out of gas just as I was passing into the 270 corridor. I looked at the Columbus skyline, and with the LeVeque tower in the forefront…it sort of looked like the Emerald City. So, I stopped…unloaded my car, and drove to the first radio station I found. Lucky for me, that station was Sunny 95…and that morning show was Dino & Shawn.
So, for now – there’s no place like my new home of Columbus. I love the city, and my friends here at Sunny have become family to me! I can’t wait to meet all of you – and, if you haven’t yet – COME ON OVER to Dino & Shawn in the Morning!
I'm SUNNY 95's Staff Meteorologist. I have the most fun when I’m on the radio. It’s hard to think of it as work. It’s more of a service for those who do have a job to do. And I’m just glad to be here. I grew up in Upper Arlington and on Hoover Reservoir. My wife and I are the proud parents of three daughters, all in college. I'm a huge college football and basketball fan, in fact in enjoyed playing until my knees blew out. Maybe because I'm 6’9” it helped. In today's busy world, I relish time with my family.
Although my major background is police work and criminal justice, my "fun" job for many years has been here at Sunny 95. As a weekend pilot and aviation history buff, I'm fortunate to be in a position that involves so much flying, and Yellow Thunder is the best seat in the house!
My beautiful wife Cathy and I live in Hilliard, where she works for FedEx. I'm very proud of my two grown kids, Leslie and Jon, and my two grandsons, Alex and Michael, who all live in Reynoldsburg.
I'm also a nautical nut, which brings me to our weekend "home away from home." Our sailboat, Terra Nova, is docked at Harbor North in Huron, Ohio when we're not out cruising the Lake Erie Islands. Guests should board with caution, as our boat dog Cindy, the killer Shih-Tzu, is usually standing watch!
If you saw my CD collection, you’d know that music isn’t just my passion…it’s my life!
Born in West Virginia, I’m an Air Force Brat who traveled and lived in foreign countries at an early age, giving me the opportunity to experience all sorts of different flavors of sound. Most of which was disco, since it was the 70’s and my mother was a “disco queen.” I still remember singing along to Donna Summer and learning to dance while watching the Italian version of “Dance Fever”. I spent my high school years in Elkins, West Virginia where I was mostly known as the “girl who could sing.” This is also when I got my first taste of radio at the local country station, where I was hired because “I didn’t have an accent” (no kidding). Well, that and because I was a teenager and I needed the money. Needless to say, radio has been in my blood ever since and I really can’t imagine doing anything else. What a joy it is to come to work everyday!
I like to spend my free time adding to my embarrassingly large shoe collection, walking with my girlfriends, cooking, and basically enjoying life. My motto has and will always be “Never take yourself too seriously.”
I’ve always had music in my life. At a very young age I remember sitting for hours playing my records over and over. During my school years, I began playing drums in my high school marching and jazz bands. At the same time, a childhood friend and I built a basement radio station. From that moment I was “infected” by the broadcasting bug and knew what I wanted to do for a career. So I find myself in a city that I have always loved, hosting afternoons on the radio station I have always admired.
When I am not on the radio, I love being with my family. My wife Connie and I are the proud parents of two boys, Matt and Brandon (who is a student at Ohio State!). We have a GREAT love for animals and share our home with a small zoo of 5 dogs, 5 cats and a cockatiel (they actually allow us to live with them!). My other hobbies include motorcycles - at last count my brother and I have 18 in our collection. I hope you will join me in my life-long hobby of playing Columbus’ Refreshing Lite Rock each afternoon on SUNNY 95.
I have been changing people's lives for over a decade. I like to think that I am more to my audience than a nighttime disc jockey. I try to be a shoulder to cry on, a friend with advice, and a caring person who listens to people when they feel no one else cares.
These aren't skills that I learned in college, I learned them at the school of life. Raised in a family severely affected by alcoholism, I left home the day I graduated from high school. These life experiences give me special insight into the lives of my listeners.
So, I invite you to turn off your televisions, tape your favorite shows, grab a cup of tea and sit back and relax.
Well I guess it’s time to update the ole bio! The boyfriend that I mentioned before is now my husband!! We were married June 14, 2008 and we’re loving every minute of it! It’s so nice to be “settled” and have roots. In this crazy business called radio I’ve been everywhere and worked for all kinds of radio stations but I find myself truly at home in Columbus. I currently call Polaris home but my husband and I are looking for our first home so I’m not sure where we will end up next. I’m such a kid at heart…my home is filled with bubble gum machines, a giant giraffe, tons of board games and sleds and inner tubes for sled riding. My dream home would be modeled after Tom Hank’s apartment in the movie “BIG”. His place was the best! He had pop machines, bunk beds and just tons of toys everywhere! I just have to figure out how I can put a big trampoline in our living room and we’re set! I hope you have as much fun listening to Sunny 95 as I have working here! Keep me posted on where to find more fun things to add to my collection!
