When I first got into broadcasting professionally, I got my big break in the town where I grew up: Hartford, Connecticut. I was hired by the Fox affiaite ( WTIC-TV ) to anchor sports on the weekends and report during the week.

What really made this new job such a thrill was that I started shortly before my 5th high school reunion and I can't tell you what it meant to be able to go back to see your friends and they being able to see you on TV each night.

While working in TV is great, there is always something special about working in your hometown. My college friends from Pittsburgh who studied journalism told me that was something they hoped to experience someday. That's something the newest member of our morning show team is experiencing now.

Amber Nicotra is our new morning show reporter, replacing Marcie Cipriani who will now work the more normal dayside schedule. Amber is Pittsburgh born and bred ... a graduate of Duquesne University and a native of the North Hills. She earned her stripes working in both West Virginia and Youngstown.

Off-camera, she's a fun person and very active. She tells me she likes to run ... and, something that made me smile, she's into golf. Best of all, she's getting to live the dream of all student journalists who study in Pittsburgh: to broadcast to the viewers in western Pennsylvania ... as well as her family and friends. For many, it doesn't get any better than that.

Please welcome Amber home .. and welcome her to our morning show family .. and look for her every morning.