UPPER MIDWEST EMMY®
HONORS SHOW
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19th, 7PM
How to Watch
The televised 2024 Gold & Silver Circle Honors Show will air at 7pm, October 19th on the Upper Midwest Emmy® YouTube channel, The Emmys® app, and watch.TheEmmys.tv website.
The Emmys® App, is a dedicated platform powered by Vimeo.
All programming is available at watch.TheEmmys.tv and via The Emmys® apps for iOS, tvOS, Android, FireTV, Roku and more.
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences-Upper Midwest Chapter recognizes individuals who have made a significant contribution to television well above and beyond that required by their job. That contribution can be in service to the industry, to NATAS, to the community, or to people training for a career in the field.
The Gold & Silver Circle is not an award; it’s a society of honor. It is recognition of eligible individuals who have made a significant contribution to television well above and beyond that required by their job. That contribution can be in service to the industry, to NATAS, to the community, or to people training for a career in the field. Nominees answer to the highest standards of integrity and honor in all aspects of their personal and professional lives.
Nominations are accepted from the performing, creative, technical or administrative roles within the industry or in peripheral areas directly related to television such as commercial production, journalism or education. Neither nominators nor nominees need to be members of NATAS.
The Gold & Silver Award Committee reviews all nominees past and present to make a recommendation to the NATAS-Upper Midwest Board of Governors. This year, our Board of Governor’s voted and approved the following honorees.
The Gold Circle Honor
recognizes people with
50+ years in the industry
The Silver Circle Honor
recognizes people with
25+ years in the industry
2024 GOLD CIRCLE HONOREE
50 YEARS
As an award-winning journalist Jodi Ritacca Carlini has been an eyewitness to local, state and national news for 50 years since 1974. and working in the Minnesota Twin Cities media the past 32 years. including producing health and medical news stories at KSTP TV, and since 2005, hosting and producing her very own 2010 Regional Emmy® Award-Winning TV show “Inside Health Care.”
Jodi has worked as TV news reporter, an anchor, producer,, Independent documentary & video producer, moderator and producer of live webcasts in the 5-state Upper Midwest Emmy® Chapter.
Jodi was named TV News Director at KNOP-TV in 1979, and was one of the first female TV News Directors in the country. Her most memorable broadcasts of her career involved moderating and producing live coverage of surgeries on the Internet. She has been privileged to interview five U.S. presidents, countless Hollywood stars,like Bob Hope, music legends like Willie Nelson and sports icons like Kirby Puckett as well as the world's most of notable scientists, including renowned astronaut, Buzz Aldrin.
Jodi grew up in Kenosha. Wi and in 2020 she received Distinguished Alumni award from her Kenosha Bradford High school in the field of Journalism. Jodi filmed, wrote. edited produced stories for college broadcasts at University of Idaho and University of Colorado-Boulder, where she graduated with a BS in Broadcast Journalism.
Jodi has served as a panelist on gubernatorial congressional, senatorial debates since 1980s and will continue moderating candidate forums this fall of 2024. She also received the "Law Day Award" from Nebraska's 13th Judicial District for her coverage of courts in 1992, Jodi was also instrumental in getting the Nebraska State Supreme Court to allow cameras in the courtrooms for the first time.
Greg Carlini, Jodi's husband of 41 years, directed her evening newscasts for more than a decade. They were blessed with two adult children, Christina (Tyler Souter) and Joe Carlini, and three.beautiful grandchildren, Aiden ( 10), Amira (8) and Aviana (4)
She's received four Upper Midwest Emmy® Awards and twenty Regional Emmy® Nominations from 1998-2023. In 2015, Jodi’s son Joe received an Upper Midwest Emmy® for a very personal short documentary about his Grandpa Carlini. Her family has awarded several Carlini Media scholarships in his grandpa’s name for deserving students in our 5-state region.
Inspired to Jodi’s dear grandpa Joe Ritacca, an Italian immigrant named “An Exemplary Citizen” for his service as an American soldier in WWI, Jodi is deeply passionate about volunteerism and helping raise $500,000 to help local nonprofits and families in need. In 2020, she was named Washington County “‘volunteer of the year” and 2023 “Everyday Hero” for her volunteerism in her community of Woodbury.
Jodi has been proud to serve on the Upper Midwest Emmy Chapter & Foundation since 2014 including serving as Chapter President for six years, and Foundation Vice President. She is humbled to receive the 2019 Silver Circle Honors and very excited to receive the 2024 NATAS Gold Circle Honors this year during the Chapter’s 25th Anniversary Gala.
2024 SILVER CIRCLE HONOREES
25+ YEARS
Telling outdoor stories comes naturally to Bill Sherck. Television viewers know him better as “The Man About The Woods”; A twenty-six-time Regional Emmy® Award-winning outdoor reporter and show host. Bill’s earned just about every award in the business for his unique style of storytelling.
Viewers can catch Bill’s work on several of the country’s most popular outdoors television programs including, “Minnesota Bound”, seen on NBC affiliates throughout Minnesota, “The Flush” on Outdoor Channel, “Due North Outdoors”, “Rooster Tales” and “Backroads” on Bally Sports Networks and “Made For The Outdoors”, on the Sportsman Channel.
Sherck enjoys sharing his stories with conservation groups, teaching as part of fishing and hunting seminars, and also fishes/guides for various charity and fundraising tournaments. He spends every free moment with his wife Katie and two sons Brady and Bennett. Bill also coaches multiple youth soccer and hockey teams in the Western suburbs.
Born in Mississauga, Ontario, Bill’s family eventually moved to Minnesota where his father and grandfather taught him to fish and hunt. After graduation from St. Norbert College in 1994, Bill went to work in the television business. He reported local news in three midwestern markets before moving to the East Coast to report local and national news as part of Fox News Corp. After Y2K, Bill moved back to Minneapolis where he spent three years on-air @ KSTP/KSTC-TV. In 2003, Bill turned his focus to outdoor television. He’s been at it ever since!
Alicia Garcia’s journey to Rapid City, South Dakota was as unexpected as it was transformative. It certainly wasn't where anyone who grew up with her thought she would spend her professional career. Alicia grew up as the stereotypical 'valley girl' in Southern California. In fact, she still has flashbacks of learning to drive on Los Angeles freeways. After college, she next graduated with a law degree from Stanford University and went to work with CBS Television in L.A.
It took a few earthquakes, riots and fires before she realized she wanted to make a life and raise a family somewhere else. Back in the day, a.k.a pre-internet, the best way to research a location was to go there, so Alicia decided she would tour America in search of the ‘perfect’ place to live. To her family and friends' amazement, Alicia packed up her things, put them in storage and drove around the country. She found the beautiful Black Hills.
Fast forward more than 25 years, Alicia’s name is synonymous with KOTA Territory News both as a reporter/anchor and as a community advocate. She is one of South Dakota’s most experienced journalists and the longest running female anchor in the state. She’s reported from across the region to the other side of the state and around the world. In 2019, Alicia traveled to India to tell the story of a Rapid City dentist who was building an orphanage and providing free dental care to widows and orphans.
Garcia has interviewed lawmakers at all levels. During the Covid pandemic, she conducted 30-minute interviews with Senator John Thune and Representative Dusty Johnson. Alicia also moderated political debates including congressional and gubernatorial ones. One prominent politician was so concerned about Alicia’s debate preparation, that they tried to have her removed as moderator. In a win for local journalism, the management for KOTA Territory News supported Alicia 100% and the politician's team backed down.
Beyond her professional accomplishments, Alicia is deeply committed to her community. Alicia serves as the Director of the KOTA Care & Share Food Drive which raises food and money to help feed the hungry in the area. The events that she helps organize bring in tens of thousands of dollars. For her dedication to this cause, Alicia was nominated for an Upper Midwest Regional Emmy.®
Alicia is the proud recipient of the Tom Brokaw Award for excellence in journalism, an award given to only one South Dakota journalist each year. The Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association also awarded Alicia with a 1st Place Eric Sevareid award for her reporting on the survivors of the 1972 Rapid City Flood.
Alicia's passion for journalism extends beyond her own career. She established a memorial scholarship in the name of her dear friend, former Sports Director and Upper Midwest Regional Emmy winner Jamie Zepp. This scholarship awards thousands of dollars every year to local students planning to pursue a career in journalism.
When Ron Demers (pronounced da-MARS) was growing up in Storm Lake, Iowa, he never would have guessed he'd be doing weather for the station he grew up watching. Ron's attention didn't turn to weather until after he started working at KTIV.
Ron's interest in broadcasting began in news. His first job was a part-time summer position at KAYL Radio in Storm Lake anchoring sports and weather, which eventually led to doing the news. While in college, Ron was news editor of the campus newspaper, worked at KWIT radio, and started an internship at KTIV all in the same year.
KTIV's internship turned into a part-time job as editor and reporter, which led to his full-time reporter job on graduation. Shortly thereafter, Ron started doing the weekend weather. His interest in the weather grew and he took the morning weather position at KTIV. In 1996 he became Chief Meteorologist, a position he still has today at KTIV.
He graduated from Briar Cliff College in 1992 with a major in mass communications. Ron did his meteorology training through Mississippi State University and was awarded the coveted Seal of Approval from the American Meteorological Society in 1998.
Both Ron and his wife are Siouxland natives. Ron was born and raised in Storm Lake, IA, while Katie is from Sioux City. She is a reading specialist in Sioux City and also graduated from Briar Cliff. Ron and Katie are the proud parents of four kids.
KCCI Chief Photographer Donna Smith celebrated 38 years with KCCI in September of 2021. Not only was Donna a great photojournalist and Chief Photographer at KCCI, but she also lived out her purpose every day of her entire career. She has told many people that she knew in grade school she wanted to be a photographer. A great uncle gave her his old still camera and it lit the fire that’s been burning ever since.
Donna decided that after carrying around gear for the better part of four decades, it was time to put it down and to pick up something more relaxing. Donna retired at the end of 2021. Donna joined KCCI after working as a temporary photographer for the competing ABC affiliate station in Des Moines in 1983. In 1987 she was promoted to Chief.
In her time at KCCI she contributed her heart and soul into making the station, Iowa’s News Leader. And while giving her all, she gave Central Iowans some compelling visual stories. She covered and met every President. She traveled to Sydney with the Hearst team that covered the 2000 Olympics as the technical lead. She was gone for a month doing this gig and worked from 5 a.m. to midnight many or all days. Donna covered floods, and fires, presidents and mayors and regular Iowans in her 38 years. Always with the attitude and fire that was in that little girl who was given her first camera.
It’s not an over-statement to say that Donna was one of the rocks in the KCCI news department. Being a Chief Photographer is a tough gig. In addition to having to be a highly skilled photojournalist, you also manage the fleet of news cars and all the gear. Donna was a champion for her team, ensuring the KCCI photojournalists had an advocate to get them the best tools possible to do their jobs.
Brad grew up on a farm near Early, Iowa, and is one of the many native Siouxlanders who work at “Siouxland’s News Channel”.
Brad has won several awards at KTIV, including “Best Sportscast” in 2004, 2012 and 2013 from the Iowa Broadcast News Association and 1st place for “Sports Reporting” in 2007 from the IBNA for his series on the Crestland Cadets football team. He won best sports “Play by Play” from the IBNA in 2004, 2009 and 2010.
In 2018 Brad was honored by the Siouxland Officials Association for his dedication to high school and youth athletics. He has also received several nominations from the Upper Midwest Emmy Chapter.
Brad graduated from Crestland High School in Early, Iowa, in 1984. While attending Iowa State University, he got his first initiation into the broadcasting field, working as a news and sports reporter at KASI radio.
Brad’s wife Sally is an Art Teacher in Sioux City, and they are the parents of a Joseph, Mary and Reggie. In his spare time, Brad likes to play baseball and basketball.
In March 2021, Brad was driving to work and extreme head pain had him stop at a clinic. He was then rushed to the hospital. His doctors discovered a rare brain tumor that had grown in less than 6 weeks.
Brad underwent surgery right way and is currently on a journey to get well and recover. He has a long road ahead of him but longs to be back on the sports anchor desk and cover the Siouxland teams that he knows so very well.
Brad has set a high standard covering Siouxland athletes. He has gone great distances and traveled many miles to capture the action while maintaining the dedication and commitment Siouxland viewers have seen from him over the last 30 years.
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