February 5 is National Weatherperson's Day, celebrating the work that meteorologists do in the United States. It is timed to be on the birthday of John Jeffries, who was an early weather observer in the United States.
Notably, it comes just days before February 9, the day in 1870 when the US Weather Bureau was established.
On this occasion, I'd like to recognize the work of a certain weatherperson: Jim Allsopp. At the end of November 2013, Jim retired as Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the National Weather Service Chicagoland Forecast Office in Romeoville, IL. In addition to his work of disemminating alerts from the office, he spent much time with at public events, training spotters, and doing other outreach, like at the Fermilab Severe Weather Seminar.
I was fortunate to meet Jim one Saturday in July 2004. A couple of weeks earlier, while listening to my NOAA weather radio, I heard an announcement about a weather workshop for middle schoolers. I jumped at the chance, and signed up.
Jim led the workshop, giving us a tour of the office, giving us an inside look at the process of forecasting weather, and even giving us the opportunity to issue a fake weather warning, along with other activities. It was a delight to have this chance to channel my interest in meteorology.
Thank you so much Jim for your work at the office and getting the general public, including youngsters, involved in the world of weather.
P.S. You can read more about Jim on page 30 of the Winter 2013 edition of Weather Currents, the Chicago WFO's newsletter: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/images/lot/newsletter/winter2013.pdf
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