ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, June 6, 1996 TAG: 9606060026
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-44 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN GRIESSMAYER STAFF WRITER
Jamey Singleton remembers the time in third grade when he stood at a classroom window and watched - with great excitement - as a thunderstorm approached.
While his classmates sat nervously at their desks and jumped with each clap of thunder, Jamey became mesmerized by the rolling black clouds and flashes of lightning.
Today, Jamey is nine years older, but his reaction is pretty much the same.
"I love severe weather," he says. "When it's storming or flooding outside, I'm having a great time."
To Singleton, one of the 458 graduating seniors at Franklin County High School, studying the weather has grown from a passing interest into a potential career.
At just 17 years old, Singleton serves as the weather anchor of his school's televised news program, provides the daily forecast for the "Eagle Hotline" and is the staff meteorologist for The Eagle, the school's student newspaper.
Three mornings a week, Singleton wakes up at 5:30, puts on a suit and tie, and heads to the studio of cable television's Channel 12, where he collects and interprets pages of raw weather information. Then, after combining this information with his own experience and judgment, Singleton presents his forecast live during the "Rise and Shine" morning show, which is broadcast throughout the Franklin County area at 7 a.m.
Although these responsibilities keep him busy, Singleton admits that when he does have free time, he'll turn on the Weather Channel and watch, sometimes for hours.
"If I could, I'd sit home all day with a bucket of popcorn and watch it." He also enjoys "chasing" storms and trying to capture lightning on video.
This enthusiasm for meteorology has earned Singleton the nickname "Weatherboy" because, as his friends at both television stations remind him, "You're not old enough to be a weatherman, yet." And because he has developed a close relationship with former WSLS-TV meteorologist Bill Meck, Singleton is also known around the high school as "the little Bill Meck."
"When I first started trying to put together my own daily forecast, I was having trouble getting all the necessary weather information," Singleton says. "I called up Bill Meck and got to hang out with him for a day. He gave me the phone number for the weather computer at Channel 10, and that helped me get a lot of the weather figures I needed."
Since then, Singleton and Meck have taken turns helping each other. On two occasions, Singleton provided Channel 10 with storm footage that ended up as the lead story in the nightly newscast.
"I filmed some golf ball-sized hail a couple of years ago," Singleton remembers, "And Bill drove all the way from Roanoke in a Channel 10 truck to get the video so he could show it on the 11 o'clock news. He even mentioned my name."
When it came time for Singleton to choose a college, Meck helped him select one with a good weather program. This fall, Singleton will attend the University of North Carolina at Asheville, where he plans to major in atmospheric science.
"I feel that I need to go somewhere where I can concentrate on the science of weather," he says. "The more I can learn now, the better forecaster I'll become."
After a few years in Asheville, Singleton would like to transfer to a bigger school with a more advanced weather department. Oklahoma is his top choice because it's part of the "Vortex" program, which allows students to get close to severe weather situations and study their effects.
"It would be awesome to get out in the field and actually see a tornado," he says.
After college, Singleton says, he wants to work as a television meteorologist, and not, he stresses, as "just a weatherman."
"I just want to build a good reputation so that people can trust my forecasts."
Franklin County High School's graduation ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. on June 15 in Cy Dillon Stadium. The valedictorian is Jonathan Proctor, and the salutatorian is James M. France. Franklin County writer Michael Chitwood will give the commencement address.
LENGTH: Medium: 86 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: WAYNE DEEL Staff Jamey Singleton does the morningby CNBweather show in Rocky Mount's cable TV studio.