Vicki Buchanan, the first female on-air personality at WTLC, died Oct. 4. The radio station confirmed her death online. She was 67.
Affectionately called the original First Lady of WTLC, Buchanan hosted mornings and middays for then-105.7 WTLC. She also held the title of program director.
Karen Vaughn, operations manager for Radio One, said in a post on Facebook she’ll remember Buchanan as kind-hearted and one of a kind.
“The wisdom bestowed on me I will never forget! Rest In Peace my Sister. U will be missed,” she wrote.
Buchanan was from Louisville and last lived in Las Vegas. She moved to Indianapolis in the 1970s, which is when Chrystal King met her at WTLC. King didn’t work at the station but knew people who did. The two became lifelong friends.
“She was very low key,” King said. “Extremely great sense of humor.”
Former station DJ Thomas Griffin worked with Buchanan and described her as someone who was laid back with a good spirit and good business sense.
“She was a young lady with one of the best voices, a sultry voice,” he said. “She always wanted to climb the ladder to enhance her stance as a radio announcer.”
Kelly Vaughn, host of “Inside Indy” at WHMB TV, said Buchanan was a mentor to her coming out of college during a time when there weren’t many women in radio.
“What I remember most is her encouraging me and telling me not to be afraid,” Vaughn said.
Buchanan graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a degree in communications, according to the station. She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and was most recently a success coach.
Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853 or tylerf@indyrecorder.com. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick.
