Mark Lonsinger’s voice is now embedded in Holmes County lore

Mark Lonsinger has made a living in front of a microphone. On Thursday, Nov. 8 at Carlisle Inn at Walnut Creek, he put his lifelong passion on display one more time, accepting the 2018 Holmes County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Lifetime Achievement Award.

In an emotional speech following his introduction by good friend Bob Boss, Lonsinger talked about how blessed his life has been as someone who was fortunate enough to be warmly and lovingly accepted after moving into the area many years ago.

“There is no way that I can ever thank you enough for what you have done for me, what you’ve given to me and what you have allowed me to experience,” Lonsinger said to the packed house at the awards banquet. “Your kindness, support and willingness to take me in and allow me to enjoy working and building these many relationships in an area second to none is appreciated more than you will ever, ever know. I will be forever thankful and grateful.”

Lonsinger was not a Holmes County native. Born in Coshocton, he didn’t become part of Holmes County’s fabric until the age of 35, but once he settled in, his easy and inviting radio demeanor, his unwavering commitment to supporting local businesses and area high school teams, and his commitment to Holmes County endeared him to the people.

Whether it was generating funds for Holmes County Share-A-Christmas on air, doing a live feed from the Holmes County Fair, inviting a local business owner or county leader into his office for a chat on air, or delivering a play-by-play of a West Holmes, Hiland or Garaway sporting event, Lonsinger’s talent was always on display.

However, Boss said all pales in comparison to the heart that beats for the people of Holmes County.

“The chamber board did such a great job. There couldn’t have been a better pick for the Lifetime Achievement Award, for what he has done for this community,” Boss said. “We talk about the basketball games and the schools, but what we don’t talk about is the things he did from the goodness of his heart that weren’t his job.”

Volunteering for events like announcing the Holmes County Special Athletes Track and Field Day, the Holmes County Antique Festival, the Holmes County Fair and leading the Holmes County All-Stars in the annual basketball game versus the Holmes County Training Center Holmes County Bucks were just some of the many endeavors he took on.

Boss said, “He is following a group of legends. We’ve had legends for the Lifetime Achievement Award every year, but there is no bigger legend in Holmes County than Mark Lonsinger.”

Lonsinger spoke glowingly of his career in Holmes County, a career that involved saying so many words on air, but none of those on-air words compared to the ones he spoke to people in person as he built countless personal relationships on a daily basis.

“When I received the call from Shasta [Mast] that I would be here on this night receiving this reward, I was totally blown away,” Lonsinger said. “I was speechless, and since that time I have given a lot of thought to my life and my career.”

That thought process led him to the number two, a number he said has played a significant role in his entire life.

His first thought of the number two was his parents, whom he said gave him a great childhood full of solid values and great support. While his father passed away in 1998, his mother Pat was with him on award night.

Lonsinger reached adulthood, although his friends will kid that he still hasn’t achieved that status, and began working for the Coshocton Tribune in 1974. There the late Frank Shepherd and Ken Slaughter, whom Lonsinger said had already forgotten more about the newspaper business than most people will ever know, taught him about writing and reporting along with a valuable tip.

“He told me many times, ‘Just do it with class,’” Lonsinger said of Shepherd.

Five years later Lonsinger made a connection with two more influential people, the late Tom Thompson and Bruce Wallace of WTNS Radio in Coshocton.

“Tom taught me the fundamentals of the radio business and honed my work ethic, but he also allowed me to take those tools and become my own personality,” Lonsinger said. “Bruce gave me a chance in radio in Coshocton and then another when he offered me a chance to come to WKLM Radio in Millersburg. I would not even be here tonight if it weren’t for that opportunity.”

It was in radio that Lonsinger made his mark in Holmes County as he poured himself into his work. After leaving radio after a lengthy stint at WKLM, Lonsinger started The Voice of Holmes County, a web-driven site where he continued to extol the joy and accomplishments of Holmes Countians.

It was there he connected two more dots, that being Rob Moser and Dave “Fuzz” Mackey. Lonsinger said Moser worked tirelessly to develop the vehicles necessary to make The Voice operational while Mackey became Lonsinger’s sidekick on air, the two developing a professional yet fun-loving connection.

For 27 years Lonsinger has called Holmes County his home. During that time the other two people who have impacted his life more than any other have been his significant other Cheryl Parrish and son Bryce Lonsinger, whom eventually came on board and worked alongside him at The Voice.

“Bryce missed a lot of dad time over the years because of what I did, but he has been the best son I could have ever hoped for,” Lonsinger said. “At The Voice I had the chance to work side by side with him, something I will forever cherish. Every dad should be so lucky.”

Of his significant other, Lonsinger said, “Cheryl has been a pillar of support throughout our 30-year relationship, and if not for her, I might not have taken the opportunity to come to Holmes County at all. I was 35 years old at that time and not sure if I wanted to pick up and start over somewhere else, somewhere where I didn’t know anybody and they didn’t know me.”

Cheryl helped him make the decision with a life-changing observation. “We discussed that opportunity for hours and hours and hours. We dissected it, covered all of the possibilities, forward, backward, all around. We talked and talked, and as we got tired at the end of that discussion that stretched out over several days, she quietly looked at me and said, ‘Well, you’ll never know if you don’t go.’ In those few seconds, her simple but as always wise observation made the decision, one of the best of my lifetime. I often think how much I would have missed and how different my life would have been had I made a different choice.”