Terri Hemmert scaling back on-air time after 45 years at WXRT

Chicago radio legend Terri Hemmert will be scaling back her time at WXRT-FM in the coming weeks.

“After 45 years at WXRT, I’m going to figure out how to turn the record over and see what plays on the other side,” Hemmert said in an email to colleagues published by Chicago media reporter Robert Feder.

“In a few weeks, I will move from being on air five days a week year-round to a schedule with much more flexibility while still remaining part of the station and work I love so much.”

Hemmert — who hosts WXRT’s mid-day show as well as “Breakfast with The Beatles” on Sunday mornings — has taught college courses for more than 30 years on top of her four-plus decades at the radio station.

She told colleagues that she will “continue to be a part of the fabric at XRT,” filling in for other hosts who are on vacation and continuing to host the Sunday morning show.

“I love music. I love radio. I love our listeners. And I love my radio family,” she wrote. “Some things change, but that never will.”

Speaking with the Sun-Times last year, Hemmert — who was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2010 — addressed the idea of retirement, saying:

“Why walk away as long as they want me here? I’m happy here. I have a million things to do that are still compelling to me, still fun. I still get to do something for someone, and if you’re not doing something for other people, you’re not living right. This gives me a lot of opportunities to do that. Teaching.”

She added: “I’m not trying to be younger than I am. Being older is not that bad. Sure, my body’s falling apart, but there are compensations. I’m finding wisdom and understanding and patience, less tolerance of BS. There’s a payoff, a balance, if you do it right. I’ve dodged a lot of bullets in my life. I’m happy to be here.”