'A really bittersweet moment': Rosie Del Campo reflects on her 13 years at CTV Kitchener

KITCHENER -

Rosie Del Campo is leaving CTV Kitchener after more than a decade with our station.

She stopped by to talk with CTV Kitchener's Nicole Lampa and look back on her 13-year career.

Nicole Lampa: Let's go back to the very beginning when you first started here at CTV. I remember one of your first live hits, 13 years ago, you were from Uptown Waterloo and as soon as you went up on air, many of us were in awe of your poise and grace and since then you've worn many hats. Tell us about your roles here at the station.

Rosie Del Campo: Thank you so much, Nicole. It's really a bittersweet moment for me and I'm telling you, I'm going to miss the studio. There's so much history in this studio and in this station and it's been an honour to be even just a tiny part of the tremendous history here.

But yes, I've been so fortunate that I've had opportunities to do a little bit of everything here, and over the past few years, I've had the opportunity to take on more of a producing an anchoring role on CTV News at Five and Six.

But when I first started at CTV Kitchener as a reporter and a videographer, I was out in the community and that's where the magic happens, right? Because I was out, meeting so many different people, telling so many different stories every day and I'm really grateful for those opportunities and connections. I also had an opportunity to file a story on a live report for six o'clock, come back to the station to provide an update at the end of the six o'clock news, then turn my attention to producing an anchoring CTV News at 11:30.

Time flies when you're meeting multiple deadlines.

Lampa: Tell us some of the highlights ,your favourite moments here at the station.

Del Campo: Hands down being part of the launch of CTV News at Five. We do not often get opportunities to announce new local news programming. I fully realized this was such a unique opportunity, and I mean it when I say I enjoyed every minute of it.

I was the first producer of CTV News at Five and a co-host and I remember, launching the program, we took the show on the road, so we launched in five different cities in five days.

Wow, what memories I have from just that week alone and then we continued to have more fun doing Quick Fix at Five and In Your Backyard, exploring so many different places in the community and getting to try a lot of fun things and embarrass myself a little bit on TV.

Lampa: That I think led the way for you to be able to handle what has become the biggest story of our lives not just worldwide, but here locally as well. What was it like anchoring local news during the pandemic?

Del Campo: It was challenging, just like the pandemics been so challenging for everyone and we all know that that's an understatement.

I remember what it was like when you know the pandemic was first declared. Like so many other workplaces, we all had to adapt to a different way of working. So, suddenly, the newsroom, normally the busiest place on earth it feels at times, became eerily quiet.

But at the same time, I've never seen a busier harder working local news team trying to keep on top of all the latest updates and changes and restrictions and a lot of devastating stories, daily reminders, sometimes hourly reminders of the difficulties and challenges that people in our community were facing.

I know we also try to work really hard to tell stories of hope and survival, and I know you've done a lot of that good work too Nicole.

Lampa: I think you embody resiliency, you're moving on to the next chapter of your life. Tell us about that.

Del Campo: Thank you Nicole. So like so many other people during the pandemic, I have had a chance to reflect, think about what's important to me in my life, think about the future. So, I've decided it's time for a new challenge.

I'll be staying in Waterloo Region. I'll be using my skills in new ways, and I'll be spending more time with my son.

Lampa: Any final words for the community?

Del Campo: Thank you. Thank you to everyone I've connected with in the community. Thank you for trusting me to tell your stories. Thank you to this incredible talented team on air and behind the scenes, because there's so much work that's done off camera that a lot of people don't get to see.

I'm really proud to have been part of this team and I'm proud to have been, again, just a small part of the tremendous history of this station and the impact it's had in this community. Thank you.

You can watch the full interview with Rosie Del Campo by clicking the video player above.