Rick Katzfey is so thankful to be back in Northwest Arkansas.

Rick has been watching the weather both professionally and non-professionally for over 50 years.

Rick became interested in weather when he was only 5-years-old.  “I was forecasting weather for my parents and others when I was 12.  Back then we had little technology available so I had to rely on reading the clouds.”  At 14, Rick began his public service work by calling in rainfall amounts to a local Kansas radio station.  From age 14 to age 21 Rick kept a daily almanac of weather conditions for the Hesper community in Kansas.

Rick has chased numerous storms and has videotaped several tornadoes, even coming within a mile of one destructive twister.

Rick is the recipient of the prestigious Emmy Award, television’s highest honor, for Outstanding Achievement in a Weathercast.  He was recently awarded the 2014 Heart of America Award from the Kansas City Press Club. Rick had the pleasure to join 100 of the top meteorologists in the country at the White House where he met the President and Vice President to discuss environmental issues.

Rick loves getting out in the community meeting people for live remote broadcasts.  He enjoys sharing his enthusiasm about weather with the community while speaking at civic clubs and local schools.

Family is very important to Rick.  He spends his free time with his beautiful wife Donna and their three kids Mackenzie, Nicholas, Carson, and their new granddaughter Kennedy.

Be sure to wake up with Rick weekday mornings starting at 5:00 a.m. on KNWA Today for your first look at Northwest Arkansas headlines and FOX24 News at 7! Follow him on Twitter, too!