(MSC News)--Nearly 5-decades come to an end for local broadcaster and radio station owner, Greg Buser, whose retirement became effective at the start of the month, followed by a reception in his honor held Friday in Hiawatha.

Buser, whose career has revolved around his northeast Kansas/southeast Nebraska-based radio station group of KNZA, KMZA, KAIR, KLZA, and KTNC, was highlighted in 2017 during the popular, state-wide “Now That's Rural” radio program, with host Ron Wilson saying, “the key to the success of these stations is local coverage. The stations focus intently on local news, sports, and weather. “If it wasn’t for that, nothing else would matter,” Greg said. Obituaries and community announcements can be heard on these stations.”

Of course, Buser did not establish his broadcast group alone, and remembers the early contributions of his long-time business partner, the now-retired Robert Hilton, whose involvement remained in place well into the 2000's. “Robert and I took over June 1 of 1983, at KNZA. Operated it, and converted everything...to computers. That was quite an adventure.”

The stations are now in the hands of longtime station-group employee Justin Fluke who took the reigns in January, as Buser wound down in his career, including years of salesmanship, which placed him within the center of local communities served by the radio stations. “I’m trying to decompress a little bit, which I’ve had some time to do that with Justin taking over January 1 of 2022,” Buser said, adding, “Justin worked for us for 20-plus years, he did a lot of projects, and he's into local radio, and he's got some new ideas. He's entrepreneur like, he sees opportunities, he knows how to put things together. If you’ve listened in the last few months, there's some new, localized-type things that he's been able to put together with his team, and he's put together a good team,” Buser said of Fluke.

Fluke, in a statement to MSC News, says he's “incredibly fortunate to have worked and learned from [Buser] for the last 22-years,” adding that he “couldn’t be more proud and excited to carry forward his legacy and tradition of broadcast excellence,” excellence that Fluke says “put local radio on the map in Northeast Kansas.” Fluke says it was Buser “who grew the company with adding stations and MSC websites to make a tremendous impact on so many employees, helping local businesses and organizations grow.”

Buser has remained local throughout his broadcast career, having grown up in rural Atchison County and residing in Hiawatha with his longtime wife, Becky.