Rik Rogers was a man who did his job well, and was a creator of Atlanta’s urban contemporary radio station V-103.
“He did things people said could not be done,” said his daughter Kim Chastain. “He was a brilliant man.”
Rogers worked in radio his entire career, starting out in his teens in his hometown of Spartanburg, N.C. as a radio personality. A very quiet, deliberate and intellectual man, Rogers shined bright on air and was nicknamed Mr. Showbiz.
“He never shied from the spotlight, he loved speaking,” said his son Frank Rogers.
In 1969 Rogers moved to Atlanta and began working in sales at radio station WPLO, AM-590, country, and FM-103.3, top 40. He soon became vice president and general manager of the AM station and in the mid 1970s it became the number one country music radio station in the U.S., said his daughter.
“He took a station that was losing money and turned it into a number one station,” said Chastain.
As vice president Rogers came up with an idea for an urban contemporary station, creating V-103. He set up a transmitter and increased the range of the station. Rogers left the station in 1993.
Clarence Brack “Rik” Rogers, of Douglasville, died Nov. 30 of a traumatic brain injury due to an accidental fall. He was 80. A memorial service was held 12:00 p.m. Saturday at Ephesus Baptist Church, 8445 Ephesus Church Rd, Villa Rica.
“He showed me how to be an honest man, he was my idol,” said Frank Rogers of his father. Chastain said, “He was just a great dad that always tried to do the right thing.”
Frank Rogers remembers falling out of a tree and being told by doctors that he was never going to be able to walk again. “Dad never let me give up,” he said. “No matter the circumstance, Dad always said never give up, never quit.”
In his free time, Rogers wrote poetry and read many books. A lover of knowledge, he was always learning. He was a member of the Toastmaster Association for 40 years.
“He bestowed on me to be fair and kind to others, things I teach my son on a daily basis,” said his son.
Rogers is survived by four children, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
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