If you have watched a tv weather forecast out of the Rockford market in the last twenty years, there is a good chance Mark Henderson delivered it. Henderson was the chief meteorologist for WIFR TV for 22 years, until he was let go from that role this past May.
It did not take long for Henderson to decide what was next, as he launched Mark Henderson’s Weather Hub on Facebook and YouTube. Henderson runs the weather hub from his home in Rockton and said initially it was a bit of an adjustment.
“I think my kids are getting sick of me already,” he joked. “There have been some adjustments, but to be honest, it’s really been a lot of fun.”
Henderson said that the steps it takes to gather the weather and put together information has not changed much for him.
“I have access to a lot of the computer and radar data that I had in the past,” he said. “My seven-day forecast looks different than it did earlier, the radar I share looks a little different, but I’m trying to keep the overall product fairly similar to TV for the consumer and I think we’re getting there.”
Henderson's Weather Hub Facebook Page has over 21,000 followers and counting, and he said he was “blown away” by the early support it has received.
“The community has been incredible supportive and incredibly kind,” he said. “I didn’t see being let go from WIFR coming, it was a shock to the system to find out one day that I wasn’t employed at the television station."
“My love for the weather never went away. he added. "I wanted to find a way to scratch that itch and give folks the weather information that they have come to rely on over the last 22 years.”
As we wound down our conversation, Henderson said his main goal is still to entertain and inform his viewers.
“If there are things people want to see," he said, "I’m open to any, and all, suggestions. This isn’t about me, it’s about the folks at home.”
