At age 92, Larry Berg has decided the prudent action for he and his wife, Judy, is to move to Baltimore to be near their daughter. But a part of his heart will always remain in Butler.

“We could not have picked a nicer place to live for 59 years,” Berg said. “This is the way we both feel.”

Ironically, the couple came from Baltimore when they moved to Butler in 1964.

Berg had been working at an AM radio station in that city, where he was program manager and a disc jockey playing Top 40 records of the day.

In six months, Berg transformed the station from one struggling with ratings to the top station in the city.

After three years, Berg grew weary of corporate radio and wanted to try something different.

So he found WBUT in Butler, which was owned by Patrick Beacom, the former governor of West Virginia.

“I hit the streets and developed some advertising concepts and met people and joined everything I could to get a little bit known in the community,” Berg recalled.

Soon, Berg owned and managed the station.

Business owners seemed to appreciate Berg’s new concepts in advertisements, which he often voiced himself.

“It took several years for things to start getting better, but eventually it was wonderful,” Berg said.

He hosted the first call-in talk show in Butler from the dining room of the former Days Inn’s on Route 8 south, now Tesla Medbed.

“That seemed to strike a new note with people,” he said.

His first guest at the Days Inn was Arnold Palmer, who was part owner of the new hotel. Berg also interviewed most Pennsylvania governors and myriad other state and national politicians representing Butler during his years broadcasting from the hotel.

He also filled in at KDKA in Pittsburgh when the talk show hosts and newscasters were on vacation.

Berg also served as master of ceremonies at the annual Junior Miss pageants.

After retiring from radio at age 70, Berg accepted a gig as host of a show on Armstrong that showcased the many fascinating facets of Butler County.

“I left that when I was 88,” Berg said. “I didn’t want people to say ‘He used to be good.’”

Berg had worked in four or five major cities before coming to Butler, including New Orleans, where in 1957 he gave a certificate and key to the city to none other than the King of Rock ’n’ Roll.

“He was very humble and a very nice young man,” Berg said of Elvis Presley.

During his time in Butler, Berg served on the boards and as president of both the Butler Rotary Club and the Butler Chamber of Commerce.

He earned the Junior Distinguished Service Award in 1966, proving that he had successfully ensconced himself into the fabric of Butler County in just two years.

Berg also served on 15 to 20 other boards of directors, including Easter Seals, Boy Scouts, Butler Symphony, Red Cross and B’nai Abraham Synagogue.

“It was like joining a family,” Berg said of arriving in Butler. “Here is this newcomer meeting all these important business people, and they are being so nice to me. It was just a wonderful feeling.”

When they decided recently to move to Baltimore, Berg said the taste was bittersweet. But they set a firm date of June 27 to pack up and head to the Charm City.

“The grief of leaving is becoming overshadowed by the knowledge it’s the right thing to do,” he said.

Jim Cunningham, former director of the Jean B. Purvis Community Health Center, said he and Berg went on fundraising calls together to raise money for the center.

“He was actually instrumental in the original fundraising campaign,” Cunningham said. “He has been very active with the health center.”

He recalled his first encounter with Berg in 1966, when Cunningham was a senior in high school.

Cunningham was director of the Butler High School jazz band, which played at events to support the Golden Tornado football team that were emceed by Berg.

“Larry was very impressed with the band, and he introduced himself to me,” Cunningham said. “We hit it off right from the beginning.”

The pair’s musical connection continued when Cunningham played in and Berg emceed performances of the Butler County Concert Band, now named the Musicians’ Concert Band.

One evening, the late Salvatore Signorino, the band’s director, gave Berg the baton and instructed him to direct “The Stars and Stripes Forever.”

“Larry said ‘What am I supposed to do?’ and Sal said ‘Just wave,’” Cunningham recalled.

He said Butler’s musicians so loved Berg that they made him an honorary member of the former Butler County Musicians’ Union, even though Berg is not a musician.

Nancy Hile, former director and current manager of collections at the Maridon Museum in Butler, said Berg joined others working in Mary Phillips Hulton’s home to organize a museum for her colossal collection of Asian art.

“Larry started with the Maridon long before it even opened its doors,” Hile said. “He was instrumental in a lot of the early marketing and publicity for the museum.”

She said Berg helped design the brochure the museum uses to this day.

“He was a popular personality,” Hile said. ”He knew the community and how to reach out.”

She said no one could resist Berg’s warm and outgoing personality.

“He was a real asset to the museum and really had a genuine interest in the community,” Hile said. “I think he just wanted to make sure everyone knew as much as they could in the best way they could about the things in Butler County.”