One of the tri-state’s bestknown meteorologists cites opportunity and flexibility among the keys to long-term success

by Laura D.C. Kolnoski photos by Sue Barr Photography

Interns usually hope their exposure to a dream job actually results in one. SallyAnn Mosey recognized her opportunity and, instead, maximized fate.

“During an unpaid internship at the PBS radio station at the University of Buffalo, I played softball for the co-ed team against a commercial radio station,” she recalled. “ I took the opportunity to meet the news director. After I hit a home run, I wrote a letter asking him to ‘ Put me up to bat,’ adding, ‘ I promise I won’ t strike out.’ ” He requested a tape, critiqued it, and determined she wasn’ t ready, but left the door open. When the station’ s traffic reporter quit, Mosey got her shot.

At News 12 New Jersey since 2012, Mosey has also worked for Fox Philly, ABC, and WNBC New York. A native of Gloucester County, her family moved near Buffalo in her youth. After living in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, she returned to New Jersey in 2006. A magna cum laude graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo with a bachelor’ s degree in English/Communications, she later earned the American Meteorological Society Seal of Approval.

Mosey was nominated for an Emmy while at ABC New Haven affiliate WTNH for her work with the station’ s investigative reporter, specifically as an undercover decoy. Their stories uncovered a pedophile preying on aspiring child models, exposed poor vetting at nanny agencies, and took viewers inside telemarketing operations.

Aside from covering Superstorm Sandy, she said that her most perilous assignment was 1999’ s Hurricane Floyd. “ I realized the extent of the danger while heading to North Carolina and seeing miles of bumper-to-bumper traffic leaving the same area I was driving into,” Mosey recalled. She’ s also reported live as part of a circus high wire act, held pythons and water ski’ d on air, along with the requisite standing roadside buffeted by inclement weather.

While covering the Special Olympics, she found then Senator Joe Biden to be “ kind, friendly, and genuine.” Her Facebook photo with Matt Lauer, Al Roker, and other media notables was taken at the Friar’ s Club during a meteorologists’ roast. While at 30 Rock for NBC, she encountered actors Jessica Lange, Will Ferrell, Steve Carell, Vince Vaughn, and Matthew McConaughey—most were interview subjects of film critic Jeffrey Lyons, who introduced her.

“I will never forget meeting [forensic scientist] Dr. Henry Lee during the O.J. Simpson murder trial,” Mosey recalled. “ We laughed about getting paid for doing a job we’ d do for free.” Al Roker is, she said, “ every bit the great guy you see on TV. When my contract was bought out during the sale of NBC from GE to Comcast in 2008, he was incredibly kind, offering to be a reference.”

In 2013, she twirled with Dancing with the Stars’ Maksim “ Maks” Chmerkovskiy, who was opening a Fort Lee dance studio. “Evaluating computer models and creating my own forecasts for more than two decades, I am elated to experience how technological changes have improved [weather forecasting] accuracy,” she explained. “ And models continue to improve. It’ s still good to look outside, check cloud types, and confirm what computer models suggest. We say its guidance, not gospel. I enjoy telling people about sunny, tranquil weather versus the nasty storms many of my colleagues enjoy covering. While it can be exhilarating watching a storm develop, I can’ t stop thinking about the potential negative effects it can and does have on people.”

Working at a station that caters to New Jersey brings Mosey particular satisfaction.

“We care about our state and communities,” she said. “I have four kids in the school system, so I find myself listening intently to our coverage because it impacts me, too!” She credits her family and friends for supporting her career. She and her husband Jim, who works for a software engineering firm and encouraged her to pursue her career passions, are celebrating 25 years of marriage. The Holmdel couple’ s oldest son, Mitchell, is a senior soccer player at Rutgers University and an NFCA Scholar Athlete/Top 10 member majoring in electrical and computer software engineering. Son Steven is a freshman on the football and track teams at Bucknell University. Mark is a high school freshman soccer player, and daughter, Katrina, is a 7th grader who also plays soccer.

Active in her community, Mosey promotes public schools, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and other charities. At the request of her mayor, she also recently addressed high school and college students at a career forum. A “Jersey girl at heart,” she vacations from Sandy Hook to Cape May, but diplomatically declined to name a favorite spot. (“Each town has its own unique qualities that bring me back,” she said.)

SallyAnn Mosey / News 12 New Jersey news12.com