CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — Sitting in his Catawba County living room, Bobby Noble remembers the good times he had with his good friend, Jason Myers.
What You Need To Know
Jason Myers and Chip Tayag from Charlotte news station WBTV died in a helicopter crash two days before Thanksgiving
Myers was a meteorologist and spent some of his years growing up in Catawba County, attending Mill Creek Middle School and Bandys High School
He planned on eating lunch the day of the crash with friend Bobby Noble before having to reschedule for training on the helicopter
“Jason and I have known each other since the fifth grade. We were 10 years old. He and his parents moved into the Sherrills Ford area and started at Sherrills' Ford Elementary. He and I were in Mr. Shay’s class together," Noble said.
Myers was a meteorologist at Charlotte television station WBTV. Two days before Thanksgiving, he died in a helicopter crash, along with pilot Chip Tayag.
Noble was going to have lunch with Myers that day, but in the last text message between the two friends, Myers changed plans last minute because he had to do training on the helicopter.
"I told him, 'Have fun!' because he really did love to fly on that helicopter. Then my wife and I were sitting in the car outside the restaurant near the station when the news started reporting that there was a crash, and I texted him asking if everything was OK, but it was never delivered. At that point, I knew that something was off," Noble said.
Noble says his friend always wanted to be a meteorologist.
“Definitely, he always wanted to be a meteorologist. He always had the personality to be on TV. He was a loving person, very kind, that was always his dream," Noble said.
That kindness came through in his friendship. When Noble turned 40 during the pandemic, Myers made sure it was celebrated.
“Jason wanted to make sure that I had at least a birthday lunch, so he took me out to lunch," Noble said.
Noble will always remember his friend as kind, and with a genuine smile, not just for TV.
“Jason was just that genuine person, and his love and compassion and consideration for others, that was who he was. That smile wasn’t for TV, he was just always that loving and kind," Noble said.