After 39 years of hurricanes, homicides and hometown heroes, Claire Metz drops her mic

A good reporter knows not to be the story. But when a good reporter retires after 39 years at one TV station − leaving people to say she's irreplaceable − that is a story.

And that's where we are with Claire Metz.

Metz, who lives in Daytona Beach and has covered Volusia and Flagler counties since leaving the anchor desk in 2005, is retiring today. Her colleagues at WESH-2 News in Orlando will fête her during the afternoon news broadcasts, as they have been all week.

In an interview Thursday after meeting her final deadline, a story about a concerning "uptick" of students bringing weapons to Volusia County schools, Metz said this story about her is unnecessary and it's OK if it's "cut for time," adding that this week she's getting "way more attention than I need."

Later, after the protestations, Metz explained her decision to retire. When her contract was up in March 2022, her WESH bosses were talking about a two- or three-year extension.

"I kept thinking, 'Jesus, I'm old. I've been doing this thing so long.' But I just went along," Metz said.

Then she had another birthday. Retirement remained on her mind.

"I gave it as much thought as I possibly could. I still have mixed feelings because I've loved what I did," she said. "I knew I could be a real historical knowledge person because I'm so damn old, so I felt like I could bring something to the table. But the day-in, day-out wore on me and I just thought: It's time for the next generation to take over."

Moving from the anchor desk to the streets

Metz grew up in the Chicago suburb River Forest, went to Loyola University in New Orleans, and moved to Daytona Beach, the hometown of her husband Peter, in 1981.

In a 2004 interview, Metz said she initially wanted to be a lawyer, like her father, but the Daytona Beach area lacked a law school, so she pivoted to put her communications degree to use. Starting in 1983, she worked briefly for one of WESH's competitors, WKMG Channel 6, then got pregnant, took maternity leave and never returned.

In 1984, WESH called her and offered her an opportunity to work weekends, which better fit her schedule as a mom, so she took it. By 1987 she was anchoring the morning news, and later the noon hour before finally returning to reporting full-time in 2005.

Working the anchor desk made her a familiar face to many viewers, who embraced her smoky voice and bubbly charm even as she was never a Barbie. She told The News-Journal in 2004 that she never considered herself a beauty queen and that being allowed to age on camera was comforting to some viewers.

“It makes me approachable," she said. "They can look at me and say: ‘Oh, there’s Claire. She had a bad night, too.’"

Anchoring allowed Metz to commute to Orlando and be back in time to be with her four children, Michael, Matthew, Joey, and Julie Hillis, after they returned home from school.

Matt Metz, who did become a lawyer and was elected as Volusia County's public defender in 2020, said each of the kids learned the meaning of hard work and commitment from watching their mom.

"During the summers she would take us individually to the station in Orlando, which meant waking up at 3:30 in the morning and driving with mom ... and sitting almost right beside her at the anchor desk, so we learned what it meant to commit to something that you were invested in, and she gave 100%," he said.

Sometimes that meant taking calls late at night. Sometimes it meant knocking on doors of people who'd recently lost loved ones or gotten in trouble. Once, in 2013, someone pointed a gun at her.

On Christmas Day 2006, tornadoes tore through several parts of Volusia County. She left the presents and cookies at home to seek out victims and when she couldn't find a cameraman, she drafted her son, Matthew, he recalled.

Stories big and small

Even while anchoring, Metz got out of the office to cover the opening of Universal Orlando, to travel to England for Princess Diana's funeral, and, in 2000, to death row, where she interviewed notorious serial killer Aileen Wuornos, who murdered seven men and had been arrested at a Port Orange bar.

Mostly after her return to street reporting, it was everyday news that took her across Volusia and Flagler counties, to hurricanes, government brouhaha, and shark bites with her "day husband," WESH photojournalist Hutch Breneman.

Julie Murphy, communications manager for Flagler County government, said Metz's presence was welcomed.

"She is just a super person. Very direct, honest, but very approachable and nice," Murphy said. "One of the things I always really appreciated about Claire, she would do smaller stories."

Murphy said Metz visited a Flagler County congregate dining facility for seniors on a holiday, a story that meant a lot simply because more seniors would become aware of the opportunity to get out of the house, meet other people and feel less isolated.

'Consummate professional'

Patricio Balona, who has covered crime for The News-Journal since 2001, emigrated to the United States from Belize in 1996 and Metz's face was the first he saw on television.

Balona later met her in person − as a competitor who showed him kindness.

"On many occasions, we would follow each other to victims' families' homes knocking on doors to get interviews," he remembered.

Once, Balona contacted family members of a murder victim, and they declined to talk with him.

"I later caught up to Claire and we returned to the home," Balona said. "When the family came out, her opening was, 'Hello, darling, so sorry for your loss.' (Metz gave) the woman a hug and next thing we know, she was talking about the murder victim to us."

State Attorney R.J. Larizza seconded that perspective.

“Claire Metz has that rare quality to make you feel at ease even though she is conducting an interview. She is genuine, kind and honest with folks," he said in a statement. "She is beautiful inside and out."

Volusia County Council Chairman Jeff Brower said he watched her on TV for decades before his entry into politics, when he got to know her.

"She was always the epitome of integrity and just a true newswoman wanting to get to the heart of the story and wanting to be as succinct and accurate as possible," Brower said. "I'm going to miss her. ... I think it’s a loss for our viewing public."

Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry, who watched Metz in high school, called her a "consummate professional" with "unmatched excellence in journalism" and a staple in the community.

"For me, she’s comforting and reassuring," Henry said. "If she said it, I could believe it.”

Metz's sourcing is deep. Michael Fowler, director of public safety at Daytona Beach Shores, said she would learn about events even before police.

"There have been multiple times I've been on a crime scene and seen Claire in her pajamas with a cell phone," Fowler said.

"After Hurricane Nicole (in 2022), I had just pulled out to start our damage assessment. My phone rang and it was Claire, asking, 'Are you on your way to the building collapse?'

"I said, 'I don't know what you're talking about.' She said something about in the (4100) block of South Atlantic Avenue some houses fell into the ocean," Fowler said. "I said, 'Well, if you're telling me that, I better go check it out.'"

Even before dialing 911, someone had tipped off Metz.

Looking ahead to retirement

Metz said she doesn't know what's in store for her in retirement. She still returns home to Chicago regularly to visit her mother and loves living in Volusia County.

"I love the smell of the ocean," she said.

Matthew Metz wants his mom to experience life away from the camera.

"What we’re really excited for is for her to be able to shut off completely for a little while and allow herself some time to relax more than a few hours at a time, which she really hasn’t had the ability to do ever since we can remember," he said. " It’s certainly more than well-deserved and hopefully she’ll find that next interesting thing."

While friends and viewers are happy for Metz to enjoy her retirement, they also see her departure as a loss − someone who knows the landscape and has seen it change over decades. Someone who knows where the bodies are buried. Someone who doesn't need to turn on the GPS when she hears there was a crime scene on Maytown Road or Glenwood Road.

"Volusia County has lost a real sweetheart and a professional," said Ben Johnson, who was Volusia County sheriff for 16 years and a county councilman for another four.

Johnson and his wife Leslye Gayle, a radio host on Magic 107.7 in Orlando, consider Metz a friend but said she never let friendship get in the way of her professionalism, such as when she had to report tragic news or ask tough questions.

"She reported the news, not her view of the news," Johnson said.

"She's the very best we've ever had in this county," he said. "No one even comes close to taking her place."

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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: WESH-2 reporter Claire Metz retiring after decades of covering Volusia