Thomas Niziol achieved what some people may never achieve: his life’s dream. “My ultimate goal has come true,” he said in a 2005 announcement of his new position as Meteorologist in Charge (MIC), “to lead the Buffalo Weather Forecast Office.”
For about the past 27 years, Niziol has been with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Weather Service Forecast Office in Buffalo, starting as a forecaster, and working his way up. Growing up in the village of Depew, close to the airport, Niziol traces his love of weather back to his childhood.
“When I was a young, there wasn’t a lot of money, but we weren’t poor. My dad would load the neighborhood boys into the car to watch the planes take off and land. We parked next to a building, where they sent the weather balloon up once or twice a day. While the other boys would watch the planes, I would watch them set up the balloon,” he explains. “It was a dream of mine to work as a ‘weatherman’ in Buffalo.”
On his path to realizing his dream, Niziol had a number of people encouraging him to become a meteorologist. “We all have mentors and people who help to guide us through life” he began. “Jeffery Briggs at Saint Mary’s high school, he really sparked my interest and curiosity with the weather, he was a reinforcing point to help me.” After graduating from Saint Mary’s, Niziol went on to SUNY Oswego for meteorology, “and there were two or three professors in college who were helpful, encouraging and supportive, who were very important people in my life.”
Graduating from SUNY Oswego magna cum laude, and receiving the Graduating Class Meteorology Departmental Award, Niziol accepted a position at Calspan, a research company in Buffalo. “I worked on atmospheric research in Buffalo,” Niziol explains. He was working with cutting edge technology in researching Lake Effect Snow, “and it rekindled my curiosity and interest on the subject, which I then brought to the National Weather Service.”
Niziol has appeared on several television programs, including the British Broadcasting Corporation, The History Channel and NBC Nightly News, as a winter weather “forecasting authority”, a title which he admits is a little uncomfortable to wear. “I appreciate the honor, but I have worked long and hard on understanding winter weather and the more you study something, the more you realize you don’t know. I have an intense curiosity on this type of weather, but I don’t consider myself an ‘authority’.”
“I’m also extremely lucky professionally,” Niziol continues, “to have some of the most dedicated civil service staffers—21 work at the NWS—you’ll see. It is an honor to work with them and be with them for so long. Buffalo is very lucky and fortunate to have such a dedicated group looking out for their safety.”
Traveling the country, speaking about winter weather and the unique conditions the Great Lakes can produce, is still enjoyable to Niziol, as he tries to talk about more than just one of the area seasons. “I always try to highlight the good kinds of weather the lakes can create. I try to be an ‘Ambassador of the Weather’; we have a lot of good weather in the area— we don’t have the kind of life-threatening types of weather as other climates do. As enjoyable as it is to talk about snow, it is good to talk about all of our weather,” he concluded.
Having grown up in the area, Niziol has many fond memories of the winter holiday season, and looking back now, he sees the difference in his memories as an adult, through the lens of community impact. “As a child, there was no negative impact, just fun to be out there. Unless of course you were asked to help shovel the driveway” Niziol laughs. “As an adult, there’s more of an impact, on the scale of what that impact is. A recent memory is the storm on the 20th of November that dropped 25” of snow in 8 hours, and brought the entire area to a stand still on a Monday.” Niziol is referring to the historic Lake Storm “Chestnut” (an unofficial name given to the storm after it is over to make it easier to refer to the archived data, with an annual theme), which is best remembered by the “Millennium Snowburst” he described above.
Snow and his dream job, however, are not the only reasons Niziol has not strayed too far from his childhood home. “I was and still am, blessed to be around my family, to come back to the town where my family is. I loved seeing other parts of the country, and I’ve spoken all over the world. I love being able to come back and have that close family connection. I’m very blessed and fortunate to have that opportunity.”
With that opportunity, comes traditions, and for Niziol, one of his most fond holiday traditions, stems from his Polish background. “On Christmas eve, we sit down for the Wigilia meal, which is a small meal, not too big. We set the table for everyone, and leave an extra chair for a visitor that might come by looking for a meal. Before we begin eating, we send around a wafer,” traditionally called the ‘oplatek’, “which each one of us breaks off a piece and we wish each other good tidings for the year. Its something I really cherish.”
When asked what his holiday wish for the city this year was, Niziol’s reply was general, but sincere. “To have a safe holiday season and everybody gets what they wish for this year. I’m not going to go down the political slope, there’s a lot that I could wish for—but we’ll leave it at that.” However, his meteorological wish for the city is a little more specific: “About two nights before the holiday season begins (Christmas as an example, in my tradition and religion), a nice fluffy blanket of one to one and a half feet of snow—of course at night so there’s no impact on travel—and no matter what the age is, everyone respond to it as children. Just a great holiday.” Niziol adds, “and wake up as Ralphie did in “A Christmas Story”, seeing Christmas day as it should be.”
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