Cheryl Miller shares emotional message with viewers after 42 years as WTVR anchor

RICHMOND, Va. — For more than four decades, Cheryl Miller has been a familiar and trusted presence in the homes of Central Virginians.

On Friday, she will anchor the news on WTVR CBS 6 for the final time, bringing to a close a remarkable 42-year run behind the anchor desk at the station she has called home since 1984.

WATCH: Cheryl Miller's emotional message to viewers

"It has been my honor and my pleasure to serve the community through WTVR, and that will continue," Miller said on the CBS 6 News at Noon. "While I won't be on the news every weekday, I will continue to be a part of the CBS 6 family, my family here, continuing to host Battle of the Brains as I've done since 2003, and will be back in December to co-host Richmond's Christmas Parade, which I've done since 1999, and to take part in community events as I have for decades."

Miller had previously announced on Facebook that her final newscast comes as WTVR parent company E.W. Scripps undergoes a companywide transformation that has included a workforce reduction.

"A big thank you to my coworkers, and I send best wishes and love to all those who will be walking out the door a final time today," she said. "Thank you to everyone who reached out to me via social media after I posted details about my departure. It will take some time to read all the messages, but know that I will."

Again, while Friday marks the end of her time anchoring the news, it is not goodbye.

Miller will continue working on special projects for CBS 6, including hosting "Battle of the Brains," the long-running high school quiz show she has hosted since 2003.

She will also co-host the station's Christmas parade broadcast in December, continuing a tradition she said she has been part of for the past 27 years.

"Being here at CBS 6 has given me a multitude of experiences that have left lasting impressions, and some that I never would have had had it not been for this job," she said. "So this is not goodbye. It's just so long for now. Thank you for allowing me into your lives. I do appreciate you all. And if you see me out and about, please say hello."

A fitting message from a broadcaster whose career has spanned more than half a century.

A Rochester, New York, native, Miller began her broadcasting career in 1973, first working behind the microphone in radio before eventually making the move to television.

In September 1984, WTVR, then owned by Park Broadcasting, convinced her to leave New York and head south to Richmond to anchor the station's noon newscast.

Richmond would become home.

With the exception of a brief period in the early 1990s when she worked a later shift and did live, on-site anchoring for the nightly "Richmond After Six" magazine show, Miller remained at the helm of the station's midday newscast for more than four decades.

During that time, she covered historic elections, natural disasters, national tragedies and countless stories that shaped Richmond and Virginia.

She also became one of CBS 6's go-to political debate moderators, earning the respect of governors, senators and other lawmakers from both parties.

When the COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life in 2020, Miller provided viewers with a steady presence during an uncertain time. She came to work each day and delivered lengthy live reports detailing the often rapidly changing information coming from state leaders and public health officials.

But Miller's career has extended well beyond the traditional news desk.

Over the years, she helped launch several interview and lifestyle programs at WTVR, interviewed celebrities and traveled around the country to take viewers behind the scenes of CBS primetime programs and soap operas.

She even found herself on the other side of the television camera as an actor.

Miller made a cameo appearance on the CBS soap opera "Guiding Light" in 2004 and portrayed a news anchor on the Showtime series "Homeland" in 2017.

Since 2003, Miller has also served as host of "Battle of the Brains," helping spotlight generations of talented high school students from across the region.

Her commitment to young people extends beyond television.

Miller has donated her time and talent to Junior Achievement, an organization with a particularly personal connection. She participated in Junior Achievement herself while in high school, an experience that helped inspire her to pursue the career that eventually brought her to Richmond.

She has also supported numerous charitable and community organizations across Central Virginia, including taking part in events benefiting CARITAS and hosting the Library of Virginia's Strong Men and Women in History program honoring African American trailblazers.

Her work in broadcasting and in the community has earned some of Virginia journalism's highest honors.

Miller was inducted into the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame in 2015.

In 2016, she received the George A. Bowles Jr. Broadcast Journalism Award, one of the Virginia Association of Broadcasters' most prestigious honors.

In 2023, she was inducted into the Silver Circle honor society, recognizing television professionals who have made significant and lasting contributions to the industry.

Miller's legacy at CBS 6 cannot be measured simply by awards, years on the air or the thousands of newscasts she has anchored.

For generations of viewers, she has been a constant.

And for generations of journalists who have passed through the WTVR newsroom, she has been a colleague, mentor and friend.

Her final day at the anchor desk comes 53 years after her broadcasting career began and 42 years after she arrived at WTVR.

In announcing the news on Facebook, Miller chose to focus her message on her viewers.

"Thank you all for inviting me into your homes and sharing your time with me over the 42 years I have been on the air here at CBS 6 -- since 1984," Miller wrote. "I appreciate you and love you all!"