Ledyard — Teresa Berry still remembers calling the local soft rock station while up in Connecticut visiting a friend more than 20 years ago, looking for a move to more welcoming climate than Texas.

The radio station owner John Fuller happened to answer, and Berry suggested sending him a tape. A couple weeks later, after Berry had already returned to Texas and sent a tape, Fuller called up and suggested a meeting at the former hotspot restaurant G. Willikers in Groton, which of course meant another trip to Connecticut.

Berry had never sent him a picture of herself because, she explained, as an African-American she wanted to make an impression with her talent. The young Fuller was suitably impressed.

"You got a bright future, kid," Berry recalls Fuller telling her at that first meeting.

Fuller had been impressed with her lack of "regionalism," as they say in the radio business. Despite having finished high school and college in Texas, her years as an "Army brat" moving to many different locales had apparently kept her from developing a distinct accent, she said.

Unfortunately, Fuller had only a sales position available, and Berry didn't like that idea, so he offered her an intership instead. Berry hesitated because she already had a full-time job at ABC Radio in Dallas, but she felt good vibes from Fuller and agreed to the move to Soft Rock 106.5, WBMW.

It wasn't long before Berry had the morning show, at first with partners and eventually on her own. People liked Berry's calm voice and convivial style, not to mention the tunes she spun.

"I love the music," she said. "I'm always singing at the top of my lungs."

Berry's style eventually caught the ear of other broadcast-station owners, and she spent four years doing the morning show at WHCN in Hartford, then left for Atlantic City to do a stint as radio morning voice for Mix 97.3 as well as anchor for the NBC television affiliate there.

But all the while she was in Atlantic City, Berry continued voice tracking for Soft Rock 106.5, the radio station currently across the street from Holdridge Home & Garden Showcase. Fuller had asked her to do intros to soft rock songs, giving the illusion she still worked for the station.

"People actually thought I was here," Berry laughed.

And just when Berry felt the winds of change down in Atlantic City beckoning her to leave, Full Power Radio vice president Brian Ram called her up to lure her back to 106.5. That was seven years ago, and she's been here ever since.

"I'm celebrating my 20th year this year," said Berry, including the seven years she spent doing voice tracking. "Twenty years at a station is unheard of these days."

Today, she has the No. 1 morning show in the region in the age 25 to 54 demographic, broadcasting live with Shawn Murphy. The pair enjoy spinning a range of tunes, from Katie Perry to Lady Gaga to Justin Bieber, with some light patter about relationships and kids as well as local news.

"We're more of a family friendly morning show," Berry said. "We try not to do anything offensive."

Berry and Murphy are on the air from 5 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday, which is a long time, but they have good chemistry.

"With Shawn and I, it's like brother and sister. You can pick on him, and it's OK," Berry laughs.

Berry, who with former partner Laura Beckham opened Berry's Ice Cream & Candy Bar in New London a couple years back, has since sold her share of the business and is concentrating solely on radio and special appearances.

"With social media, it's gotten more people to listen to radio," she said. "We have super fans. ... A lot of them have followed your career. That's a highlight."

A resident of Quaker Hill, Berry is up at 3 a.m. every weekday to prepare for the morning show, scanning The New York Post and The Day for the latest news. The hard part now, she said, is figuring out the real news from the fake.

"If I'm a little unsure, I don't do it," she said of questionable content.

Over the years, said Berry, the morning show has changed with the times.

"It used to be you could talk for five minutes about something, now you're lucky if you could talk for 50 seconds," she said. "People have a short attention span."

"You have to be very careful nowadays with what you say and how you say it," Berry added, "because somebody could get offended."

One of the best things about her job, she said, is her ability to impart real-time information to people. That is particularly important, she added, during a major disaster such as 9/11.

"We're live and local here," she said. "There's always somebody here."

l.howard@theday.com