Writer. Director. Producer. And oh yes, Clown Wrangler! Not your typical television career, but it is Sharon Howard’s.

The year, 1977. Hired as the first full-time female floor director at KIRO TV, Sharon’s introduction began under the inspired insanity of Chris Wedes and Bob Newman, better known to all as J.P. Patches and Gertrude.

"From day one it was a blast."

Over time, Sharon transitioned from the floor, to the booth, then finally to a desk in the P.M. Magazine office. Story producer. How good was she? Emmys would bear her name.

When an opportunity to write and produce for a new magazine show opened at KOMO TV, "I jumped at it." Front Runners found its Associate Producer. More Emmys.

Working on a magazine show should be enough to keep one busy. Not Sharon. She expected more of herself. And her program director, Dick Warsinske recognized that.

"Sharon is a passionate person," says Dick. "She combines passion with persistence. For managers, she can be challenging . . . or said another way, a pain in the %@#. However, don’t misinterpret the pain in the %@# part. She delivers high quality unique storytelling . . . getting more out of her subjects than anyone I have ever been privileged to work alongside."

"Dick was always supportive and fair. Even though he’s younger than I am, he was and always will be a mentor. He allowed me to produce stories from all over the world. My first one-hour documentary was produced in 1990 after several years of pestering Dick about taking a crew to Africa. He allowed us to go. After that, I was hooked."

And, so were viewers.

With husband Mike Rosen serving as her photographer/editor, Sharon’s series of nature programs brought our world into living rooms across our region.

As Dick points out, "Always weaving people into her stories about rhinos, elephants, gorillas, and eagles, she brought their plight or grandeur to life. Sharon’s body of work for KOMO TV was a key feature in the Peabody awarded to the station for excellence in 1996. That was the first time they ever awarded on that criteria and to my knowledge haven’t done so since."

In 1997, Sharon left local television and founded Howard Rosen Productions, a company that creates "green" programming. You guessed it, even more Emmys.

Sharon says, "There are a lot of issues that need addressing . . . education, health, discrimination, war, etc. .But none of that matters if we don’t have a planet to live on!"

Such passion drives Sharon. Such passion produces excellence.