An incredible storyteller and a cheerful Karelian boy, recalls Matti Rönkä Arvi Lindi

Lind was 85 years old when he died.

Lind became known to Finns especially as a news anchor for Yle’s TV news. He worked at Yleisradio for decades and was one of Finland’s best-known television journalists.

Lind worked at Yleisradio since 1965. He retired at the beginning of 2004. Lind’s last news broadcast On October 15, 2003, around 1.6 million viewers watched live.

Lindi has often been characterized as the most reliable man in Finland.

Mightily longtime news anchor Eva Polttila describes feeling sad after the news of Lind’s death reached him. The last time the retired colleagues met was in mid-April, when Yle’s TV news seniors met for a regular lunch.

“I had just had my birthday and Arvi gave me a beautiful bouquet of roses,” says Polttila.

Polttila describes his former colleague as a great and unique colleague. Polttila praises Lindi as a cheerful storyteller, even though the pace of story-telling had slowed down a bit in recent years.

“Still, good old Arvi was always present,” says Polttila.

Mightily retired reporter and newsreader Matti Rönkä says that he has scrolled through hundreds, if not even thousands, of newscasts with Lindi.

“Arvi had two different roles. He was an iconically matter-of-fact news anchor, and then he was an extremely funny, kind and warm colleague,” Rönkä recalls of his friend.

Rönkä describes Lindi as an incredible storyteller, a happy Karelian boy.

“When even tough topics were discussed during the working days, it was very valuable to have such a colleague and spirit maintainer.”

According to Röngä, Lind was also an extremely family-oriented person, whose wife, children and grandchildren were always at the forefront of conversations. In addition to that, Rönkä remembers how Lind was “a forever athletic boy who enjoyed playing sports in a group of boys”.

arise long-time friend and colleague from Yle, journalist Arto Nyberg remembers Lindi fondly.

“He was an impossibly nice, polite and funny companion,” Nyberg describes.

For years, Nyberg and Lind played hockey together in Urheiluseura Zoom.

According to Nyberg, Lind was quite the laughingstock of the group, whose stories are still told in the locker room. Lind stopped playing about five years ago due to age-related problems.