New Role For Popular CT TV News Personality

Teresa Dufour, WTNH's morning traffic guru for the past eight years, announced Thursday that she is leaving the post but will continue with the station in a different role. As a result, she's passing the torch, in this case her "traffic clicker," to Alyssa Rae Taglia.

In a heartfelt post on her blog, Dufour explained her decision to give up the early morning routine (12 years overall, eight with Channel 8), while still continuing to co-host "CT Style" with Ryan Kristafer in the afternoons.

"Fast forward a decade, and there’s a wedding ring, a home, and 2 children that are the most important things in my life," wrote Dufour on the blog. "And that’s where priorities change. My children deserve a mother who is living with at least the same energy they have. I want them to enjoy my company without lingering deadlines of 8pm, trying to get everyone to bed. Not to mention my husband who has only known me as sleepy Teresa. He deserves an entire wife, not just a shell of one. And as much as may try to make this about them, selfishly, it is about me. I want to be able to enjoy this time. It is the recognition that these babies won’t be babies for long, and that my opportunity to be with my family in this stage is a quickly closing window."

Dufour is a UConn alumnus and native of Middlebury, CT. In addition to her years on the Connecticut airwaves, she also spent time in Louisiana as an anchor and reporter at KTVE and KARD, according to her WTNH bio.

She also discussed decision to step away from the WTNH morning show during a Facebook Live post on the station's Facebook page with Taglia and Meteorologist Gil Simmons, who she has worked with the longest at station. She even had some fun with Simmons Wednesday morning, giving him a pair of personalized socks with her face printed on them ("Now I can be on your feet... in case you miss me, just wear those!").

"I want to say something to the working moms out there, because it is a challenge," said Dufour. "You don't have to give up your career to be a mom, you just have to work and find the balance. What works with your family, maybe you need to cut hours back, but I've also learned that you can't do everything."

Photo of Teresa Dufour via her blog