Veteran TV news reporter Catherine Cruz has joined Hawaii Public Radio as co-host of its weekday talk program.

She will host “The Conversation” at 11 a.m. with Chris Vandercook starting today and will be reporting for HPR News, which has about a dozen staff and three contributing neighbor island reporters.

Cruz, originally from Guam, has worked as a Hawaii television reporter since 1983 covering government, education and health at KITV. Her last day on air at the TV station was Nov. 22.

“It’s really kind of exciting. It was really hard to leave KITV because they’ve been my home for so long … but at my age I realize I’m not getting any cuter and I want to stay in news as long as possible,” said Cruz, who is in her 50s. “(HPR is) trying to beef up their news department. Right now everybody’s into cutting. It’s fun to be in a newsroom that’s going to grow.”

HPR News Director Bill Dorman said in a news release: “We are delighted to welcome one of the strongest journalists in the state to our growing newsroom. We look forward to Catherine’s continuing contributions to the community.”

In 1991 she co-founded Pacific Islanders in Communication, which provides cultural programs to the national PBS network from Hawaii, Guam and Samoa to support “a deeper understanding of Pacific Island history, culture and contemporary challenges.”

“I just can’t wait to get out on the field again. I’m a long-distance kind of person,” Cruz said. “I’ve done a couple marathons. Now I’m a long-distance swimmer. I’m in it for the long haul. I just love news. News is in my blood. It’s so important now more than ever.”