Personal News

Some personal news to share today.?Last month, I marked my 20th anniversary at Freewheel.?20 years is a long time, and for me, the right time to announce that I’ve decided to retire. Before I head out on March 31, I wanted to say how working with my colleagues at Freewheel (and Strata) has been an honor and a privilege.?I’ve enjoyed “the ride” through Client Service, Marketing, “Other”, TV, Media Sales and what is now known Media eBusiness.?Working on this team – a small but talented and committed group, has been a point of personal pride.?Collaborating with leaders like Ian Banks , Lori Beck , and Malia Chiang and so many others made me proud to have been part of what our larger Freewheel (Strata) team has accomplished for TV and Radio Stations, and Rep Firms, and the industry at large.?A word of appreciation, too, to the dozens of broadcast and advertising executives, many of whom I consider friends, for their support and confidence over the years.?To one and all, thanks for everything! ?

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When I consider the last 38 years, I’m filled with gratitude for the experiences and the friendships I’ve made along the way and for always seeming to be in “the right place at the right time”.?John Shelton gave me a chance to re-start my career after 18 years in TV News, offering to “figure something out” for me at his software company.?With John’s confidence, and later, Joy Baer ’s support, I got to stay connected to television while being trusted with an important part of their business.?It just so happened that “little” company they built became a powerhouse in advertising. Just as important, was the place itself – super-smart people who really cared and worked hard, and an ethic where employees were treated like family. (That’s one of the reasons few people ever left Strata).?My luck at landing at Strata was a “right time/right place” moment after WBBM-TV.??

At Chicago’s Channel 2, I got a chance to work with legendary journalists. Yes, there were challenges, but they never got in the way of the work of Jay Levine, Mike Flannery, Geoff Morrell , Lester Holt, David Kerley, Beth Fruehling, Jim Acosta, Pam Zekman, Carol Marin, and the unforgettable Gene Siskel.?In Pittsburgh at WTAE-TV, I got a chance to help restore a great station alongside Joe DiNardo, Sally Wiggin, Anne Linaberger, and Mike Machi , and to help recruit an incredible next generation of talent - Michele Wright, Mike Clark, and Andrew Stockey .?All first-round draft picks who grew up to be living legends in Pittsburgh. At WISN-TV in Milwaukee (a station I interned at in college), our local stories kept making national headlines, a fact that led to us being named Best Spot News Station in the nation in 1993.?I still think that news team, “pound for pound”, was the best team I ever saw. Led by the incomparable Fred D'Ambrosi and Maryann Lazarski , I got a virtual master’s degree in journalism and human relations every day. Along with Fred and Maryann, some of the most decent and talented people in TV news proved I was again in the “right place at the right time”, including colleagues Kent Wainscott, (the late) Jim Cullen, Jeff Kiernan, Dane Placko , Renee Raffaelli, Angie Moreschi , and Mark Johnson, to name just a few. ?I wouldn’t have made it back to Milwaukee, without stops in Terre Haute (WTHI-TV) and Bluefield, WV (WVVA-TV).?In both places I worked with Matt Ellis and (the late) Jim Labranche.?After graduating from Marquette University, Jim offered me the chance to produce the 6p and 11p newscasts at WVVA for $5 an hour. It turned out to be a great deal – for me! To all of my TV newsroom teammates, thank you for so many memorable years.

And now, a few more words of gratitude after almost 40 years of working in Television.?I have loved TV for as long as I can remember. And I probably need to thank my mother for that.??For two weeks in December 1966, she drove me, a four-old, along with my two- and one-year old siblings to the long ago shuttered WKBS-TV (Channel 48) in Philadelphia.?The “bright lights” of the Romper Room set must have triggered something in me, as this is my oldest memory. Since then, my fascination and appreciation of television never waned.?Finally, for me, no mention of gratitude could be complete without a salute to Kathy, my wife of 36 years. Her ongoing love and support, passed to our five children, has sustained me over the last four decades and will do so in our time together ahead. Thank you, Doll. For you, I’m most grateful. Now, let’s see what’s ahead. ???