Tom Kertscher

Tom Kertscher stumbled into a writing career after taking a journalism class in high school simply because it fit into his schedule. One of his first assignments ended up filling the front page of the school paper and, even though his name was misspelled in the byline, he was hooked. Tom has worked as a local news reporter for more than 25 years and currently is one of the PolitiFact Wisconsin reporters at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He previously worked for newspapers in Tulsa, Okla., Aurora, Ill., and Fresno, Calif. A journalism graduate of the University of Wisconsin (B.A.) and Ohio State University (M.A. on a Kiplinger Fellowship), Tom has authored books on two Wisconsin sports icons. His "Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry: The Wit and Wisdom of Al McGuire" (University of Wisconsin Press) collected quotations from the late Marquette University basketball coach. "Brett Favre: A Packer Fan's Tribute" (Turner Publishing) was published, thankfully, before the drama of the quarterback's retiring and unretiring. Published digitally are two more of Tom's books -- "Walk-ons," which profiles college and pro athletes who were overlooked or underrated but beat the odds to succeed in football, baseball or basketball; and "Last Words," a collection of touching vignettes about the last words of ordinary people during their final moments of life. Tom lives with his daughter, Hailey, in Milwaukee.