Wishing ‘Woj’ well after a similar (smaller-scale) move six years ago today

The timing was uncanny to me – albeit on a much smaller scale.
Adrian Wojnarowski, ESPN insider and author of so many “Woj bomb” news tidbits, on Wednesday announced his retirement from the gig to become St. Bonaventure’s men’s basketball GM.
It coincided with my anniversary of pulling a “Woj” at the age of 58. I was reminded by kind well wishes from friends via Linked In. It’s now six years almost to the day I became a Public Relations Strategist at Wheelhouse Creative LLC in Wheeling.
It made me smile because if anyone appreciates a move from journalism to a new challenge it’s me.
No, I didn’t experience the national and even world-wide acclaim of Wojnarowski, now 55. His “Woj bombs” are known far and wide.
But on a smaller scale I too experienced the surprise of friends and followers. I experienced the thrill – and, yes, a bit of fear — of a new challenge in my fifties.
Odds are pretty good if you’re reading this you know I covered sports in West Virginia for 38 years. As a kid, I watched the “Odd Couple” on TV and from then on only wanted to be the character Oscar Madison, a sports writer in New York.
I never wavered. I went to WVU, studied journalism and, after sweating it out for a few months, started covering sports as a full-time gig. I went everywhere, man: Beckley, Martinsburg, Pittsburgh, Morgantown and Charleston.
I’m proud of the work I did, especially as a columnist. I even wrapped up my sports writing career with back-to-back-to-back Best Columnist awards from the West Virginia Press Association.
But I wanted one more challenge. I had one more part of the state I needed to inhabit.
So, when Jamie Bordas, president of Wheelhouse, offered the job in the northern panhandle, I jumped at the chance.
I’ll never forget a reaction fresh out of the gate from a newspaper publisher: So, you’re going to the dark side?
It threw me off then. The notion throws me off now.
See, our company specializes in marketing, advertising and public relations. We HELP people. We HELP businesses.
We help businesses of every size better reach their potential and thrive. We help get their products known and their voices heard. It’s been fun learning and watching our team help businesses grow.
I’ve worked with Dr. Chad Lavender, a former long snapper at WVU, who developed an amazing Fertilized ACL technique at Marshall Health. We put together a video and media packet that explains it all and helped spread the news, even landing a piece by the well-respected Mike DeCourcy in the Sporting News.
I’ve worked with WVU’s NIL Country Roads Trust. I’ve landed projects for our company that served many large Division I football programs. Just a lot of enjoyable work. I’ve interviewed teachers for the WVEA and helped amplify their voices – some cracking with emotion – regarding their sometimes-heartbreaking challenges. I’ve worked with pharmacies and political candidates and restaurants and so much more.
It’s been a blast. I’ve seen our amazing creative team put together incredible commercials, like the Panhandle Cleaning golf ad.
I could go on and on. Yes, we put together and send out press releases. We’re great at digital targeting and social media.
The bottom line, though, is we do nothing more than help people. I always say every business should include marketing in its budget. How can you not?
In sum, though, as proud as I was of my sports writing career – which I still dabble in with this weekly blog – I’m just as proud of these six years.
Here’s hoping “Woj” will likewise enjoy his new challenge.
Oh, and if Wheelhouse can ever help YOUR company, be sure to give me a shout!
+ + +
Mitch Vingle covered sports in West Virginia for 38 years. Follow Mitch on Twitter at @MitchVingle and be sure to check out the rest of Wheelhouse Creative’s website for your marketing and advertising needs. If interested, call us at 304-905-6005.