Jessie Garcia

Sports Interview Contributor

Jessie Garcia was Wisconsin's first female television sport anchor and has worked for WTMJ-TV since 1994. She is an award-winning journalist who hosted "The Mike Holmgren Show" and "The Mike McCarthy Show" and served as the Green Bay Packers sideline reporter for seven seasons.

Jessie has written two books, "My Life with the Green and Gold: Tales from 20 Years of Sportscasting" and "No Stone Unturned: The Incredible Journey of the FitzRandolph Family Through the Olympics and Cancer." She is working on a third non-fiction book detailing the history of Wisconsin's Olympians 1900-present.

Jessie teaches journalism at both Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Documenting a Major (Or an Undeclared) Transition

By • Sep 11, 2017
University of Wisconsin

It’s back to school time and many kids are making transitions: perhaps entering kindergarten, middle or high school, or maybe a new district. But one of the biggest changes comes in that fall when a son or daughter heads off to be a college freshman.

Lake Effect contributor Jessie Garcia has been documenting two families from Shorewood for the past four months. Each was getting ready to launch their eldest away from the nest for the first time, and Garcia introduces us to their stories in this feature.

Essay: College Expenses

By • Apr 25, 2017
darren415 / Fotolia

Many of our social media feeds are lighting up with news of where this year’s high school seniors have decided to go to college next year.  It’s an exciting time for them, but - as Lake Effect essayist Jessie Garcia can attest - a stressful time for their parents:

The Play-By-Play: How Matt Lepay Became the Voice of the Badgers

By • Feb 28, 2017
Phil Roeder / Flickr

It’s a good time of year to be sports fan. In the coming weeks, there are two major events on the calendar: the NCAA basketball tournament and the start of baseball season. If you listen to Wisconsin Badgers basketball games on the radio or watch the Milwaukee Brewers on TV, there’s a good chance you've heard Matt Lepay. 

Lepay is the longtime radio play-by-play man for Wisconsin basketball and football, and now a fill-in television announcer for the Brewers. Lepay is an Ohio native who has won Wisconsin’s sportscaster of the year award seven times.

Life Perspective From a 102-Year-Old Wisconsinite

By • Sep 12, 2016
Photo courtesy of Jessie Garcia

This piece originally aired June 2, 2016. Abe Landsman, age 102, passed away September 2, 2016, peacefully at his home in Madison. 

A couple of videos went viral in the last few weeks featuring some of America’s oldest citizens.  One was of a 92-year old World War II veteran who threw out the first pitch at a Major League Baseball game on Memorial Day. 

Brewers' Craig Counsell Concentrates on Now, and Also Looks Ahead

By , Tyler Nelson & Eddie Otto • Jun 16, 2015
Mike McGinnis/Getty Images

After 16 years in the major leagues and retiring after the 2011 season, Craig Counsell is back in a Milwaukee Brewers uniform.  After the team’s worst start in club history, Counsell was hired in May to replace Ron Roenicke, who was fired 25 games into the 2015 season.

Counsell sees things beginning to turn around this season.  He cites the consistency of the bullpen as the greatest strength for the team at this point.  With weaknesses exposed in offense and starting pitching,  2015 looks to be a rebuilding year.