Tom Blair
2005 Axthelm Scholarship Recipient

I’ve never written an autobiography. It would involve talking about myself more than I’m comfortable with, and it would be really short – not that I would like to have a 200 page life as a 20 year old. As of now, the story reads: born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on April 26, 1984. Moved with my family to Cleveland when I was three. Attended St. Margaret Mary School, from Kindergarten through Eighth Grade. Graduated from Gilmour Academy in 2002 and enrolled at Marquette in the Fall of 2002. That would be about it.

I could include some stuff about writing. I have been writing since second grade, and my “dream job” is to earn a living as a journalist, preferentially covering sports. In the second grade my principal entered me into a writing contest; I received Honorable Mention for a story where characters from my favorite television shows got together for an adventure. In junior high, I participated in the Ohio writing competition called “Power of the Pen.” I advanced to the state championship level in both the seventh and eighth grade. If an epidemiologist were trying to track down when I was infected with the “writing bug,” I would say this was it.

I joined the school newspaper in my sophomore year of high school, just for kicks, and discovered I really enjoyed writing and thought more about writing for a living. In my junior year, I was co-editor-in-chief (doing most of the editor-in-chief duties) and took over sole possession of the position in my senior year. I received my high school’s Journalism award in 11th and 12th grades.

My writing skills have grown substantially over the past two years with The Marquette Tribune. I have learned to write efficiently to meet a deadline. I’ve learned no matter the size of the workload, whether for The Tribune of for class assignments, I still love writing. I may dislike the specific assignment, but the actual act of writing, of putting my thoughts onto paper, is very enjoyable. Even when writing to meet a deadline, while it’s not always sunshine and daisies, I feel satisfied afterwards. In fact, the times in my life when I feel the most fulfilled are right after filing an article or finishing a paper. My college experiences have reaffirmed my desire to someday be a sports columnist. My current column for The Marquette Tribune has been the most rewarding and fun writing I’ve done yet in my short career.