Don’t let this tribute to one of my favorite newsmen fool you; he’s not dead.

This is going to sound like an obituary, but it’s not.

This is a tribute to one of my favorite mentors on the occasion of his impending retirement from the grind of daily journalism.

Tom Shine is one of the people who has helped make me a better writer, reporter and, truthfully, a better person. He’s like an all-around life coach, leading daily by example. You can’t help but learn from him, even if you’re not necessarily looking to. Sometimes, it’s actually a little irritating.

When I was interviewing at The Eagle and first met Shine, as he’s affectionately known, I felt an instant affinity. I’m not sure how he felt about me, but I thought we had a connection because we are both former Michiganders. I grew up 20 minutes from his beloved alma mater, the University of Michigan. Then we discovered our grandfathers both grew up in towns next to each other in Ireland. Crazy, right?

The truth is, regardless of where anyone is from, almost everyone feels that immediate connection to Shine. A lot of people feel like they have a special relationship with him. It’s hard to say 100% why, but I have a couple of theories.

A coworker once referred to him as a cool cat. You rarely, if ever, see Shine ruffled. There’s a lot to admire in that.

More importantly, though, Shine has an inherent respect for everyone. That could manifest in something as simple as holding a door or letting someone walk in front of him. Sometimes, I’ve almost thought he was borderline obsequious in some of these behaviors, but they come from a genuine place, and I think people feel that.

Personally, and professionally, I’ve been the beneficiary of Tom’s grace. Like when my father had cancer and I was a blubbering idiot, and Tom talked me through it. Sadly, I’m pretty certain that was not the only time.

Once, I made a pretty stupid mistake at work, though it was an honest mistake from trying to get a scoop. It should’ve been a rookie mistake, except I was far beyond that point. Shine actually had to call a meeting to talk over the situation with several people, including me. He was more than decent about it, which is all I could ask. Then, at some point afterward, he sent me a beyond-gracious note about how I may have made a mistake, but I was a better reporter than he ever was. I didn’t believe him, of course, but that sure helped me out of the doghouse.

I probably need to stop here to clarify that Shine is not a saint. In fact, he’s one of the most irreverent people I know. Yet another reason I love him.

I’m guessing he would not want me to explain some of this irreverence. But, oh, I’d like to. I never faulted him for some of his political incorrectness, mostly because I would be laughing too hard. However, through the years I often have noted that he could get away with saying something inappropriate while at the same time he’d give me a slightly disappointed look when he thought I was being tacky or less than kind. Again, irritating! He’s like a parent who, while puffing on a cigarette, tells his child not to smoke.

Shine’s only nine years older than I am, so he’s probably more like a big brother to me than a parent, but he’s just so damn responsible and full of decorum, he is awfully parental.

We had a scare back in 2006. My mother and sister and I were taking a trip to Ireland, and while there, I was determined to find our family’s roots. While gone, I emailed Shine that my investigation turned up some big news.

“Oh, God,” he wrote back, “please don’t tell me we’re related.”

I can’t say I determined that, but I did verify that our grandfathers were not from towns near each other. They were both from the same small village of about 200 people in County Kerry. There is no doubt our families’ lives have been intertwined for longer than we can possibly know.

Sorry, Shine, but the birth records at the church rectory prove it.

As so many people in the greater Wichita community will recall, Shine was the consummate newspaper man in his decades-long career at The Eagle — minus the proverbial whiskey in the desk drawer, which he never would condone.

When people had complaints about me, they called him. Regularly.

When Wild West World was falling apart only days after it began, founder Thomas Etheredge was not pleased with my calls. So he phoned Shine because, as I believe Etheredge said to him, he was a fellow God-fearing Christian.

The result of that call was Shine and I were both going to go out to the theme park to interview Etheredge. I was furious. I told Shine I didn’t need a babysitter. He said not to look at it that way. He said he wouldn’t be there to judge me but to be my ally. Still, I was not happy.

We arrived and were escorted to a conference room. There sat Etheredge, his wife, his daughter, his daughter’s dog and about 19 staff members. If Etheredge meant to be intimidating, it worked.

As we later left the park and were out of earshot, Shine turned to me and said, “Bet you were kinda happy I was here, huh?”

Yep.

In 1980, The Eagle was Shine’s first full-time job after working as a Teamster for the Detroit Free Press, where his father was editor and eventually publisher.

At the Eagle, Shine worked his way up from being a cops reporter and sports reporter to sports editor to assistant managing editor to a whole host of other titles too numerous to mention. I got to know him best when he served as an emergency-relief business editor.

He stayed so long at The Eagle because as his wife, my good friend Sharon, says, for Tom, the grass is never greener on the other side of the fence.

Still, he is finishing up his career in practically a whole new industry: radio. Tom has been director of news and public affairs at KMUW for the last eight years, but he’s now retiring, and his and my good friend Suzanne Perez — another former newspaper reporter — is taking his place.

Though a newspaper man at heart, I was thrilled for Shine in his new role. KMUW has produced some great work under his leadership. Even though he had a private office, the first thing he did when he arrived was get a second desk out in the KMUW newsroom to be among his reporters. That’s who Shine is.

Personally, I think I would’ve just stayed in the office. Probably with the door shut.

Through the years, I’ve written an awful lot of obituaries. In fact, Shine has asked me to one day write his. I would say I can’t wait to write all the stories I can’t tell while he’s still alive, but that’s not the truth. Oh, I’ve got the stories, and I do want to tell them, but that’s one obit I desperately don’t want to write.

Years ago, I had occasion to quote my good buddy Les Anderson, the beloved Wichita State journalism professor who, like Shine, everyone thought they had a special relationship with. I quoted Les joking about how going to a tribute night in his honor was like getting to attend his own funeral. He unexpectedly died a few weeks later. It was crushing.

So, Shine, I’m warning you, don’t even think for a second that this little essay is a preview of your funeral. That’s a long way away, sir. At least it better be.

I may have a lot of material already, but I’m looking forward to a lot more stories — including the unprintable ones — yet to come.

This story was originally published August 25, 2025 at 4:04 AM.