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Tom’s desire to be behind a microphone dates all the way back to when he was a small child growing up in south central Nebraska. Having a father who spent time in the radio business and an uncle who owned a small town radio station, Tom, at a very young age, developed a keen interest in the communications industry and a strong desire to become a part of it. As a youngster, he spent countless hours imitating his favorite top-40 disc jockeys on 50,000 watt radio giants WLS in Chicago and KOMA in Oklahoma City and pretending to be a major league baseball play-by-play announcer.

After his graduation from high school, Tom attended a local community college where he received his training in broadcast communications. From the mid 1970s to the early 1980s, he worked as a morning drive radio personality at stations in Iowa, Nebraska and Illinois, communicating one-on-one with his listening audience while spinning the music of Chicago, The Doobie Brothers, KC & The Sunshine Band, The Eagles, Barry Manilow and others until, as he puts it, “my wife made me get a real job.”

After leaving the business, Tom fashioned a successful sales career and “scratched the itch” to be behind a microphone by doing free-lance play-by-play work, performing public address announcing at high school and college athletic events and even working as the traveling announcer for two midwest dirt track racing series.

Having attended numerous business functions, corporate and private parties, and receptions of all types and sizes over the years, Tom has seen “the good, the bad, and the ugly” in entertainment services. He has witnessed events where the dance floor was constantly abuzz with excitement, where people were laughing and having a great time, and where the host and guests left having been truly entertained. On the other hand, he has also attended functions where people literally couldn’t wait to make their way out the front door.

Relying on those experiences, as well as his talent as a communicator, his love of music, and a strong desire to see people have fun, Tom established First Class Entertainment Service with one purpose in mind - “making special occasions memorable.”