Meet Greg Gerber

I am a native of Wisconsin who grew very tired of cold weather and resettled to Sun City, Ariz., where bad weather is measured in hours, not inches. Sun City lives up to its name as the sun shines brightly about 350 days a year.

I have a degree in public relations from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

I started my writing career while serving in the U.S. Air Force from 1983 to 1987. I have since worked for several small-town weekly newspapers before venturing into magazine editing and finally as the owner of a website and online daily newsletter covering the recreation vehicle industry.

I left that behind in June 2019 to embark upon a new career as a public speaker, coach and author of faith-based books.

I became a Christian in 1995 after struggling with pornography since I was just a few days into my 12th year. After giving my life to Christ, that struggle continued for another 15 years until I finally had a breakthrough that helped me build faith strong enough to begin walking away.

The battle wasn’t easy and for many years I experienced more failure than success. Before I could trust God enough to give up that security blanket, he had to take me into areas where I had been deeply wounded as a child, teen and young adult.

That’s why I wrote my first book, “Pornocide: Why Lust is Killing Your Faith, Stealing Your Joy and Destroying Your Life.” It is a fictional account of a man caught in the sin of pornography, but through a series of divine appointments, he develops addiction-crushing, mountain-moving faith to overcome the problem.

More information can be found on the Pornocide page.

In the fall of 2020, I wrote “Restore Joy to Your Life: 28 Suggestions for Renewing Your Mind.”

At the time, countless people felt isolated and angry due to widespread restrictions put in place. I was no stranger to the problem. Living by myself and unable to go anywere to meet anyone face-to-face. I was in a really dark place in my life.

Just six months before things started shutting down, my online publication, “RV Daily Report” had been forced to close after I published a series of editorials about the state of the RV industry.

Read by more than 250,000 people at the time, “The RV Industry Death Spiral,” editorials brought into light some very serious problems with the industry. I warned the industry only had 20 years of viability remaining unless the issues were addressed. A few very large companies orchestrated an advertiser boycott that ultimately lead to the closure.

The loss of my business combined with COVID isolation really took a toll on my attitude and outlook on life. Fortunately, one of my mentors, Vincent Pugliese, noticed the change and invited me to chat.

I bared my soul about lacking purpose and having no meaning to my life. Vincent suggested it was a very common problem among people over 50 who were forced out of jobs they loved or who had retired and lost their identity.

He suggested I develop a platform to give seasoned citizens hope and direction for their lives. Forward From 50 was born. You can learn more at forwardfrom50.com.

In 2022, I published “Fifty Over 50,” which was a collection of stories of people whose lives had gone in a completely different direction after passing the half-century mark.

I am a DODO — Dad of Daughters Only. I have been surrounded by females most of my life. After my folks divorced, I lived with my mother and sister. When my father remarried, I inherited three step-sisters.

Every family holiday involved four female cousins. The neighborhood I grew up in had 13 girls and the closest boy was several years older or younger than me. After getting married, we had three daughters. Even the dog was female.

Needless to say, I speak fluent female, but struggle in the wife dialect.

Not only do I have a passion for helping men break free from the bondage of pornography, I also want them to become better fathers. Fatherless and fathered-less children are a worldwide epidemic.

Contrary to popular opinion, children don’t just “get over” not having an active father in their lives. More often than not, fatherless children grow up with low self-esteem, no confidence, very angry, aimless and hurting from a gaping father wound.

Hurting people, hurt people — and the cycle continues when fatherless children get married and become parents themselves.

30 completely useless facts about Greg

I am three-quarters Norwegian and one-quarter Swiss. My paternal grandfather immigrated to America from Switzerland when he was 16. In 2017, I had the opportunity to visit the family farm, which is still managed by one of my distant cousins.
I have spent at least one night in every state except Hawaii. My all-time favorites are Maine, Florida, Washington; however, Wisconsin will always feel like home for me.
For my first solo vacation as a 20-year-old, I took the Amtrak Empire Builder from Columbus, Wis., to Seattle and fell in love with train travel. Since then, I have taken at least six cross-country train trips.
Today, my all-time favorite type of vacations are cruises. I have been on three, all to the Caribbean. Someday, I’d love to take a cruise down the Rhine River in Europe and visit Italy. I’d also enjoy an opportunity to revisit Switzerland and England.
I was on the debate team as a freshman in high school with a record of 0 wins and 16 losses. My teammates called me the masterdebater. That year, the state debate topic pertained to the coming calamity caused by global cooling.
After being fired from my first job working at an ice cream shop, my next job was at McDonald’s where I learned to work every station and even do bookkeeping. Because I often opened and closed the store, I had my own key as a 17-year-old.
To the best of my knowledge, I was the only male customer service representative in McDonald’s Madison market at the time who gave tours and hosted birthday parties.
I was also the only male at LaFollette High School to ever complete three semesters of typing.
My Big Brother, David, sparked my interest in computers in the mid-1970s. We would spend hours playing a DOS version of Star Trek.
I was also one of handful of students who knew how to program the only computer at LaFollette High School in 1975 using Basic on a teletype machine.
The first Green Bay Packers game I attended was on Dec. 26, 1993, when the temperature was -1 and the windchill was -15 — ideal weather for sitting outdoors on a metal bleacher. I remember buying a soda, but it was frozen solid when I returned to my seat.
A writer for more than 50 years, the first award I received outside of college was a 2nd place certificate from the Wisconsin Newspaper Association for excellence in farm reporting.
However, the newspaper I edited while in the U.S. Air Force, the “Holloman Sunburst,” was recognized as the second best in the Tactical Air Command in 1986.
I own more than 450 DVDs and have an online collection of more than 250 streaming movies. My favorites are Star Wars IV (the original), Patton, The Patriot, Murphy’s Romance, War Room, Courageous, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Mr. Holland’s Opus, Caddyshack, On Golden Pond, Dead Poet’s Society, Rudy, Les Miserables, My Cousin Vinny, Contact, The Shack, The Founder, I Can Only Imagine, Jurassic Park, Trading Places, The Greatest Showman and just about anything starring Tom Hanks.
A classmate introduced me to the original Star Trek series when I was a freshman in high school. I like Star Trek: The Next Generation even more. However, nothing will ever top the awe of watching the star destroyer come into view during the opening scene of the very first Star Wars.
Exhausted by having three children in three years, when my youngest daughter stopped needing diapers, I took the diaper bag into the back yard, doused it with gasoline, flicked a match and sent it back to God.
After getting my first degree in police science, I ranked No. 1 out of 3,600 people taking the Wisconsin police officer civil service exam. But, I still couldn’t get a job because I lacked actual experience. When I finally got the experience, I quickly realized I was not suited for that line of work.
The first business I owned was called Ideal Images. We took pictures at university Greek parties, high school dances, weddings and of sports teams. I was recognized as the fastest growing event photographer in the country by Candid Color Systems in 1988. But, I had to close the business the next year due to enormous family pressure to return to Wisconsin.
I am an Eagle Scout. My service project was rather lame. I surveyed about a hundred Madison residents about their opinion of city services, and delivered my report to the Madison City Council. In hindsight, I wish I had done something more practical.
Between the time I was 8 and 17, I had moved six times, which included three duplexes on the same two-block street in Madison.
I was a volunteer emergency medical technician for many years and even drove the ambulance.
I have been to the very top of the Wisconsin State Capitol building and even touched the base of Miss Forward from the inside.
I was the first Little Brother in the history of the Dane County Big Brothers Big Sisters program to become a Big Brother himself. I am still in contact with Jeremy 45 years later.
Pizza is my all-time favorite food. Supreme is my all-time favorite combination. As a delivery driver for Pizza Pit in Madison, I ate pizza every night for more than three years.
I have been addicted to Diet Dr. Pepper for years, consuming nearly 200 ounces a day at the height of my addiction.
My all-time favorite cookies are oatmeal raisin followed by soft chocolate chip. However, I could easily consume a dozen frosted Christmas sugar cookies with a tall glass of white milk.
I was fired from the same job as a magazine editor twice in one day by the company president after it was discovered I was the person behind a satirical newsletter distributed earlier that morning. So many people went to bat for me that he finally relented and I kept my job.
I’m a big fan of Raising Cane’s chicken fingers, In-N-Out Burger Double-Doubles, and Chipotle chicken salads.
As someone who appreciates good satire, I really enjoy reading the Babylon Bee – fake news you can trust – because they skewer everyone.
My favorite authors are John Eldredge, Og Mandino and Zig Ziglar.