Author and corrections officer Joe Verdegan to release book on Green Bay prison life in December 2020
(Allouez, WI) – Author Joe Verdegan, who recently retired as a correctional officer after nearly 27 years, has announced he will write a book on his experiences working at Green Bay Correctional Institution in Allouez, Wis.
The book, which will be titled “The Reformatory – Tales From Green Bay’s Maximum Security Prison”, is expected to be released in December 2020. The book will be the third one Verdegan has authored that will be published through Pedal Down Promotions in Manitowoc, Wis.
In 1993 Verdegan left his job as a news reporter at WOSH radio in Oshkosh, Wis. to embark upon a career with the state Department of Corrections.
“For my family at the time it was simply about getting better benefits including health insurance and a better pension down the road,” Verdegan recalled. “I loved working in radio but honestly it was tough paying the bills back then. I went from covering criminal’s trials to supervising them daily. It was quite the switch.”
In his book Verdegan will take you from his start in the officer’s academy, through his short time working at Racine Correctional Institution and eventually winding up at the 125-year-old prison, which was commonly referred to as “Gladiator School” because of the high number of inmate brawls staff had to respond to on almost a daily basis.
The book will be written from his perspective and will include interviews and tales from several of his co-workers in his three decades inside the walls.
This will be Verdegan’s sixth book he has written. His other five titles all documented local and regional stock car racing history in Wisconsin and Michigan.
Readers can follow Verdegan’s progress on the book through his page on Facebook titled “Gladiator School.”
An exact date and location of this book launch is expected to be released sometime this fall.
For more details, email Verdegan at jverdegan2@gmail.com.
For more information on Pedal Down Promotions, contact publisher Jeff Pederson at pedaldownpromotions@gmail.com.
VERDEGAN’S PRIOR BOOK TITLES
2015 – “Life In The Past Lane – a history of stock car racing in Northeast Wisconsin from 1950-1980”
Publisher – M and B Global Solutions
2016 – “Wisconsin International Raceway – Where The Big Ones Run”
Publisher – M and B Global Solutions
2017 – “Life In The Past Lane – The Next Generation”
Publisher – M and B Global Solutions
2018 – “The Bird & The Bear”
Publisher – Pedal Down Promotions
2019 – “Racing In The 906”
Publisher – Pedal Down Promotions