He's a familiar face on your morning TV. For KSTP-TV anchorman Chris Egert, what you don't see behind that desk is the outcome of a major, life-changing decision.
Egert grew up a South Dakota kid, playing every sport he possible could. Egert suffered years of injuries to his left ankle, and underwent more surgeries than he cares to count. Living in constant pain for decades, he says his mindset began to shift after having children.
"I go back and I look through these pictures of when they were little and there's so many pictures when I'm on crutches,” said Egert. “Or I've got my foot in a boot."
Following a few more years of surgeries, Egert's ankle became infected. He recalls speaking with his doctor about his options at the time.
"He said when that's healed, if it heals, we'll open you back up again and we'll build something using a cadaver bone, and metal and parts,” explains Egert. “And at that point, I was like, 'I gave this a go. But I think it's time to let this go, adapt, and move on to a different plan.'"
Egert had his left leg amputated from the knee down in December of 2017. He wears a prosthetic that is often seen during his television shows, including “Minnesota Live”, a new lifestyle-based show airing mid-morning on KSTP.
In his free time, Egert is advocating for the amputee community, speaking with national and international companies based in the Twin Cities about how they include amputees in their messaging and imagery.
"Sometimes companies will use images or video and they'll be happy to show the amputee in the TV commercial or in the magazine ad,” Egert told WCCO’s Laura Oakes. “But what are they doing beyond that? Are they doing anything to help their employees understand what it's like to be an amputee? Are they actually empowering amputees? Are they helping amputees feel that they can use their products in a way that's meaningful?"
Mentally, Egert says he's in a good place and has no regrets about his decision, knowing he and his medical team tried everything they could.
And his sense of humor about it certainly doesn't hurt.
"Do I like it every day?” Egert asks. “No. But I'm going to just deal with it the way I deal with it, and a lot of times that's saying a smart-alecky thing here and there about it. This is what we do."
Laura Oakes' full interview with Chris Egert airs this Sunday at 6:30am on 'Laura's Good News' on News Talk 830 WCCO.
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