Milwaukee, February 10, 2026– The Wisconsin Advertising Hall of Fame announced today that it will officially induct two new members, Thursday, February 26th – award-winning, Milwaukee Creative Director/Writer, Mark Catterson, and legendary strategic planner and agency owner, Denise Kohnke.
Considered Wisconsin advertising and design’s highest honor, these inductees were unanimously chosen for their indelible impact on the ad industry in Wisconsin.
Denise Kohnke is an author, trailblazing strategic planner and agency owner who helped turn a small Milwaukee ad agency, Kohnke Hanneken, into one of the country’s most respected creative ad shops. Considered one of the most renowned brand planners in Wisconsin history, Kohnke’s insights and planning laid the groundwork for countless, Effies, CA’s, One Show Pencils, Obies, Webby’s and Best of Shows. And she continues to influence advertising’s next generation, imparting decades of wisdom through her book, All of the Other Marketing Books are Crap, and her LinkedIn series, Book of Secrets.
Mark Catterson is a legendary writer/creative director, who early in his career established himself as one of Milwaukee’s top ad copywriters, earning hundreds of local and national creative awards, including the industry’s most prestigious Gold One Show Pencil while at Eichenbaum Hemke. As the Executive Creative Director at Hoffman York, Mark helped grow HY into a powerhouse agency in Wisconsin and Chicago. And as a leader in the Milwaukee ad community for decades, Mark is not only one of the six founding members of the current United Adworkers ad club, but he also led the way in hiring and championing female copywriters.
The two will be inducted in a ceremony that will be held at Turner Hall in downtown Milwaukee, as a part of the United Adworkers, Milwaukee 99 Awards Show, which honors the best advertising work done in Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin.
Tickets are on sale online now at the United Adworker website https://www.unitedadworkers.com/event-details/the-99-awards-show-wi-advertising-hof.
The Wisconsin Advertising Hall of Fame, which was established in 2012, honors the achievements and preserves the work of Wisconsin’s greatest advertising and design professionals. The inductees and other works can be found online at the Hall of Fame’s permanent digital home. http://www.wisconsinadvertisinghalloffame.com/
