Granite Publications Quarterly - Fall 2018

2018 | Volumn 14, Issue 4

A roundup of news for our publication family!

Plan your work and work your plan

Fall

is finally here. Finally, we’re having some cooler days and rain. You remember, that wet stuff that falls from the sky every so often. Plus, high school football is back and consuming most of our sports sections. You gotta love it! We’re also gearing up for the final quarter special sections, which vary from hunting and fishing guides to voter’s guides. Throw in some festivals and high school homecomings…man, it’s going to be a great fall.

One of the keys to making sure it will be great quarter, we need to be prepared for visiting our local businesses.

The advertising landscape continues to change, as more and more businesses are relying on their website and social media (with their 100 or so friends) to market their business. Sure, they’ll have several “likes” on Facebook from some good friends and

| By Jim Beaver

customers, but nothing like the thousands of homes we reach each week with our products.

Last week I was helping the Taylor Press with one of their upcoming promotions. I was assigned to make some “cold calls” on businesses that hadn’t been seen for a while, if ever. The sales staff in Taylor has changed and they have three specials coming up soon and they needed some help. I like making cold calls. Not sure why. I guess I just like the possibility of selling something new, as well as meeting people. After making several calls and pretty much striking out, I thought back on how it was much easier “in the day” when businesses would be waiting for us to come and take their advertising dollars. Nowadays, we’re having to work a little harder for a piece of the advertising pie. As See PLAN Page 3

SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS

Abigail Hamson

Anna Nemec

Joseph Nemec

Nicholas Rucker

The daughter of Scott Rucker, Elgin Courier

The daughter of Tim Nemec, Granite Printing

The son of Tim Nemec, Granite Printing

The son of Scott Rucker, Elgin Courier

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THANK A VETERAN OR A SERVICEMAN EVERY DAY!

FIND INSIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOR THE SEASON

PLAN YOUR WORK AND WORK YOUR PLAN................. 1 Scholarship Recipients............................................... 1 Table of Contents...................................................... 2 Employee Birthdays.................................................. 3 FEATURE: KIM MARLOW............................................. 4 Top Bookkeepers....................................................... 5 Employee Anniversaries............................................ 5 Question of the Month............................................... 6

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THE RUNDOWN

Boerne Star............................................................... 8 Anahuac Progress...................................................... 9 Boerne Star............................................................. 10 Colorado County Citizen.......................................... 11 ROAD TRIP TO NASA................................................ 12 Elgin Courier........................................................... 14 Navasota Examiner................................................. 16 Taylor Press............................................................ 18 Granite Publications................................................ 20 DIRECTORY.............................................................. 22

www.granitepublications.com

PLAN continued from 1

a matter of fact, we’re having to work a whole lot harder for that piece of the pie, and I really like pie! So, I thought I’d write about some of the things we need to prepare for before we pick up the phone or make that personal call.

1. Dress appropriately, have business cards, a copy of your newspaper along with a pen and notebook. Also, you should have some samples of what you’re selling, or handout.

Normally, I like to meet with a manager before I try to sell them...but if it’s a cold call, be prepared.

2. Find out the name of the owner or manager before you go into the business. This might take a little work to find that info, but it will make your life so much easier. I recommend you never, ever get in a position where you don’t know the local manager’s name or the owner of a business. Your town is relatively small, so that really shouldn’t happen if you have done our homework.

3. Know about their business. Before making the call, spend some time by looking at their website and social media site.

You’ll won’t learn everything about the business, but you might avoid asking a question that you should have known.

4. Look at their social media sites. You can learn a lot from Facebook and Linkedin. Find out who their friends are. What are their hobbies? Knowing this information can help you in conversation with the customer. If you’re quick on your feet, you can also find out a lot about someone while glancing around in office.

5. Find out where they’re spending their advertising dollars. Are they on television, radio, a print competitor, billboard, etc. If

it’s an auto dealer know if they trying to sell new cars or used cars. (This list could go on and on....)

6. Do a little research and see if they’ve advertised with your newspaper before. If you’re a new salesperson, look through previous editions of the newspaper. You should have access to the hard-bound yearly books from several years back. This should be done regularly at least a month or two ahead of time looking back at least to the past 2 years. Look for anniversary sales, new businesses, too.

7. Look at their social media sites and find out who their friends are and hobbies they have. Knowing this information can help you in conversation with the customer. If you’re quick on your feet, you can also find out a lot about someone while in their office. All you have to do is take a look around.

8. Have a plan for the sales call. Is it a fact-finding expedition or a straight-out sales call. Either way, after meeting with the customer you will have a good idea of what their needs are.

9. Make a spec ad. Hopefully, you are doing this on a regular basis, but if not, a good start is Metro Creative. All sales people should have access to this online service. There are literally dozens, if not hundreds of sample ads for nearly every type of business. Add a logo and a current address and phone number and take it to the business. It’s a great start!

10. Plan your work and work your plan. This is some of the best advice that I was given years ago from Mr. Jim Chionsini. He’s got a thousand of these one-liners, but this is the one that has stuck with me for over 36 years.

This list can surely be expanded. If you’ve got some good tips for sales calls, please feel free to chime in and post them on the #advertising channel on Slack.

BIRTHDAYS Jordan Brogan, 11/20 Granite Printing

Christopher Darus, 12/11 Granite Publications

Julianne Hodges, 1/4 Elgin Courier

Richard Davis, 11/21 Granite Publications

Sandra Weeber, K 12/13 Colorado County Citizen

Dominic Sciortino, 1/6 Granite Printing

Brian Cartwright, 11/22 Boerne Star

Vince Leibowitz, 12/14 Colorado County Citizen

Ory Boney, 1/9 Granite Printing

James Beaver, 11/28 Granite Publications

Danita Hutto, 12/17 Granite Publications

Ashley Brian, 1/15 Granite Printing

Jessica Goode, 12/3 Boerne Star

Michelle B Stokes, 12/20 Colorado County Citizen

Cynthia Wofford, 1/15 Elgin Courier

Kathleen Brenner, 12/8 Boerne Star

Rodney Marsh, 12/31 Granite Printing

Kim Brakhage, 1/17 Elgin Courier

July 2018 Newsletter

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Kim Marlow sitting at her desk at The Vindicator.

Kim M a rl o w A history of prestige, political power and money.

By Casey Stinnett Kim Marlow walked into The Vindicator’s office in 2012 looking for work and willing to take whatever job might be on offer. She was given a chance to sell advertising, and though it was her first sales position, Marlow has since made a successful career out of it.

She has also taken a great many photographs for the newspaper and written a number of stories, too.

Outside of work, Marlow has been busy lately with genealogical research and has traced her family tree back many generations.

“So I opened a lineage this weekend that was quite unexpected to me, and once I broke through that particular wall the information just poured through… a history literally of the very beginning of this country,” she posted on Facebook Sept.

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23. “A history of prestige, political power and money.”

Marlow says that her great-great-great-great-greatgrandfather, through her paternal grandmother, was Thomas Nelson Jr. a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the fourth governor of Virginia. His father was once president of the old Dominion of Virginia and then governor of the state of Virginia.

Long before coming to The Vindicator, Marlow served in the U.S. Navy, 1979-1983, as a meteorologist in Corpus Christi and Iceland. She also worked for a time as a dispatcher and jailer at the Nolan County Jail and as a dispatcher for the Houston Police Department.

Marlow brought up two daughters. The younger, Kristin, is now 29. The elder, Kami, would have been 33 this year but was shot and killed in 2011, a month after her 26th birthday. Kami’s son, Mike, was 8 years old at the time. He is now 16.

Marlow has since been an advocate for stronger gun laws.

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TOP BOOKKEEPERS

1) Carolyn Hill Taylor Press

Kim Marlow with her grandson, Mike, and daughter Kristin. Also shown is the cat, Luann Platter Hernandez.

2) Lori Ligues Colorado County Citizen

3) Carrie Little LEFT: Kim Marlow’s daughter and grandson, Kami and Mike, taken March 30, 2011.

RIGHT: Public domain image of Thomas Nelson Jr.

Navasota Examiner

EMPLOYEE ANNIVERSARIES NOVEMBER ANNIVERSARIES Dominic Sciortino, 1 year Granite Printing DECEMBER ANNIVERSARIES Elaine Maltsberger, 11 years Boerne Star Vince Leibowitz, 1 year Colorado County Citizen

July 2018 Newsletter

Michael Carrington, 3 years Navasota Examiner Fran Fox, 5 years Bandera Bulletin JANUARY ANNIVERSARIES Bill Pack, 3 years Bandera Bulletin

Scott Rucker, 6 years Elgin Courier Michelle Banse Stokes, 9 years Colorado County Citizen Ory Boney, 12 years Granite Printing

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Q

UESTION

OF THE MONTH

H alloween

What is your favor

T hanks

Nicole Shupe • Navasota Examiner My favorite holiday - in fact, my entire family’s favorite - is All Hallow’s Eve. We celebrate in many traditional ways, such as hosting costume parties and handing out candy; and some not-so-traditional ways like watching Hocus Pocus and Nightmare Before Christmas, having a bonfire and attending the All Hallow’s Eve festival celebration at Texas Renaissance Festival and trick-or-treating in the shops. Many people do not realize that every shop has a bowl of candy under the counter to offer to children of all ages if they only ask.

Matt Hellman • Granite Publications HALLOWEEN is always the best MONTH of the year. Yes I said month. Halloween is a time where the most creativeness and originality are expressed in people because they get to engage in their fantasies. I love costuming up (especially since I work at renfests usually on halloween) and the movies that come with this seasonal holiday are so entertaining. Haunted houses, if I can make it to any, are always fun and I like to take friends that are easily scared because that just amuses me. Also, I am an excellent pumpkin carver. Oh and nobody can go wrong with a good slice of pumpkin pie to top off the seasonal celebrating!

Minerva Kutch

One of my favorite holidays wo have so many things to be gra where you can eat whatever yo The weather is always perfect Spending time with family or c watching the game, you can n The colors are always warm a I can truly use all my senses to smell the delicious food cooki apple, cinnamon etc and touch for the big day. Yes, lots of thin able to share it even better.

Bill Pack •

My favorite holiday is Thanksgiv family members as I can find and to relax for at least a little bit of

Orlando Rojo-Buendía • Granite Publications

My favorite holiday would be...my birthday! Why? Because EVERYDAY is a celebration when I’m around, but on my birthday, the gloriousness! Christmas is a close second though, which includes spending time with my family, even though we don’t do the Santa Claus

Lori Ligues • Colorado County Citizen

Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas are all really kind of big to my family. We each have our “separate” family time but then w two. Each of those holidays usually consist of day trip to the movies in either Brenham or Katy and or maybe a midnight bowling consisting of about 20 people it makes for a good time and for sure a day or night of “you just never know what can happen!!”

Valeri Stair • Granite Publications

I love the entire holiday season. My excitement begins with October in general as I love to decorate for Halloween. And then the Dead & Thanksgiving with the conclusion of Christmas and lots of family time. My entire holiday season is spent preparing f enjoy doing this ANY time, but there just seems to be MORE time surrounding the Holiday season from October through Dece

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www.granitepublications.com

rite fall holiday and how do you celebrate?

sgiving

h • Granite Publications

ould have to be Thanksgiving. I ateful for. Also it is the holiday ou want and enjoy with no guilt. not too cold or hot just great. catching up with friends or just not go wrong with any of that. and inviting and it is a holiday o see the changes happening, ing , tasting the fall flavors of h with decorating and prepping ngs to be thankful for and to be

• Bandera Bulletin

ving. I get together with as many d eat, catch up on things and try time.

C hristmas Ana Cosino • Navasota Examiner My favorite holiday is Christmas. It’s not the gifts, it stopped being about the gifts a long time ago. I like to spend it with the people that matter the most to me, the people that always have my back and that love me unconditionally – my son and my family!

Jim Beaver • Granite Publications Christmas is my favorite time of year. It’s when I get to visit family up north and get gifts!

Gretchen Dyson • Granite Publications My favorite holiday has always been Christmas just because of the family time it encourages. We traditionally go to a Christmas Eve candlelight service, which includes some of the most beautiful music, then wake up the next morning for presents in pajamas. Halloween is a close second, though, because of the chance to dress up and take the kids trick-or-treating!

Jason Hennington • Taylor Press

e day is a celebration of me and my s handing out the gifts at 12 anymore.

we all gather for a big family day or g trip to El Campo. With our group

I get to decorate for Fall & Day of for and serving friends and family. I ember.

July 2018 Newsletter

Christmas is my favorite! I enjoy giving gifts when I can. I also enjoy tearing wrapping paper with my kids. Oh, and letters to Santa of course!

Kim Brakhage • Elgin Courier Christmas of course. Attend my daughters ugly sweater party, decorate the tree and the house, and Christmas eve my kids always opened 1 gift and it was ALWAYS new pj’s so that in the morning when we took pictures they would look good! This tradition still goes on today.... oh and the stockings are a huge favorite part of out Christmas.... they are filled to the brim by Santa sometime during the night. Mom of course has the biggest stocking!!

Cindye Ginsel • Elgin Courier Christmas! Not Thanksgiving, that’s when the house is full of a family that doesn’t necessarily get along, lol.

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Photo provided by the Boerne Star

Johnny and Debbie Forbes stand beneath their behemoth pumpkin that weighed in at 745 pounds.

THE RUNDOWN

Granite Pub takes an interest in the family buzz over the past few months.

BOERNE STAR

On his way to the county fair with a 745-pound pumpkin, former Louisiana native Johnny Forbes decided to settle instead for breaking the state’s record. Now settled in Comfort, Forbes said he plans to grow an even more gargantuan gourd next year – which he said he will enter at the fair.

With assistance from three members of the Boerne Star Reader Advisory Board, the newspaper was able to secure about $16,000 in new business for the fourth quarter from a new real estate development and a Chevrolet dealer.

Board member Pam Hodges, a commercial real estate broker and consultant, put us in touch with the developer of the new Miralomas neighborhood west of Boerne, the site of the 2018 San

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Antonio Parade of Homes.

Pam, who was assisting the developer with marketing, put us in touch with the developer’s ad agency, who purchased approximately $6,000 in ROP ad space and an 8-page tab that we designed, printed and delivered.

Board members Andra Wisian and Debra Grandjean were involved in a Family Ranch Rodeo competition and fundraising event for the Kendall County Youth Ag & Equestrian Center, located outside Boerne. The Star designed, produced and printed a special tab for the event, which was for paid by event sponsors.

We received $1,000 and a lot of good will in the community by partnering with the local non-profit.

In this process, we were introduced to a new general sales manager at the local Chevrolet dealer, who purchased an ad in

www.granitepublications.com

Daniel Philhower, VP of Operations and Financial Controller, is shown presenting Dana Smith, classifieds, with her 20 year award. Congratulations Dana!

Dayna and her friend, LJ Adams as they attended a recent Ozzy concert.

the Family Ranch Rodeo tab. The two previous managers in the position favored only television advertising. In discussions with him, we were able to discover that our reader demographics were almost identical to those of his target customer.

We managed to secure a 13-week test worth $9,000 that will hopefully become a long-term commitment, and bring other auto dealers into the newspaper. The weekly half-page color ads began in October.

Special thanks to Star staff members Stephanie Locke, Kolleen Roe and Rose Stewart for making it all get into print.

ANAHUAC PROGRESS

The past several months have been very hectic here, as it is every year dealing with back-to-back special sections. But we survived it and came out ahead! Thank goodness. As I am sure all the other papers go through the same. We did add a Lifestyles series that was fun to do and our customers seem to enjoy. We published it twice a month April – June as a pull out dinky, featuring things like Barbecue Month, All about Pets, Older American Month and Heart Health. It was something new we tried in our spring line-up.

I am sure we will do it again.

Personally, didn’t have much time to go and do much of anything – sometimes just chillin’ with Netflix is the most relaxing thing to do or not do! I did attend the 40th Anniversary of the movie Grease at the local theatre. That was a lot of fun! The theater was sold out

July 2018 Newsletter

and everyone sang with all the songs and couple of young people did dance routines with the movie! It was awesome!

We are preparing for our 110th Birthday for The Progress.

We are hosting a come and go reception on Friday, July 13. As far as the Historical Commission can figure we are the longest continuous running business in Anahuac. I have been spending time digging up old archives, searching for information about our beginnings. It’s so interesting to see how different our town was back in 1908 compared today. I am hoping for a good turn out for the reception, the Historical Commission offered to bring a cake! We will hold a photo op at 2 p.m. and will be giving away Schlitterbahn tickets as door prizes. It should be a lot of fun!

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Photo by Bill Pack | Bandera Bulletin

A car splashes through water that had run over a low-water crossing on Wharton’s Dock Road in Bandera County on Sept. 15. More than 16 inches of rain fell in some areas of the county from the beginning of September to the end, flooding several roads for varying periods of time but causing no serious incidents.

BANDERA BULLETIN

Advertising representative Dee Russ is busy signing up advertisers for the 2018 Hunters Guide in The Bandera Bulletin after she and Chris Darus, who works as both a sales representative and sport editor at the Bulletin, pulled together a large group of advertisers for the newspaper’s Fall/Winter Welcome Guide, which was published in September, and the 2018 Readers’ Choice tabloid, which came out in August.

The Readers’ Choice competition drew nominations from 83 readers for the businesses and organizations that they felt provided the best food and service in the county and for individuals with the friendliest personalities and who had the most impact in the county.

Participation was about 20 percent larger than last year for a survey that filled up a 12-page tabloid in August.

The Welcome Guide was distributed last month in a 20-page tabloid and was filled with information about historic events and personalities in Bandera County. Russ said she received several nice comments about the publication.

The Hunters Guide is another popular publication that provides hunters with information about hunting seasons and limits and where they can go for food, equipment, lodging and entertainment in the area. It will come out before the start of deer hunting season in the state.

Bulletin General Manager Bill Pack celebrated a 66th birthday

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on Aug. 26, and Office Manager Fran Fox also saw another birthday come and go on a day that has become notable for another incident, Sept. 11.

In the news across Bandera County, wet weather has been on the minds of residents through September, when a short-lived, burn ban was washed away by weeks of sometimes heavy rain that closed roads, stranded subdivisions for varying periods of time and cause some accidents. No serious emergencies were caused by the flooding, however, law enforcement authorities said.

Some areas of the county received more than 16 inches of rain from the first week of September until the last week.

Also, work got started in July on a long-anticipated Best Western hotel on Main Street in Bandera, and a new superintendent, Dr. Jerry Hollingsworth, began work in the Bandera Independent School District in August.

Also, electoral ballots were filled for the City of Bandera, Bandera ISD and other governmental agencies.

The mayor’s post in Bandera drew two competitors for the incumbent, Suzanne Schauman, but one of those, senior center manager Art Crawford, was disqualified because he could not produce documents that proved he had been discharged from a felony conviction related to an embezzlement he received in Oklahoma 30 years ago.

He had to provide that documentation to be qualified as a candidate.

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LEFT: Citizen Publisher Michelle Stokes’ daughter, Zoe, marched with the Weimar High School Marching Band for the first time this year as a freshman. MIDDLE: Lori and her son visited the Jett Champion Lane Frost Memorial and Arena. RIGHT: Columbus’ Bookkeeper Lori Ligues’ son, Jett, celebrates his birthday at Los Cabos Mexican Grill in Columbus.

COLORADO COUNTY CITIZEN

During September, Citizen Managing Editor Vince Leibowitz was covering a Ted Cruz event in Columbus, while Publisher Michelle Banse Stokes, accompanied by her husband, Will, covered the Go Texan Scholarship Dinner in Nada. Afterword, the three met up at a Columbus sports bar for a drink and got more than they bargained for! They were greeted by the Columbus High School Class of 1983, who thought Michelle was one of their classmates when she walked in. Because they were Columbus grads, Stokes and Leibowitz decided to ask the group if they’d like to pose for a photo for The Citizen, and they agreed—except the one person who told the staff he was on probation and couldn’t be in the picture! So, Vince stood on a chair and Michelle wrangled the people and the CHS Class of 1983 made The Citizen in late September.

Vince joined the Columbus Historical Preservation Trust and won tickets to see Grease at the Stafford Opera House at the membership reception on Sept. 27.

The Citizen said farewell to longtime reporter Jason Hogan, who left to take a job in San Antonio. Citizen staff all celebrated his new job with lunch from newspaper advertiser Los Cabos.

Michelle, Vince, and Bookkeeper Lori Ligues enjoyed attending and covering the 40th annual Colorado County Fair. Lori was excited to meet Rick Trevino and Neal McCoy before their performances.

Lori and her son, Jett, celebrated their birthdays in July and September with family and friends, attended two weddings, and

July 2018 Newsletter

Lori and her son visited Mount Rushmore during their travels this summer.

enjoyed a vacation that included driving over 4,000 miles across the US. Their travels took them through Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana, South and North Dakota. Some of the highlights of the trip included seeing the Champion Lane Frost Memorial and Arena, Mount Rushmore, the Union Pacific railroad museum and a drive tour at the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The weather was so nice and cool so they both hated to come back to the hot Texas weather.

Michelle has been busy running her daughter, Zoe, to multiple events as a new high school student. Zoe is a member of the marching band, the JV mascot, an FFA Greenhand and an honor student. Can you tell that her mother likes to brag on her?

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Road Trip to NASA

There’s one thing I’ve discovered about the newspaper business.

It’s 24/7. There’s always a deadline looming. But to celebrate my husband Stan’s birthday this week, I took a day off for a road trip!

Stan has always been a Star Trek fan. He didn’t miss an episode of the science fiction drama and has viewed them many times since. To this day he can quote nearly every episode verbatim. So this year, on his birthday, I thought a trip to NASA in Houston would fit the bill. There he could spend the day checking out space memorabilia.

Elgin Courier’s publisher Cindye Ginsel took a trip to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston with her husband Stan for his birthday.

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www.granitepublications.com

We arrived mid-morning and browsed the exhibits, from the Independence shuttle replica to the astronaut gear. Stan was totally absorbed. He must have read every bit of copy in every exhibit.

He laughed when he read an astronaut carried a Star Trek shirt into space with him. We took the tran to see the giant rocket. We did it all! We were about to leave when we thought we would stop by the cafeteria for a quick bite before heading home.

Then we saw it. In the corner of the cafeteria sitting isolated from the crowd, totally ignored, was the Galileo Seven. Stan’s

July 2018 Newsletter

eyes lit up as he headed off to see it up close.

“Do you realize what this is?!” he asked in pure excitement.

“No, not really,” I said, then I saw the words across its front, “U.S.S. Enterprise.” Stan explained it was the very same shuttlecraft which appeared in three episodes of the classic television show. Although it was just a prop, he seemed mesmerized. Reading the small sign nearly hidden from view, I saw that it had been restored in 2012 and donated to the Johnson Space Center.

It was the perfect end to the day.

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Photo by Stan Ginsel

This photo was taken in 2018, showing the interior of the newly renovated Elgin Courier office location at 105 N. Main. Left to right: Kim Brakhage, office manager; Heather Ott, advertising representative; Scott Rucker, advertising manager; Julianne Hodges, reporter, holding the telephone; and Cindye Ginsel, publisher, at desk.

ELGIN COURIER

Kim Brakhage, our office manager, arrived in March of this year. Kim moved to Elgin from a suburb near Los Angeles, Calif., following the birth of Thomas, her grandson. She has two children, Jacob and Lauren. Jacob works for Karma Automotive in Lake Forest, Calif. Lauren works for Child Protective Services (CPS) in Bastrop County. Kim greets visitors, coordinates our classified ads and manages Quickbooks. She’s the cheery one of our group.

Heather Ott, our advertising and marketing sales representative, practically grew up at the Elgin Courier and has worked here off and on since her high school days.

In the beginning she performed general office duties for her grandmother, Marie, who was publisher at that time, even going house-to-house to offer the newspaper to nonsubscribers. Currently she serves customers through ad sales in the Elgin area.

Julianne Hodges, our reporter, is from Clifton, Tex. She decided she wanted to be a reporter after participating in UIL Journalism in high school and writing for the local newspaper, the Clifton Record. Julianne joined

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the Courier staff in mid-July after graduating from the University of Texas in May with a journalism degree and minor in astronomy. At the university she gained experience I’m standing on an ice glacier in Juneau Alaska. We were transported there by helicopter. It’s very cold but beautiful here.

I have special boots over my shoes to keep me from slipping.

www.granitepublications.com

Photo courtesy of the Elgin Historical Association.

This photo was taken about 1906, showing the interior of the Elgin Courier office location on Depot Street. Left to right: Pat Burns, Bill Billingsley, editor and owner J.O. Smith holding the telephone and Hal Meeks at desk.

as a science reporter for the Daily Texan and served as editor of the science and technology department. Julianne attends the city council meetings, commissioners court

July 2018 Newsletter

and covers local news.

Scott Rucker, who worked for the Taylor Press for five years, is our new advertising manager. Scott lives in Round Rock with his wife, Marie, four children and two dogs.

Three of his children are star athletes. His son, Nicholas, 21, plays baseball in college and his daughter, Abigail, 17, plays volleyball for the Westwood High School Warriors. His stepson, Archer, 14, plays soccer at Stony Point High School.

His stepdaughter, Abbey, 19, attends Austin Community College and works for Tomlinson’s Pet Store in Round Rock.

“She’s the productive one,” said Rucker with a chuckle.

Cindye Ginsel joined the Elgin Courier as Publisher/ Editor on August 1. Most of my career was spent with GTE in marketing in Irving, Tex. She asked for a transfer to the Austin area in 2000 to be near her elderly aunt and accepted early retirement from Verizon in 2003 so she could remain in Bastrop. After serving as director of Bastrop’s visitor center for nine years, she worked for Bastrop County several years promoting Bastrop, Smithville and Elgin tourism. Her husband, Stan, took the 2018 staff photo.

We’re the new staff of the Elgin Courier, serving Bastrop County!

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NAVASOTA EXAMINER

We’ve been pretty busy at the Examiner this quarter, so busy we can’t believe it’s from for the Granite Pub submission again.

Back-to-school, football games, lots of volunteer work and so much more.

Publisher Ana Cosino worked. Literally worked. Jason Castillo, Ana’s son, wasn’t too excited to start a new school year, but started it with a bang and has enjoyed 4th grade thus far.

Examiner Editor Nicole Shupe went to part-time with The Examiner effective September 1. Nicole is now only in the office Monday and Tuesdays.

Examiner Bookkeeper Carrie Little has finally recuperated from her vacation and now needs a vacation from her vacation – DENIED! She’s okay with that. She’s celebrated her niece Emerald’s 27th birthday with a birthday cake and some good barbecue. Her great niece Ilene started Pre-K at First Lutheran in Brenham and she hates the weekend because she cannot go to school. Ilene experienced the Washington County Fair for the first time with her Aunt Carrie and her mama Emerald. She enjoyed it, especially the Budweiser Clydesdale. Carrie also celebrated her mom and dad’s 49th wedding anniversary!

Examiner Sale Rep Angela Scurlock visited the Natural Bridge Caverns in San Antonio with her husband, Shawn. They enjoyed a weekend getaway before the chaos of first day of

Jayda Harris, Examiner Sales Rep Angela Scurlock’s daughter, performs at a Friday night game.

school. Angela has been busy with her daughters after school activities – Diamonettes Dance Team, cheerleading, football and more Diamonettes.

The Examiner staff is starting the countdown for the end of the year!

LEFT: Layla Sanchez, Examiner Sales Rep Angela Scurlock’s daughter, is excited to cheer for the Navasota Venom football team this season. RIGHT: Jason Castillo, Examiner Publisher Ana Cosino’s son, starts his first day of 4th grade.

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www.granitepublications.com

ABOVE: Examiner Sales Rep Angela Scurlock and her husband Shawn enjoy a little weekend getaway at the Nature Bridge Cavern in San Antonio. RIGHT TOP: Ilene Genzel, Examiner Bookkeeper Carrie Little’s niece, starts her first day of Pre-K. RIGHT BOTTOM: Ilene enjoys the Washington County Fair with her great aunt Carrie Little.

July 2018 Newsletter

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TAYLOR PRESS

Changes have been afoot at the Taylor Press this past quarter.

In July, we lost our lead sales person to the Elgin Courier (bye, Scott!) but gained two new faces in exchange.

Leslie Lyle and Kristina Weise joined our team as Associate Publisher and Sales Associate.

Lyle comes to Taylor from Waxahachie with experience working in the Texas newspaper business from Gonzales to Midland.

Indeed, while she was the ad manager in Gonzales, she worked for Granite alum Robert Swonke so, in part, it’s been like old home week for Leslie.

Leslie said she can chronicle back to her teenage years from newspaper clippings that she kept from the Waxahachie Daily Light.

She said the best picture she has of her parents together came from the newspaper.

Leslie has already introduced new ways to track sales and customer relationships, as well as stepped up digital sales.

Kristina is a product of Taylor. She has lived here most of her life and is a 2002 graduate of Taylor High School. This is Kristina’s first shot at a newspaper ad job but she already knows most of the businesses in town because, as she notes, “I shop downtown all the time!”

She’s already proven herself to be a go-getter.

Also in July, we hosted the sixth annual Taylor Press 3-on-3 Basketball Tourney. The event helps to raise money for local scholarships and local charities. One of the groups helped by the tourney is the Shinning Stars, a group focused on helping adults with disabilities. Shinning Stars run the concession stand and help clean up after.

Taylor Press Managing Editor Jason Hennington runs the tournament. He said he had 35 teams from all over the state, including nine former class mates from Sul Ross, his alma mater.

In addition to hosting basketball tournaments, Jason likes spending time with his family. They got away for a long weekend in August to visit Sea World where his daughters, Jasmine, (7) and Tiana (2), enjoyed playing with Sesame Street characters and watching shows.

While there, Jason met Golden State Warriors assistant coach Mike Brown.

But, Jason assured Mike Brown that he was a Spurs fan.

Our quarterly report would not be complete without one of Jason’s regular Ninja turtle report.

Jasmine and Tiana were both happy to start back to school and daycare in August. The weekend before school started, Jason took the girls to a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle art exhibit in Austin. There they saw paintings and photos based on historic Ninja Turtle comic books, movies and toys.

Publisher Richard Stone and his wife, Tia Rae, got away for a week in September to Southern California. The two toured the Paso Robles wine country with their daughter and future son in law, and learned far too much about expensive wines.

“I think I’m spoiled,” said Richard upon his return. “We like wine but this is crazy.”

While in wine country, they visited the Hearst Castle, which is perched on a hilltop overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

The couple spent the rest of the week soaking up the downtown Los Angeles vibe, including trips to the Broad and Getty museums, the Bradbury Building (where much of the original Blade Runner movie was filmed), Grand Central Market, the Last Bookstore, China Town, Little Tokyo and the Taper Theater where they got to see a Pulitzerprize winning drama, Sweat.

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July 2018 Newsletter

19

GRANITE PUBLICATIONS (MAIN OFFICE)

For Granite Publications, we let our pictures do the talking.

Check out what has been going on with all of our people.

When the pages manager Richard Davis is out sick, the team makes sure to keep others safe from the contagion.

Valeri & Charles Stair at the 2018 USO Fort Hood Yellow Ribbon Gala in September. Valeri won the silent auction for that lovely painting.

Chow time!

The Elgin Courier offered karaoke during last month’s Sip, Shop & Stroll night. Everyone that sang a song was entered into a drawing for two Schliterbahn Waterpark tickets. It was a pretty successful evening with over a dozen people singing.

Jim Beaver chills while waiting for a cool cup of water from the new filtration system.

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Daniel m a n s the grill with his newspaper chef h a t , c o n structed

by Valeri Stair.

It’s grillin’ and potluck t i m e , y’all!

Yikes!

A shark!

– While fishing on the Gulf coast last month, Jim Beaver caught something he had never caught before, a hammerhead shark. Fortunately, it was small, but Jim swears he saw a huge fin skimming the waters about 50 yards out from where he was fishing.

Could it have been “momma?”

July 2018 Newsletter

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GROUPWIDE DIRECTORY GRANITE HEADQUARTERS 3115 Loop 306 Ste. 111, San Angelo, TX 76904 365-949-4700 monetta@granitepub.com

PUBLICATION OFFICES THE ANAHUAC PROGRESS (Wednesday) General Manager: Dayna Haynes PO Box 100 • 306 Willcox St.

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progress.com

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THE BANDERA BULLETIN (Wednesday)

GRANITE PRINTING

JIM CHIONSINI jchionsini@yahoo.com O: 325-949-4700 | C: 325-315-6328 DANIEL PHILHOWER daniel.philhower@granitepublications.com Cell: 512-203-1893 JIM BEAVER jim.beaver@granitepublications.com Cell: 512-461-6906 VALERI STAIR valeri.stair@granitepublications.com Cell: 512-955-9139 PATTI SLAVYCH patti.slavych@granitepublications.com Cell: 713-377-1372 RICHARD DAVIS richard.davis@granitepublications.com Cell: 479-445-5465 ORY BONEY ory@graniteprinting.net Cell: 512-269-9837

ACCOUNTING Danita Hutto danita.hutto@granitepublications.com Gail Schobey gail.schobey@granitepublications.com

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General Manager: Bill Pack PO Box 697 • 606 State Hwy 16 South Bandera, TX 78003

• Kim Brakhage: ar@elgincourier.com • Julianne Hodges: julianne.hodges@elgincourier.com

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THE LIBERTY VINDICATOR (Thursday) Editor & Publisher: Jennifer Richardson

BOERNE STAR (Tuesday & Friday)

1939 Trinity • Liberty, TX 77575

Editor & Publisher: Jeffrey Parra

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PO Box 820 • 941 N. School St.

thevindicator.com

Boerne, TX 78006

• Jennifer Richardson: publisher@thevindicator.com

830-249-2441 • Fax: 830-249-4607

• Casey Stinnett: editor@thevindicator.com

boernestar.com

• Kim Marlow: ads@thevindicator.com

• Jeffrey Parra: publisher@boernestar.com • Kolleen Roe: kolleen@boernestar.com

NAVASOTA EXAMINER (Wednesday)

• Kerry Barboza: sports@boernestar.com

Editor & Publisher: Ana Cosino

• Rose Stewart: rose@boernestar.com

PO Box 751 • 115 Railroad St. • Navasota, TX 77868

• Dana Smith: subscriptions@boernestar.com

936-825-6484 • Fax 936-825-2230

• Stephanie Locke: stephanie@boernestar.com

navasotaexaminer.com

• Kit Brenner: kitbrenner@boernestar.com

• Ana Cosino: publisher@navasotaexaminer.com

• Jessica Goode: jessica@boernestar.com

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AD SERVICES Minerva Kutch minerva.kutch@granitepublications.com

COLORADO COUNTY CITIZEN (Wednesday) Editor & Publisher: Michelle Banse Stokes

TAYLOR PRESS/HUTTO NEWS (Sunday, Wednesday)

PO Box 548 • 2024 Hwy. 71 • Columbus, TX

Editor & Publisher: Richard Stone

78934-0548

PO Box 1040 • 211 W. Third • Taylor, TX 76574-1040

979-732-2304 • Fax: 979-732-8804

512-352-8535 • Fax: 512-352-1505

coloradocountycitizen.com

taylorpress.net

PAGE DESIGN Gretchen Dyson gretchen.dyson@granitepublications.com

• Michelle Stokes: publisher@colorado

• Richard Stone: publisher@taylorpress.net

countycitizen.com

• Jason Hennington: news@taylorpress.net

Matt Hellman matthew.hellman@granitepublications.com

• Lori Ligues: bookkeeper@coloradocountycitizen.com

• Carolyn Hill: business@taylorpress.net

Orlando Rojo-Buendia orlando.rojo-buendia@granitepublications.com

Fernando Castro fernando.castro@granitepublications.com

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• Vince Leibowitz: vince@coloradocountycitizen.com • Reagan Roehl: sports@taylorpress.net • Chris Brown: copy@coloradocountycitizen.com

• Kristina Weise: kristina.weise@taylorpress.net

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