Kathy Tretter of the Spencer County Leader/Ferdinand News and Spencer County Regional Chamber of Commerce board member emeritus deserves every accolade possible, but this was a biggie! Congratulations Kathy
After decades of people reading about my family and me in my mother’s Food for Thought column, it’s my turn to share news about what’s going on in her life–this weekend my mom, Kathy Tretter, was inducted into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame. She was one of seven selected from more than fifty nominees this year.
My parents, aunt, and uncle bought and began publishing The Ferdinand News and then Dale News/now Spencer County Leader when I was in second grade. A lot has changed over the years! I remember going to the News office after school and watching Mom lay out the paper–articles were printed out and run through a small machine that applied wax to the back side, then the text was snipped apart and meticulously arranged on cardstock pages which were spread out on light tables around the back room.
Dad did most of the photography, developing the images in the darkroom to also be waxed and stuck onto pages, and when the whole paper was complete he’d make giant negatives of each page to be delivered to the printer. Then it was often our job (my siblings and me) to scrape all the waxed bits of news off the pages so they’d have a clean slate for the following week’s editions.
The Digital Age
Today, of course, it’s all done digitally and each week they publish a print and online version of the papers, plus share news and updates through social media. But one thing that hasn’t changed over the years is Mom’s dedication and commitment to her work and the community. (Another fun fact that hasn’t changed–after all these years she still types with just two fingers )
Over the years, my mom has spent countless hours covering government and other meetings, interviewing area residents, researching any topic imaginable, attending community events, volunteering her time, spearheading projects…she has been involved in umpteen organizations and numerous boards, devoting her time and talents to everything from local libraries and museums to historic preservation and theater to domestic violence victims.
She has written about everything from history and health to schools and sewers to weather and whatever else you can imagine. When I was a kid, we’d get dragged all over the tri-county area on weekends to cover community events, Mom would have a meeting more weeknights than not, and when she was home, she could usually be found proofreading in her rocking chair.
While I can’t honestly say the rest of us never complained, Mom certainly never did. It has been her passion and what drives her for as long as I can remember, and the number of people who have benefitted from her hard work, been touched by her words, whose stories have been shared and preserved because of her is truly remarkable.
Kathy's Acceptance Speech
In her acceptance speech (which she ad libbed because she didn’t know she was expected to give one!), she began by quoting Wayne and Garth, “I’m not worthy!” But small-town newspapers like the Ferdinand News and Spencer County Leader are gems that need to be treasured and preserved (if you don’t have a subscription, you should check it out).
In our rapidly changing world of fake news, click bait, and AI-generated information, not only does she and her staff continue to provide important local information and event coverage, but she shares the stories of our community that connect us to our past, remind us what we have in common, and highlight what we can expect in the future.
After sharing and being a part of so many stories over the years, we’re incredibly proud to see the story of her life’s work and community contributions recognized and preserved in the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame!
—Story by Megan Tretter Schipp