It’s 2006 and half my term as your Texas Press Association president is already over. Where has the time gone?

It seems like only yesterday I took office at the summer meeting in Las Colinas. But now I’ve just completed my first major event of the year, leading the 59th Midwinter Conference & Trade Show last month at the Hyatt Regency DFW. The hotel is in the DFW Airport but once you are inside you don’t hear the planes taking off or landing at all. The Hyatt Regency has ample meeting space and really suits our vendors, most of whom fly into the event.

One of my highlights of the conference was getting to meet and greet fellow publishers in my suite Friday night after the banquet. I’m glad so many of you came to my after-party and mingled with other TPAers. The atmosphere was really grand but really it’s the member exchange I enjoy the most.

We had many honored guests at the conference this year but I was most pleased to meet Gracie Montgomery, who is president of our neighboring group to the north, Oklahoma Press Association. She and her husband John publish the Purcell Register and she is the third woman president of OPA. I am TPA’s fourth woman president.

Bill Newell, OPA’s postal consultant, and his wife Sue, both from Edmond, Okla., also attended the conference to say goodbye to Harley Hitchcock, who retired after six years as our periodicals consultant. The TPA board gave Harley a monetary gift to use for a retirement cruise and the membership gave him an ovation at the Friday luncheon. I’m sure we will all miss Harley and his outstanding help in keeping us all out of trouble with the Postal Service.

We also were pleased to welcome National Newspaper Association president Jerry Reppert, publisher of The Gazette-Democrat in Anna, Ill. Jerry gave us an update on how newspapers are faring on the national front.

And guess what? We are doing really well. Jerry mentioned a new readership survey in which NNA polled American’s attitudes on community newspapers. The news was good and showed that small newspapers continue to hold readers.

If you missed the survey report in the last TPA Bulletin you can log onto the NNA Web site to read it.

I also was very pleased that new faces continue to attend TPA’s semiannual meetings. This year we welcomed 31 first-timers attending their first-ever TPA meeting.

Overall the meeting was outstanding, the trade show was a hit and the speakers were fantastic.

I especially enjoyed Eric Newhouse, who closed out the meeting describing how he won a Pulitzer Prize for his stories on alcoholism. Most of us can only dream about winning such an honor but Eric was humble and put it into perspective. He reminded us that his newspaper in Great Falls, Mont., is a small daily in a small market, and he said small papers can do great work. He truly is an inspiration to all community newspapers.

If you weren’t able to attend the midwinter meeting, please make plans to join us June 22-23 for the 127th Summer Convention at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott for more fun and fellowship.