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Obituaries published in the April 2022 editor of the Texas Press Messenger.

Dorothy Cosper Kucera
CORPUS CHRISTI – Dorothy Cosper Kucera, who wrote for a number of newspapers, culminating with a 30-year stint with the Corpus Christ Caller-Times, died Feb. 9. She was 94.
Valedictorian of the 1945 Edna High School graduating class, she attended Southwest Texas State College.
She started her career with the Caller-Times in 1980 with a column on the op-ed page. She was also the author of seven books.
In 1991, the Caller-Times selected her as Newsmaker of the Year, and the Sales and Marketing Executives of Corpus Christi honored her with their “Distinguished Civic Service” award. 
In 1992 she received an award from the Associated Press for general column writing.
In 2004 she was selected for an Award of Excellence by the Dallas Press Club, which annually honored the best journalists from newspapers in six southwest states: Texas, Arkansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Louisiana.
In 1995 she was cited by the Corpus Christi Art Guild for service to fellow artists for her work of many years as director of development of the Art Center, leading fund raising efforts to form and later expand the center.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, her high school classmate Joe Kucera.
She is survived by three children, six grandchildren, four great grandchildren and other relatives.
A private service for family is planned at a later date.
Memorials may be made to The Art Center of Corpus Christi’s Dorothy Kucera Memorial Fund, https://public.artcentercc.org/web/donateguest.

Larry Gene Lovelace
TOMBALL – Longtime Texas newspaper editor Larry Gene Lovelace, who worked for newspapers in Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Nebraska over a 50-year career, died Dec. 24, 2021 in Tomball. He was 78.
Lovelace met his wife, Ingrid Thomsen, while stationed at Sembach Air Base in Germany as a weatherman with the U.S. Air Force. After his service the family moved to Midand, where he in 1967 he joined the Midland Reporter-Telegram, first as a photographer and later as news editor.
The family moved to Norman, Oklahoma, where Lovelace attended classes at the University of Oklahoma, worked for the Daily Oklahoman and managed a movie theater.
After the family returned to Midland, he rejoined the Reporter-Telegram and completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of Texas Permian Basin in Odessa.
In 1976, Lovelace joined the Houston Post as an editor. In September 1989, he was hired as an editor at the new St. Louis Sun, but returned to the Houston Post when the Sun closed seven months later. 
When the Post itself shut down, Lovelace moved to Omaha, Nebraska, as an editor for the Omaha News. After two months, the Houston Chronicle lured him back to Texas to work in the business department before returning to the news department as a news editor. He retired in 2015.
In addition to his wife, Lovelace is survived by three children, six grandchildren and other relatives. Funeral services were held on Dec. 29 at Klein Funeral Home in Tomball.
Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org.

Bill Salter
ODESSA – Former Odessa American publisher Bill Salter, a veteran newspaper journalist also known for his volunteerism, died March 7. He was 77.
Salter was known during his long career for his Libertarian views, as well as his column, “William Tells,” published from 1962 to 2008 in 12 different newspapers. Salter served at the OA when the paper was owned by Freedom Communications. He joined Freedom in 1976 at the Brownsville Herald, serving as its managing editor, until becoming editor of the Panama City (Fla.) News Herald in 1980. In 1990, he became publisher of the Clovis (N.M.) News Journal
He became publisher of the Odessa American in 1994, a position he held until retirement in May 2003 when he became publisher emeritus. He continued to work on community projects, including the Empty Stocking Fund, which he founded in both Panama City, Fla., and in Odessa to benefit the Salvation Army. The Odessa fund continues to this day and has raised more than $2 million over the years.
Salvation Army Capt. Juan Gomez praised the founding of the fund that helps provide Christmas gifts and food to Odessa’s neediest citizens.
In 1997, Salter became the first recipient of the R.C. Hoiles Award, named after the founder of Freedom. Two years before Salter won the award he started a similar OA award, given annually to Odessans who exemplify the same spirit of libertarianism, community and volunteerism as Hoiles, who was a newsman who founded Freedom Communications.
Salter was a native of Brady. He is survived by his wife Sherry, who was mentioned as “Miss Kitty” in his columns and son Jeff, who was Mentioned in some columns as “Yellowbeard Jr.”