The following obituaries were published in the March 2019 edition of the Texas Press Messenger.

TPA mourns two past presidents. 107th president Frank K. Baker, 84, Fort Stockton Pioneer, died Jan. 26, in Austin and 134th president Chad Ferguson, 65, The Banner Press Newspaper in Columbus, died Feb. 4.

Legislative sessions are always hectic, but the 2019 session could be one of the busiest ever for the Texas Press Association.
With the bill-filing deadline for regular legislation still two weeks away as of the Messenger’s deadline, lawmakers already had filed 4,259 pieces of legislation. The total could easily top 7,000 when the filing frenzy comes to an end.

The deadline for annual recycled newsprint reports has been extended this year to Feb. 28, according to Alex Frame of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Every year, TCEQ collects data on recycled newsprint. Texas law requires that newspaper publishers submit their reports to the TCEQ.  

Two old friends reminiscing about the early days of their careers together and sharing stories from more than 60 years in journalism provided some of the most memorable moments of the 2019 Texas Press Association Convention and Trade Show.

The Frank W. Mayborn Award for Community Leadership was presented to Roy Eaton, president of the Wise County Messenger, at the closing event of the Texas Press Association convention and trade show in Denton. TPA President Laurie Ezzell Brown made the presentation.