The newspaper started as a weekly, evolving over the years to twice a week and then three times a week publication. In 1992, the Okeechobee News became the county's first local daily newspaper.
While the daily newspaper carried state and national news from the Associated Press, the goal of the editorial staff is to keep the news content as local as possible. Most of the front page is made up of local stories and photos.
Newsroom
News Editor Eric Kopp has been with INI for 18 years. Eric started as a reporter, primarily covering the sports and cops beats.
"I enjoy the challenge of digging out that hard-to-get information for stories," said Eric. "I also enjoy the adrenalin rush that comes when all the information finally falls together on an important story.'
“Working in the newspaper business has proven to be the most rewarding, enjoyable job I’ve had, and I’ve been working for over 35 years. I wish I had gotten into reporting a lot sooner,” said Lorna.
“By being a reporter, I have had the opportunity to do things I would never have been able to in any other type of business from being allowed to go into restricted areas following the hurricanes we had, being hoisted onto a roof on a fork lift to take pics. of roof damage, riding with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers on night stakeouts, handling fire fighting equipment, and being taken right into massive brush fires for pictures. I also got to sit and play with six baby Florida panthers. I also got into the cage of their 400 plus pound daddy,” said Lorna.
“I’ve met interesting and some very strange people, have made a great deal of friends and learned a lot about fishing, the environment, law enforcement and everything in between.
My ability with a camera has improved to the extent that I recently received recognition for my work by the International Society of Photographers.”
The newest reporter, Chauna Aguilar, joined INI in August 2006. She previously worked for the Okeechobee County School Board. Her beats include city government.
Chauna said she enjoys newspaper work.
“I like the fact that no day is ever the same,” she said. “There is always a different issue to deal with and different people to work with throughout the community.”
While Eric and the reporters are out gathering news, the copy desk is manned by Linda Cannon and Helen Chason, who handle processing and budgeting the copy and photos to send to the pagination center in Delaware, as well as proofing the finished pages.
Linda has been with the Okeechobee News for five years.
“Working in the newspaper business allows me the opportunity to work with computers and numerous software programs, which I enjoy,” said Linda. “There is never a dull moment in the newspaper business. News is different every day and the work is challenging,” she added.
Helen has been with the paper one year.
“I enjoy seeing the paper being built from the first draft to the final copy,” said Helen. “There is never a dull moment, being constantly busy, working together with everyone on a local level within the newsroom and staff within the advertising and pagination departments.
Pictured above, Victoria Hannon, a former intern, is working as a summer temporary staffer in the newsroom.
Circulation
Janet Madray heads up the Circulation Department, overseeing circulation of all of the INI Florida newspapers. In addition, to Janet, the Circulation Department includes Jessica Dorrance, Melissa Harden, Tammy Howard and Doug Powell.
The Circulation Department makes sure the Okeechobee News home delivery customers have their papers by 6 a.m. – in time to read over breakfast. They also handle the store and rack sales, making sure the newspapers are available throughout the community.
Circulation manager Janet Madray has been with INI for 14 years. She negotiates contracts for delivery of all Florida publications. Her job includes making sure all Florida Publications are distributed in the most efficient manor as possible, promoting all publications via lettered racks placed in high traffic areas, promoting news tube delivery to all subscribers, which in turn helps promote our products, making sure that when someone drives through our publication’s areas they know what newspaper they want to read and advertise in.
“Every day is a new day, a new product.” she said, adding that she enjoys working and growing as part of a strong team that is always ready to accept a new challenge.
“We keep our publications in the eye of the public,” said Janet.Tammy Howard has been in the circulation department for one year. Tammy is a night driver, picking up the newspapers from the printing plant.
She said the best part of the job is “the people/”Doug Powell ahs been with the circulation department for three years. His duties include collecting for newspaper sales, maintaining routes and single copy outlets, rack repair and trouble shooting any circulation problems.
He said he enjoys all the “hands on, being out and about and finding solutions to problems.”
Melissa Anne Harden has been with the newspaper circulation department for 11 months. Her duties include night driving, collecting, counting money from stores and racks, creating running lists for routes and driving any down routes. Before working for the newspaper, she was employed by Leland Dyals Land Surveying.
“There is never a time when there is nothing to do, which makes the workday go by faster,” she said. “The people are easy to work with and everyone works together to solve a problem instead of pointing fingers at someone who caused the problem.”
Jessica Lynn Dorrance joined the Okeechobee News team four months ago. Her duties include distributing new racks, night driving, collecting stores and racks, counting money, updating route lists, driving and showing down routes, and starting new store accounts. Before being hired by INI, she worked in cosmetology and the restaurant business. She said her job is enjoyable because of the difference in day to day operations. There is no repetition, she said.
Okeechobee daily’s circulation team includes (left to right) Janet Madray. Jessica Dorrance, Melissa Harden, Tammy Howard, Joe Edenfield, Doug Powell.
The Advertising Department is headed up by INI Florida Ad Director Judy Kasten, who has been with the company for 27 years. Judy trains, coaches and supports outside Ad Consultants and Ad Services team leaders, major accounts and provides overall ads sales leadership for the INI Florida Group.
“I enjoy being part of an ever evolving industry that is so important to our communities,” said Judy. “Watching our advertisers’ businesses grow through the help of results-producing ads in our papers; working with a great group of intensely committed team members based in various locations, pulling together to produce quality newspapers each and every day, no matter what.”
Judy Kasten
The ad department includes Kristina Schwartz, Ryan Hughes, Michelle Chandler, Kay Sheedy, Lisa Clements, Joy Parrish and Diana Whitehall.
Kristina Schwartz has been with the Okeechobee news for five months. She previously worked for Big Lake Media.
“Working in graphics and building the advertisements has given me the chance to be creative, which is my passion,” she said.
Ryan Hughes is the Okeechobee Ad Services Graphics Coordinator. His job includes coordinating the efforts of the Florida Graphics Team, providing advertisers with effective single ads and ad campaigns and attracting new customers with our consistent level quality combined with creativity, and being a major contributor to our sales growth and the production of fine newspapers that serve both our readers and advertisers well. Other duties include dummy approval and the layout, design and pagination of special sections throughout the year.
Ryan has been with the paper one year as graphics coordinator, but this was not his first experience with the newspaper. As a teenager Ryan worked in what was then the composition department.
What does he like best about the newspaper business? “I’d have to say the pace and variety of the work are the things that most excite me about working for a newspaper,” he said. “The work is so varied and moves quickly enough that nothing becomes mundane or stagnant. There is always something fresh and new to work on!”
Michelle Chandler works single ads and ad campaigns. Other duties include dummy approval and the layout, design and pagination of special sections throughout the year.
Michelle was an ad consultant for the Okeechobee News for four years and has been working in graphics for one year.
She said she enjoys “having the ability to work ‘one on one’ with an advertiser and to have the ability to produce professional ad designs that get results needed to promote their business efficiently and effectively.
“To be a part of a Newspaper Business that brings not only readership into our community but to have the ability to communicate and bring both the reader and the advertiser together all in one publication,” she said.
Left to right, Michelle Chandler, Ryan Hughes and Kristina Schwartz
Kay Sheedy is also in Ad Services. Besides handling a number of Okeechobee accounts,she is responsible for all Okeechobee real estate accounts and coordinating sales in the Lake Okeechobee Real Estate Magazine and Hendry Glades Real Estate Magazine. She is also responsible for accounts in Martin and St. Lucie Counties.
Kay has been with the Okeechobee News for ten years.
“I love working with my accounts, helping them to develop advertising campaigns that produce results for them and help grow their businesses,” she said.
Lisa Clements, in Ad Services, maintains current accounts as well as contract renewals. She has worked for INI a total of four years.
“I enjoy keeping up with current events,” she said. “I love working with the public. Advertising sales is and has been my favorite occupation of all my employments.”
Joy Parrish handles major accounts and national advertising for the Okeechobee News as well as for all of the INI Florida weekly newspapers. Joy has been with the Okeechobee News for 29 years.
“Each day I have an opportunity to meet new people from all over the U. S. which makes my job very interesting,” said Joy. “Everyday is different; new clients, new procedures, new problems. I also enjoy the “newspaper family” that I work with, I am very lucky to work with a great group of people.”
Diana Whitehall, ad managers, concentrates on outside sales. As the “rainmaker” she sells cost -effective advertising campaigns to new clients so they may increase their sales and profits and therefore contribute to the success of Independent Newspapers, Inc.
Diana has been with the newspaper for two years.
“I enjoy working one on one with new business owners and by serving my clients well,” she said. “I help build their businesses and their advertising budgets and gain their referrals to other businesses that can benefit from my services.”
Okeechobee News Sales Staff includes (seated, left to right) Lisa Clements, Kay Sheedy, (standing) Diana Whitehall and Joy Parrish.
Front desk
At the front desk are Connie Hawse, Janetta Thiboult and Jean McNeeley. Their duties include customer service, billing, data entry, filing and answering phones.
Connie Hawse, Janetta Thiboult, Jean McNeeley, and Angie Bridges
Connie has been the Okeechobee News since November 2007. She said she enjoys the word because “I am more involved with the community.
“I enjoy working with the public. My team players are all great. I love my job,” she said.
Janetta started work with INI in March 2007. She previously worked for Century 21 Real Estate.
Janetta said her favorite part of the newspaper business is working with the public.
“I love helping people,” she said.
Jean has been with the newspaper for two years. She said she enjoys having the opportunity to meet people in the community and to represent the newspaper.
Angie Bridges does order entry for advertising and coordinates the front office.
She has been with INI for eight years, and said she likes the work because it is always different.
“There is always something going on and every day is different,” she said.
Central Copy desk
Also finding office space in the Okeechobee News building are Katrina Elsken, Executive Editor for INI Florida, and the “central copy desk” which includes MaryAnn Morris, Dee Hamilton and Shawn Hays.
As executive editor, Katrina coaches and supervises the editors in the INI Florida group. She also writes a weekly column and tackles occasional writing and photography assignments, and supervises the central copy desk.
INI Florida Executive Editor Katrina Elsken (standing) heads up the editorial side of INI Florida, and supervises the copy desk. MaryAnn Morris (seated) divides her time between the copy desk, story assignments and helping out where needed.
Dee Hamilton is the only staffer who works full-time on the central copy desk. She handles incoming emails and press releases for the four weekly newspapers currently handled through the copy desk. Through email and phone calls, Dee develops news sources in the communities the papers serve, encouraging them to submit photos and stories and post their news online at newszap.com.
The newest addition to the copy desk is Shawn Hays who started June 12. Shawn works part-time, afternoons and evenings, helping with copy editing and retrieving copy from press release sites. He also gathers the arrest report data for The Sun from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Department web site. Shawn’s full time job is with the Okeechobee County School System. He teaches Spanish at Okeechobee High School.
Dee Hamilton stays busy on the copy desk editing copy for the Glades County Democrat, the Clewiston News, The Sun and the Immokalee Bulletin. Shawn Hays, recently joined the copy desk staff as a part-time employee. Shawn is a teacher at Okeechobee High School.
MaryAnn Morris works part time on the copy desk and the rest of the time tackles “other duties as assigned.” Those duties vary widely from week to week. MaryAnn might be found covering a city council meeting in Frostproof, taking notes at a murder trial in Okeechobee or taking photos at a festival in Glades County. She writes two weekly features – the history series and the new agriculture series. These features run in the Okeechobee News every week and are often also picked up by the weeklies. MaryAnn also helps with in-depth and investigative stories, such as the Watershed series which ran in all of the INI Florida papers in 2006.
MaryAnn has been with INI almost three years.
“It is one of the most fulfilling jobs I have ever had,” she said. “What I have always admired most about the newspaper business is that I have a part in providing accurate, unbiased information to the community.”
