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Avis Meyer – 2018

Much can be said about Avis Meyer. Most of it is true. For 24 years he worked at the Post-Dispatch as a copy editor and occasional feature and travel writer, for which he won an AP Headline Award and P-D Writing Award. But his biggest journalistic contribution came at Saint Louis University, where he taught journalism-related courses for 42 years, turning out scores of successful journalists. He also served for 42 years as faculty advisor to the student paper “The U. News,” for which he received many awards. Avis was recipient of the Charles Klotzer Media Literacy Award and a major scholarship at the university is named in his honor. 

Marguerite Martyn- 2018

Marguerite Martyn, a visual artist and reporter, was hired by the Post-Dispatch in 1905. She became revered for her articles, which contained her sketches, similar in style to editorial cartoons, of the people she interviewed. City Editor O.K. Bovard was usually agreeable to her suggestions about stories or people she wanted to cover, though it was uncommon to grant a woman that much influence at the time. One of the many subjects that gained her favor among female readers was coverage of the Suffrage Movement. It was said that she initially took no notes during the interviews, spending the time sketching her subjects. For many years she submitted her stories written in longhand. She retired from the paper in 1939.

Jo Mannies – 2018

Jo Mannies’ career in journalism spanned three media: print, on-line and radio. She was the first female journalist to cover St. Louis City Hall and served as the Post’s second female sportswriter. Her future in local journalism was deeply rooted in coverage of politics. She was stationed at the paper’s Washington Bureau for four years and covered the political beat from 1990-2008. She joined the St. Louis Beacon’s online operation in the same capacity and then switched to reporting for KWMU Radio when the station acquired the Beacon. Her numerous professional awards included the Con Lee Kelliher Award and the National Press Club award for regional reporting.

J. Roy Stockton – 2017

J. Roy Stockton gained a national reputation for his wit and writing when he produced a series of articles about baseball for the Saturday Evening Post. He joined the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1917 and retired 46 years later. He was promoted to Sports Editor in 1946. In 1932, Stockton was president of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Stockton travelled with baseball pros in a USO tour during World War II and was once seriously considered for the job of Major League Baseball Commissioner. In 1947, He appeared in the market’s first broadcast of a local baseball game on KSD-TV.

Albert Schweitzer – 2017

Al Schweitzer is one of the elite group of six artists who have been responsible for the daily Weatherbird sketches in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch since the feature’s inception in 1901. After working at the Star-Times as a staff artist for a year, Schweitzer moved across the street to the Post in 1950, intending to stay a couple years before opening his own studio. Promotions came, and he rose to the position of the paper’s chief artist. Thirty-six years later, he retired, keeping his artistic energy active by teaching art at Meramec. He also did free-lance cartooning for a syndicate of 44 Catholic newspapers around the U.S. and Canada.

Bill Miller – 2017

Bill Miller is the embodiment of just how valuable local journalism is in smaller communities. He is the editor and publisher of the Washington Missourian. His Missourian Publishing Company also owns papers in Union and St. Clair, Missouri, and a magazine, the Senior Life Times. He and his three brothers joined their father’s business and the family tradition continued when his sons and daughter joined the business. He was elected to the Missouri Press Association Hall of Fame in 2005.