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The Erwin Record is an award-winning weekly newspaper based in Unicoi County, Tenn., with a circulation of nearly 5,000.
The first edition of The Erwin Record was published on Jan. 27, 1928, the heir to a number of newspapers published in the county since the late 1800s. For a short period of time in the 1930s, the Record published as a daily newspaper, but for most of its time has been published as a weekly newspaper.
The Erwin Record is one of Tennessee's most honored newspapers for journalistic excellence. The Tennessee Press Association was awarded the Record with its Sweepstakes Award for the past five years -- 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 -- signifying the Record as the best non-daily newspaper in its class.
The Erwin Record employs nine full-time employees and one part-time employee. The following is a biography of those employees.
Betty Davis -- Advertising Director
She has a famous name (albeit with a different spelling), but she's not a movie star. She is, however, a star when it comes to customer service and advertising expertise. Betty joined the Record staff in November 2004 and previously held advertising positions in Ohio. Before joining the Record, Betty worked with the local Girl Scouts.
Jerry Hilliard -- Associate Editor
Jerry Hilliard joined the staff of The Erwin Record in July 2001. He is a retired journalism professor and the first professor emeritus of East Tennessee State University's Communications Department. He worked as a full-time professor for more than 20 years at ETSU before retiring from teaching in 2001. He is a past president of the Greater Tri-Cities Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He has worked for a variety of newspapers throughout his career including large dailies in Miami and Knoxville.
Lesley Hughes -- News Editor
A 2003 graduate of Milligan College, Lesley joined The Erwin Record staff in 2005. She covers education, crime, courts, county government and the town of Unicoi for the newspaper. She has won several journalism awards from the Tennessee Press Association, in categories such as best single feature, public service and news photography as well as awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. Her previous journalism experience comes from a stint at the Carter County daily, the Elizabethton Star. She is married to Josh, who is a graduate of East Tennessee State University. She serves as the co-chair for the 2008 Unicoi County Relay For Life.
Anthony D. Piercy -- New Media Director
Anthony joined The Erwin Record staff in 2006. He is responsible for the newspaper's Web site and technology departments, as well as the graphic design of nearly all of the advertisements. He is a 2006 graduate of Unicoi County High School and is currently majoring in mass communications with a concentration in journalism at East Tennessee State University. He has won numerous awards from the Tennessee Press Association for his advertising designs, including three first place awards and 10 second and third place awards. He also received a first place award for his work on the newspaper's Web site. He serves as the co-chair for the 2008 Unicoi County Relay For Life.
Donna Rea -- Bookkeeper
A native of Philadelphia, Pa., Donna has worked for a number of companies over the years, but she began her career at The Erwin Record in 1988. She is responsible for the company's bookkeeping. She is also responsible for inputting much of the copy submitted to the newspaper in the forms of wedding announcements, school events, etc. She is a 1965 graduate of Methacton High School and attended Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pa., and Penn State. She and her husband, Larry, moved to Erwin in 1983. They have two children, Stephanie and Stephen and one grandson, Gavin Rea Gorman.
Brenda Sparks -- Circulation Manager/Photographer
Brenda came to work at The Erwin Record in August of 1999. A native of Flag Pond, she is the daughter of Thomas and Rosa Corn. (Her sister, Janice, worked at the newspaper for seven years until 2003). She graduated from Unicoi County High School in 1965. She was the owner and operator of Country Kitchen restaurant in Flag Pond from 1986 to 1996. Prior to coming to The Erwin Record, Brenda worked at Southside Fuels as secretary. In addition to greeting customers at the front counter, Brenda assists with numerous duties at The Erwin Record, including penning a personal food column, Country Kitchen. She is married to Edward W. Sparks, Flag Pond. They have three children: Vicki, Stuart Sparks and Benjamin Sparks and three grand children, Adam and Aaron Pritchard and Katie Rose Sparks. She is active with the Flag Pond Ruritan Club. She often takes photos published in The Erwin Record.
Mark A. Stevens -- Publisher - mstevens@erwinrecord.net
Mark has had newspaper ink on his hands since he became fascinated by the journalism field while still in high school. Following two years on his high school newspaper, he enrolled at East Tennessee State University, where he pursued a bachelor's degree in journalism. While at ETSU, he served as managing editor and then executive editor of the East Tennessean, the university's official, student-operated twice-weekly newspaper. He was the first person to ever receive the John Pitman Prize for Excellence in Journalism for two consecutive years at ETSU. After graduating in 1991 with a major in communications and a minor in history, Mark began his professional journalism career at the Johnson City Press as a lifestyles writer. In 1995, he was promoted to Lifestyles Editor, where he oversaw a department of four and was responsible for producing the daily Lifestyles page, the Wednesday food section and the Sunday Lifestyles section. While at the Press, he received Tennessee Press Association awards for ''Promotion of Newspapers'' in 1995 and 1997. He also received ADDY awards in 1996 and 1997. In August of 1997, Mark accepted the executive editor and general manager's position at The Erwin Record. Since then, he and his staff have received dozens of awards from the Tennessee Press Association, the Tri-City Metro Advertising Federation and the Northeast Tennessee Tourism Association. In addition to five consecutive Sweepstakes Awards, the TPA awards include first-place honors for Best Personal Column for Stevens' editorials, Best Local Features for the staff's feature writing efforts and Best Lifestyles Section for the newspaper's ''Neighbors'' section. He is a past chairman of the board of the Unicoi County Chamber of Commerce, past president of the Tri-City Metro Advertising Federation, past president of the Greater Tri- Cities Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and a former secretary of the Rotary Club of Unicoi County. In January 2005, he was named by Washington, D.C.-based Presstime magazine as one of the nation's top newspaper professionals in its annual "Twenty Under Forty" issue. Sandusky Newspapers, owners of The Erwin Record, promoted Stevens to publisher in December 2004. He has been married to the former Amy Dickeson since 1995. He is the son of Amos and Peggy Stevens of Hampton. His maternal grandparents, who lived all their life in the Limestone Cove community of Unicoi County, are Pleasey Sneyd and the late Bertha Sneyd.
David Thometz -- Staff Writer
David Thometz joined The Erwin Record as a writer in 2007. He covers the town of Erwin and writes many of the newspaper's feature stories. He is a 1984 graduate of Bingham High School in South Jordan, Utah, and attended Southern Utah State College in Cedar City, Utah, where he studied communications, and the University of Utah in Salt Lake City where he studied graphic design. David's design interests include typography, and he designed the digital printing types that are used to print the body copy and headlines in The Erwin Record, which he named Erwin Text and Erwin Gothic, respectively. He lives in the Simerly Creek area of Hampton.
Keith Whitson -- Print Shop Supervisor
Keith graduated from Unicoi County High School in 1978 and East Tennessee State University in 1982. While at ETSU, Keith double majored in communications and art with a concentration in photography. He also worked at the East Tennessean, where he worked as assistant news editor and assistant features editor. He began his career at The Erwin Record in 1982 and has, but for brief stints elsewhere, been with the newspaper ever since. His job duties are as varied as his talents. Keith is in charge of managing and designing all the print jobs for the company's commercial print shop. He has been honored with several awards from the Tennessee Press Association for his advertising design work, including nearly one dozen first-place honors. He is the son of Nellie Pate, Erwin, and the late Bob Whitson.
