The Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation (WNAF) will honor 11 member publishers who passed away in 2024 and 2025 beginning at 11 a.m. on June 5, 2026 at the WNAF Memorial Publishers Pylon.
The pylon is located in the WNA Memorial Grove located on the Trees for Tomorrow campus in Eagle River.
The program will be as follows:
11 a.m. – Reception near the Pylon
11:30 a.m. – Memorial Pylon induction, followed by lunch.
This year’s inductees include member publishers who passed away in 2024 and 2025:
2024
Roger Allan Griepentrog, The Freedom Pursuit
Ramon De Vere “Ray” Hansen, Waushara Argus
William “Bill” Heath, Marshfield News-Herald
Richard “Rich” Murphy, Waunakee Tribune
Karen K. Parker, The County Line, Ontario
Peter “Pete” W. Selkowe, The Journal Times, Racine
Brian David Thomsen, The Valders Journal
2025
Pieter F. Graaskamp, Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire
Dr. Jerrel W. Jones, Milwaukee Courier
Mary Jane Knowles, Hillsboro Sentry-Enterprise
Julius A. Marolla, Horicon Reporter
Since establishing the Pylon in 1958, members of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association have honored deceased Wisconsin publishers by adding their name to the Memorial Pylon. Eagle River is also the location of the WNA Press Forest which is used by Trees for Tomorrow for its educational programming.
In the early years, the tradition of adding names to the Pylon involved printing the names of deceased publishers on press plates and hanging them from a wooden structure. Each year, families, friends and colleagues from the newspaper community would gather there to remember and pay tribute.
As time passed, the original plates began to weather and fade. To preserve the legacy more permanently, a new memorial was dedicated in 2014 on the Trees For Tomorrow campus. Known as the WNA Memorial Grove, it features five granite pylons and several benches, offering visitors a quiet space for reflection.
Family, friends and members of the public are invited to attend the Memorial Pylon ceremony, which pays tribute to Wisconsin publishers who have died.
The deadline to register is Friday, May 22.
For those interested in staying near Trees for Tomorrow in advance of the ceremony, a limited number of rooms have been reserved at:
Best Western Derby Inn
(715) 479-1600
1800 US HWY 45 N, Eagle River, WI 54521
Date: Thursday, June 4, 2026
Rate: $145 + tax per night
Reserve by: April 30, 2026
Questions? Contact WNA Executive Director Beth Bennett.
