Autumn is a time of transitions and accolades for the Free Community Papers of New York. September marks the end of the fiscal year for us, and it also is when we hold our annual Publishers Conference and fall board of directors meeting.

During the Publishers Conference, we have the distinct pleasure of bestowing the Publisher of the Year honor. The award is given in recognition of the effort one publisher has made during the past year—and over the course of many years—to help advance the purpose and mission of this association. This year, the award was presented to Bridgette (Goodman) Stewart, publisher of The Hi Lites in Watkins Glen and the Seneca County Area Shopper in Ovid. I have had the pleasure to work closely with Bridgette over the past five years at the board level and also on the annual graphic awards competition. She is a dedicated individual who has helped Erika Perez and me to understand and improve the graphic awards process. We thank Bridgette for her time and patience, and congratulate her being named Publisher of the Year. You can find a story about Bridgette and the presentation on page 12 of our association newsletter.

On September 30, a former recipient of the Publisher of the Year award announced the sale of his independent publication and his retirement. Bill Jones has sold the Moneysaver Shopping Guide and the Moneysaver Shopping News to Tioga Publishing Company, a property of Community Media Group, Inc. of West Frankfort, Ill. The Moneysaver publications are located in Bolivar, N.Y.

Bill has been a member of the FCPNY board of directors for almost 30 years. Bill served two terms as the president of FCPNY and received the FCPNY Publisher of the Year award in 2009. Bill could always be found at our association meetings, in addition to the national association meetings. It was unusual to go to any of the meetings throughout the state and the country and not find Bill there. He has been a participating attendee at all of the meetings—always contributing to the discussions and learning from the sessions he attended. He is known for his insights, his politics and his “tongue-in-cheek” humor.

On October 4, Bill wrote:

To FCPNY publishers and board members:

I regret that I must resign from FCPNY and the board position I have held for almost 30 years. I sold my Moneysaver to Community Media Group, West Frankfort, lll., on Friday, September 30, 2011. The publishers’ summit was difficult knowing it was over, but unable to tell everyone until the closing. What a ride! FCPNY, MACPA, SAPA, IFPA and AFCP! What wonderful people, close friends and great times. The learning experiences were very good, but the friends and fun beyond compare for a lifetime. I will miss you all and hope former two-time presidents are invited back once in a while.

I was joking that I used to wake up most mornings tired. This Saturday I woke up REtired!

Cheers to all. I’ll miss you all and hope all goes well for you. It’s a great industry with fantastic people all over this country. Health and happiness and a huge thank you to you all.

Bill Jones, President | Moneysaver Advertising, Inc.

In accepting Bill’s resignation, current FCPNY president Steve Harrison wrote, “Congratulations on a phenomenal career as publisher of the Moneysaver paper!! And, of course, you’ll always have a warm, welcome seat at any FCPNY function. From the Free Community Papers of New York, thank you so much for so many years of contributions and for serving two terms as president. What an interesting time it has been as we have fought the good fight for bringing recognition to our free paper industry and doing it the right way. Publishers like you made our standards high and attainable. Thanks for that.”

Bill’s contributions, attendance and sense of humor will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure to work with him. Best wishes in your retirement, Bill . . . to you and Debbie. ENJOY!

As I briefly mentioned, the FCPNY fiscal year ended on September 30. FY 2011 was a year of challenges and, thankfully, slight growth. We will close out the books and distribute the annual rebate checks to CPAN participating members by the end of October. The board of directors met during the Publishers Conference and approved a rebate distribution—depending on the final numbers—that mirrors last year’s distribution. I expect the distribution will actually be a little higher than last year’s. Thank you to all of our participating publications for running the CPAN ads every week. Your participation keeps the association strong.

Watch for some exciting new initiatives in 2012, as we continue to grow your association and adapt to the changing needs of you, our members. I wish you a strong fourth quarter and holiday advertising season as we wind up yet another publishing year.