MEMBER SPOTLIGHT | FEBRUARY 2004

Mary Rupert: New AWC Member and Current President
of the Kansas City Press Club

Mary Rupert pulls double duty as active new member of KC-AWC and this year's president of the Kansas City Press Club, the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

At present Mary is news editor of The Kansas City Kansan, a small daily newspaper in the metro area. At the Kansan, her daily duties are to edit, design and write headlines for the front page. She also writes news and feature stories, a weekly editorial page column, and generally pens the Saturday editorial as well.

Her current position is based on a solid journalism foundation. She graduated from Kansas State University in 1976 with a journalism degree. After graduation she became a reporter for the Wyandotte West, a small Kansas weekly newspaper, where she had previously worked part time. Working at a smaller publication gave her the opportunity to get experience at several positions—news editor, managing editor and associate editor.

In 1980 she married Steve Rupert, and in 1986 she quit to stay home for the next five years with her two children. Christine, 22, is now a senior at the University of St. Mary 's in Leavenworth, and Jonathan is a freshman at Kansas City Kansas Community College. She says it is a “balancing act” between her career and her family needs.

Mary returned to work in 1992 as a reporter for the Lansing Leader, a small Kansas weekly newspaper. At the same time, she worked toward her master's in journalism, driving back and forth on the turnpike from her home in KCK to the University of Kansas in Lawrence. She graduated in 1996 with honors and started work as a copy editor at The Kansas City Kansan.

In 2000 she left the Kansan for a higher-paying copy-editing position at the Lawrence Journal-World. She left the Journal-World in 2001 because she didn't enjoy working nights and returned to the Kansan in 2002.

Although her job usually keeps her working at the Kansan office, Mary doesn't mind getting out in the field to cover an important story. When a devastating tornado hit Kansas City, Kansas, only 2 or 3 miles from her home on Sunday, May 4, 2003 , Mary grabbed her digital camera and jumped in the car to capture the experience for her paper. She dodged downed telephone lines and roads jammed with onlookers and concerned relatives to walk among the debris, interviewing people and taking pictures.

Mary, along with Kansan managing editor Rebecca Shelton and freelance writer, Kerri Five-Coat Campbell, was a key member of a team that revived the inactive Kansas City Press Club in 2002. The first year, Mary served as secretary of the Press Club and was the chapter's newsletter editor. She feels it is important to have a professional journalism group in the area, and is an outspoken advocate for “open records and open meetings” in government and a “free press.” As this year's president she helps to arrange the Press Club's monthly meetings, attract new members and make the chapter more visible in the area.

One highlight of Mary's life was her first overseas trip — to Croatia. Mary took the trip with her mother in 1997 as part of a KCK Sister City tour group. The vacation had added significance because her grandparents were immigrants from Croatia. She said her mother always told her how her grandmother learned the English language by reading the newspaper. During her Croatian trip, which occurred after the conflict in Bosnia, Mary saw the areas being rebuilt after the war. She'll always remember it because the tour group was told to stay on the sidewalks to avoid stepping on land mines.

Away from the pressroom on her days off, you may find Mary curled up with a good book. She just finished reading The World According to Mr. Rogers, a compilation of works from Mr. Fred Rogers, the beloved children's TV host. Mary also likes eating out, good music (she is a season ticket holder at the Kansas City Symphony), playing the piano and knitting. One of her aspirations, as with many journalists, is to write and publish a novel. Until then, her many duties at the Kansas City Kansan — and her affiliation with the Press Club and KC-AWC—add variety to her work life.