Things got raucous indeed in December 2008 at the John Peter Smith Hospital book
benefit ramrodded by IABC with assistance from SPJ. Here’s the take: 297 books and 310 magazines collected at the door plus another 238
books donated by Friends of the Library. JPS valued the books at $7.50 each and
the magazines at 50 cents each. Throw in $363 net cash, and the readers library
at the county hospital received $4,530 worth of value.
I’ve been active in SPJ for about a decade, and the reason I’ve stayed with it, bottom line, is the help we provide journalists — skills development, programs, networking, moral support — down-to-earth, where-the-rubber-hits-the-road help. You don’t get much more basic than the free layoff sessions Fort Worth SPJ is doing.
Most news organizations stopped years ago making an investment in their workers
— no training, no professional membership dues. The lesson here is that whatever
will be done to ensure journalists survive and thrive, we will have to do it
ourselves. Not the bosses. Not some philanthropic company. And what journalists
do is vitally important.
If you stay in any part of this business, groups such
as SPJ are invaluable — to you and to the country.
— Gayle Reaves-King
