FROM THE EDITOR
I didn’t know her for very long, but I can say this: April Suzanne Kelley definitely made an impression on me. A very good one.
I hired April in August to take over as the area editor for the Taylor Press and Elgin Courier after Jason Hennington departed to teach at Hutto High School.
Sadly, we lost April in late December, but she will live forever in our hearts.
She was a hardworking writer and editor, highly organized, dedicated to deadlines and had that snarky sense of humor that most of us in the news business need to deal with the daily joys and tragedies we cover.
You can’t ask for more than that, and April delivered each and every day. She and I clicked immediately.
She also left a lasting impression on many others, a fact not lost on Nicole Gray, April’s sister. Last week, as reporter Nicole Lessin prepared her story on April’s death, she mentioned Gray had penned a poem to honor her late sibling.
The poem moved me, and I’d like to share it now with our readers:
“Wandering Soul” — Nicole Gray
Born beneath the southern sky, April’s light began to shine/A daughter, a sister, a mother divine/With a pen in her hand and a heart set to roam/She chased every story, the road was her home.
Through Arkansas pines and Wyoming’s skies/From Florida shores to Colorado highs/She carried her dreams like the wind carries leaves/A wandering soul with a fire to believe.
She was loved, even when she couldn’t see/A smile like the sunrise, setting hearts free./ Her journey now rests, but her spirit still flies/ In every horizon, she’s watching the skies.
Her father’s spirit lived in her stride/ Lonnie’s guiding light never left her side./ Wesley stepped in, when life called for more/With love and wisdom, he opened new doors.
From scattered pages to a typewriter’s song/ She told the world where she felt she belonged./ Her stories are whispers that travel the breeze/ Touching the hearts of the ones left at ease. … So take to the road, where the wild hearts go/Feel her laughter in the rivers that flow./ Through every sunset, let her story unfold/Her spirit’s a flame that will never grow cold.
April Suzanne, your light will remain/A wandering soul, free from the pain./In every journey, we’ll carry you near/A whisper in the wind, forever we’ll hear.
Rest in peace, April. We won’t forget you.
Thomas Edwards is the executive editor of Granite Media Partners Inc., owners of the Taylor Press. Reach him at thomas.edwards@granitemediapartners. com.
