Waggener High School - RingBrothersHistory.com

The Voice, July 25, 1974:I took up golf and occasionally had time to rewrite a story or editorial. But to the very end, I continued my practice of writingmy own heads and making up on the stone.The Voice undertook many campaigns and usually emerged winner. Back in 1956, for example, the Mallon Plan was introducedto permit Louisville to annex all its suburbs. The downtown newspapers and businessmen went all out in support ofthe plan.The Voice opposed it. We pointed out that the plan called for annexation of St. Matthews, but would leave the debt of St.Matthews Sanitation District to be paid by the people of St. Matthews. In other words, they wanted our assets but wouldleave us our liabilities. The plan went to a public vote and we beat it handily.During that same period; we came out strongly against permitting Reynolds Metals to build a factory in the East End. Wepointed out that the St. Matthews/ Middletown/Anchorage area was the only section of town left devoted solely to residentialliving.We won that one too, but I have since had second thoughts. Jefferson County needs all the jobs it can get and I would hesitatebefore ever again undertaking a campaign to keep out business.Life on The Voice under Al was quite placid. I can scarcely recall any anecdotes. We worked steadily, not too hard, and putout a good paper. Every morning at 10 I had coffee with banker Karl Straub, insurance man Brent Hobday and lawyer NelsonPerry at Barney’s, a few doors from Citizens Fidelity Bank. I made great friends such as Mayor Ken Thompson of St.Regis Park and his wife during the battle over the Mallon Plan.St. Matthews had been incorporated as a sixth class city In 1950. Meetings were held Tuesday evening at Board of TrusteesChairman Jim Noland’s home on Kennison. Later the city enlarged and became fourth class and first Jim, then Bernie Bowilng,were elected mayor and the city acquired a city hall, a jail and a permanent staff.For 10 years I attended nearly every meeting. I remember one evening in Jim Noland’s living room covering the proceedingswith Dick Harwood of The Louisville Times. Dick is now national editor of The Washington Post. I saw him in thePost newsroom the other day and we compared scars and gray hairs.How Kelsay got the job: But I do remember one episode. In the middle 50s, St. Matthews decided it needed a policeforce.A friend, Ron Kelsay, wanted a job as patrolman so he could continue his education at the University of Louisville.He asked me to write a letter for his signature to send to Mayor Jim Noland.Al agreed I ought to do it for a friend, so I did. A few days later Jim Noland stopped by and asked me about Kelsay. I said Ithought he was a fine person and fitted for the job.“We’re thinking about making him chief of police,’’ Jim said.‘But you can’t,” I said. “He’s just a kid and he’s still going to school.”25th Anniversary Issue‘Yeah,” said Jim. ‘But you should see that great letter he wrote me.” I miss Jim Noland. I miss St. Matthews. My best yearswere spent there.Both Al and Jimmy let me have virtually complete freedom to run the news side as I saw fit. Al in eight years killed onlytwo pieces I wrote, one a silly editorial and the second a feature that might have gotten the paper in some trouble.He once suppressed a story involving some dishonesty on the part of a St. Matthews official, but only after making sure theman did not profit by his action and would resign the job.My biggest regret is that we once backed down on an editorial. We attacked a Commonwealth’s attorney when he had acouple of Courier-Journal reporters indicted after they uncovered corruption on the county police force. On our lawyer’sadvice we retracted, and I am still ashamed of that episode.On the whole, we ran a good paper, an honest paper, one of which the community can be proud. In my 10 years in St. Matthews,I never asked for, or received, an official favor or any special treatment at the hands of any public official. Any giftsforced upon me -- and believe me some public officials and businessmen know how to compel you to take them -- I invariablygave away.With one exception, St. Matthews City Councilman Bernie Gratzer once gave me a bottle of bourbon for Christmas. Bernie,also a reporter for The Louisville Times, had received it himself as a gift. I kept it and that was an error. The whiskey wasterrible.Emil Aun now lives in Arlington, Va. After several years as a public information officer in the U.S. Department of Labor,he is now on the staff of Sen. Vance Hartke, Democrat of Indiana.