Kathy Tretter

2024

By Lisa Hoppenjans

It was never young Kathleen Schnepp’s dream to play Superman’s Lois Lane. She intended to go to law school and become a famous civil rights, environmental or government attorney until she realized attorneys are sometimes called upon to defend someone they know to be guilty.

She grew up in a small Illinois city but attended Marian Heights Academy, an all-girl boarding school run by the Sisters of St. Benedict of Ferdinand, Indiana. She fell in love with the area — and a Ferdinand native — and not long after high school married Richard “Digger” Tretter.

For years, she wrote travel brochures, but when her children were born, decided to quit the traveling that job required to work as an ad representative for a local radio station. In time, she was offered a position as advertising manager for a Washington, Indiana, newspaper, where she learned the newspaper business.

In 1990, the two brothers who ran The Ferdinand News, which had been in the same family since 1906, wanted to retire, but were loathe to sell the community newspaper to a conglomerate.

Kathy Tretter convinced her husband, his sister Miriam and her husband, Paul Ash, to purchase the paper. As a bonus, they also acquired the Dale News, which became the Spencer County Leader in 1997, expanding coverage to the entire county. 

“I loved the community. They deserved a hometown newspaper,” she recalls.

And the woman who never aspired to be a journalist found her calling. She took on the role of editor, also writing features and news stories, and penning a weekly column. 

One of Tretter’s goals was to improve the journalistic standards of both papers. Over the past 31 years, both newspapers received many awards for excellence in all categories, from writing and photography to advertising, graphics and design.

In 2016, The Ferdinand News won the Hoosier State Press Association’s highest honor, the Blue Ribbon Award. Tretter has been a member of the Hoosier State Press Association for 33 years, on its Board of Trustees for 14 years, holding every office and presiding during the HSPA’s 75th anniversary. She has been deeply involved in trying to keep the newspaper industry viable through trying times.

In 2011, she and her husband took over sole ownership of the papers. Her husband retired in 2016, and Tretter became sole publisher.

“There are few Hoosiers who have done more to strengthen our Southern Indiana rural communities than Kathy Tretter,” Ivy Tech President Sue Ellspermann wrote in a nominating letter. “Across Dubois, Spencer and Perry counties, she is known as a deeply committed journalist … who has always placed the community and people before profits.”

Tretter has personally won awards for insightful social issue stories, such as hepatitis C, breast cancer, domestic violence and historic preservation. Her passion carries over into her involvement with numerous boards and charities, often advancing from membership to leadership.

For example, she was an 18-year member of the Dubois County Contractual Public Library Board, serving as president for 16 years. Under her tenure, two branch libraries were built and one established in a former town hall.

She served as president of Crisis Connection, Inc., a local organization devoted to supporting victims of domestic and sexual violence. When she received Jasper Rotary Club’s 2014 ATHENA Award, her charity of choice was Crisis Connection. The award is given to women who have achieved the highest level of professional excellence while contributing to improving the quality of life for others and helping other women realize their potential. She has also served on the Southwest Indiana United Way Cabinet.

Tretter holds memberships in every chamber of commerce in both papers’ coverage areas. She is past chairman of the board for the Spencer County Regional Chamber of Commerce. As an active member of the Ferdinand Tourism and Ferdinand Merchants commissions, she wrote the organizations’ bylaws. She is an active member of the Lincoln Boyhood Drama Association, the group that oversees Lincoln Amphitheatre, and currently serves as treasurer. She wrote a grant application to fund events for the 2024 solar eclipse at the Amphitheatre, one of many grants she has written. 

One of her greatest passions is history. Tretter grew up in Illinois, the Land of Lincoln, and from a young age was intrigued by all things Lincoln, including Spencer County, Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood home. She holds memberships in the Spencer County Historical Society, Dubois County and Ferdinand historical societies, and is a past member of the Dubois County Museum Board. She and her husband were two of seven individuals who bought the historic Wollenmann House in Ferdinand. After securing a grant and working to restore the structure, they donated it to the Ferdinand Historical Society.

The Ferdinand News and the Spencer County Leader have received the Indiana Governor’s Century and Half Century awards, respectively, for business longevity and demonstrating a history of community service. The Ferdinand News is 118 years old; the Leader has been in business for 64 years. In 33 years, Tretter has taken the businesses to new heights.

She has served as mentor to staff members, and her turnover rate is very low. She kept her two newspapers going through a global pandemic when several area newspapers failed or were sold. In an era when newspapers are shifting online, print circulation figures for both papers continue to grow. 

Tretter and her husband have three children and five grandchildren. She always manages to make time for others. She has befriended several elderly women, making sure they have everything they need, getting them to doctors, attorneys and accountants.

She has been a member of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors for the past five years. Made up of editors from all over the world, membership is by invitation only. And, true to form, Tretter was elected to their board of directors in 2023.