Martha Bode Mullenix, owner of Texan Express, dies after 32 years at helm of rural paper

Mullenix didn't like pictures of herself, and
asked that the graphic display at her funeral
be the first edition of her newspaper.

Martha Bode Mullenix, owner of The Texan Express in Goliad since 1983, died on April 16 at the age of 75. "In almost three decades of running the news operation, she became a revered community figure for her ethics, involvement in the community and later in local politics," Jonathan Silver reports for the Victoria Advocate.

Mullenix's daughter and co-worker, Sandra Mullenix Ross, said her mother's attitude was "If it wasn't good for Goliad, it wasn't good for her," Silver writes. Goliad has about 2,000 people, and Mullenix kept the newspaper a family business that reported on what mattered most to the community. Ross told Silver, "When it came to business, if someone couldn't pay for a service, she would give them time or just say OK. Politicians, on the other hand, weren't so lucky. Politicians did not get a break."

Steve Paulsgrove, an attorney and former Goliad County judge, said "their interactions weren't always rosy, but they were respectful," Silver writes. He told Silver, "She was always professional in times when she had a difference of opinion with me. She was able to do fair reporting." (Read more)