Managing Editor Jerry Fink of The Eufaula Indian Journal and the McIntosh County Democrat was inducted into the Oklahoma Press Association Half Century Club on Saturday, June 7 at the Grand in Shawnee with his biggest fans, his coworkers, cheering him on.
Fink first started working in the obituary department at the Oklahoma Journal in 1972 but soon began his career in journalism at the Sequoyah County Times in 1974 under the leadership of the late Jim Mayo. His office duties included editing, reporting, photography and feature writing. He remained at the Sequoyah County Times until 1977 when he became a general assignment reporter for the Tulsa World for a few years. While at the World, he covered prison riots, murder trials, natural disasters and wrote hundreds of human interest stories. He also accompanied an Oklahoma National Guard Unit to Panama and Honduras on a humanitarian mission. Among his stories was a first person skydiving experience and an interview with a notorious murderer in McAlester State Prison who killed his father, his brother and his best friend.
In 1980, he spent three weeks in Pakistan in a failed effort to get into Afghanistan to cover the war between Russia and Afghan freedom fighters. Though he didn’t succeed in getting into Afghanistan, he took the opportunity to interview freedom fighters encamped in Pakistan on the border.
That same year Fink joined the state staff and covered breaking news, trials, education, government and feature stories in Eastern Oklahoma. For the next five years, he served as State Editor, recruiting, and working with a staff of freelance writers, as well as Capital Bureau reporters, teaching them the ins and outs of reporting on topics that are valuable to the public.
On April 19, 1995, he was among the hundreds of reporters who covered the Oklahoma City Bombing.
In 1997, his journeys took him to Las Vegas where he joined the Las Vegas Sun as a senior reporter, covering a variety of beats and focusing on higher education. In 2001, he became an entertainment writer, covering all aspects of entertainment, focusing on features. During this time, he won several awards, including the Nevada Press Association’s Best Entertainment Writer.
During his tenure with the Sun he interviewed some of the most recognizable names in entertainment, such as Celine Dion, Robin Williams, Samuel L. Jackson, Kris Kristofferson, Bette Midler, B.B. King, Gloria Estefan and hundreds more. He also interviewed countless relatively unknown entertainers, but no less talented, who performed in Las Vegas lounges and smaller theaters.
Fink stated he enjoyed the fast-paced entertainment life for almost 15 years.
Then in 2012, Fink returned to Oklahoma and came full circle to the Mayo family newspapers, which is now owned by Jim’s sons, Jeff and Jack Mayo. His first year back as managing editor of The Eufaula Indian Journal and the McIntosh County Democrat, he won first place in the Better Newspaper Contest news writing division.
During his 13 years with the IJ and Democrat, he has continued to be guided by the philosophy that everyone – the famous and infamous, the rich and the poor – has a story to tell and that when you think after more than 50 years in the news business you have seen it all, the next day proves you wrong.
Today Fink continues to provide compelling news for the oldest continuously published newspaper in the state.
“Lake life isn’t quite as exciting as Vegas, but it’s home,” Fink said.
