‘The ink in my veins was calling’

Not everyone is born for the newspaper industry. Brenda Brandt most certainly was.

After 42 years at The Holyoke Enterprise and a lifetime in a newspaper family, Brandt has hung up her press pass, filled up her last reporter’s notebook and announced her retirement.

Like with any good story, let’s start at the beginning.

Loral Johnson, Brandt’s dad, first fell in love with newspapers at the age of 9 when he began cleaning the back shop of the Crow Valley News in Grover. After graduating from high school, Johnson moved to Imperial, Nebraska, to work at The Imperial Republican in 1952. Elna, his high school sweetheart, joined him when they were married in 1954.

The Republican printed its last section on Thursday mornings, and they held it as long as possible on an October morning in 1955 to be able to publish a birth announcement for Brandt, who was unfortunately born a little too late. “I started in the world missing deadlines, but I’ve been working to meet them ever since,” said Brandt.

As the oldest of four children, Brandt remembers running down the block with her siblings to meet their dad at the big tree in the middle of the sidewalk when he would walk home from the Republican office.

The newspaper left its mark on the Johnson kids in more ways than one. In those days, the newspaper was laid out in lead, and after visiting the office with bare feet in the summertime, Brandt and her siblings often left with black feet.

The kids were able to assist in a variety of tasks. Brandt remembers counting chamber auction bucks as a kid, working on the metal plates for subscription renewals in junior high, stuffing inserts into the newspapers after school, developing film in her home’s basement in high school and waxing ads line by line in college.

“We had a lot of fun times working together,” said Brandt, recalling how she and her siblings would have competitions to see who could complete their tasks the fastest.

In high school, Brandt got her first taste of advertising sales with the booklet for the Chase County Fair, for which she also helped type the news copy and hand assemble the pages. “That, to this day, is what I love the most — those big, special projects,” she said.

Perhaps more important than the responsibility of those small jobs at The Imperial Republican were the life lessons that Brandt’s parents taught her, including the value of supporting local businesses and community events as well as how newspapers can help keep small towns alive.

Brandt said her dad was not only at events to take pictures for the newspaper but because he cared about being involved. As a result, the entire family was involved in the fair, parades, church activities and more.

After graduating from Chase County High School in 1973, Brandt started as a math major at Kearney State College (now University of Nebraska-Kearney); however, the ink in her veins prodded her to take some journalism classes, which she absolutely loved. Among her collegiate accomplishments was serving as an ad rep and writer for the school newspaper.

Brandt earned a Bachelor of Science degree in secondary math and journalism education in 1977.

She was fortunate to get a math teaching job in Aurora, Nebraska, and as fate would have it, there was suddenly an opening for a journalism teacher as well. Brandt combined two passions for two years with three geometry classes and two journalism classes, which included submitting a regular page to the community newspaper. (Ironically, Brandt’s brother, Kurt Johnson, now owns the Aurora newspaper with his wife.)

In the summers of 1977 and 1978, Brandt worked at The Holyoke Enterprise as a feature writer and ad salesperson, and at the end of her second year of teaching, she had a big decision to make.

“Again, the ink in my veins was calling,” she said.

Brandt accepted the news editor position at the Enterprise in June 1979, and a little over a year later, she became the managing editor in September 1980 when Wally Machamer retired. She was also named publisher early on in her career.

Brandt’s parents bought The Imperial Republican in 1968 and then added The Holyoke Enterprise in March 1977, right before the infamous blizzard of ’77. At that time, they formed Johnson Publications Inc. The newspaper in Grant, Nebraska, was added in July 1977, and the Wauneta, Nebraska, newspaper was bought in June 1982 and was recently merged with the Republican in November 2020.

Brandt had much to prove to the Holyoke community when she started in the ’70s. She was female (in a typically male industry), single, young and the daughter of the boss. “It took some years to prove I was capable and could be trusted,” she said.

Coverage of city and school meetings, sports reporting, feature writing and more were part of Brandt’s day-to-day duties at the Enterprise — all written on a typewriter.

Before Brandt came on the scene, reports from the school board were simply word-for-word copies of the meeting minutes. Things were about to change in a big way.

At her first school board meeting as a reporter, over half of the staff members were there because of an unexpected change in their health insurance. One administrative staff member made a comment to her that the things discussed in that meeting didn’t need to be in the newspaper. She politely told this individual that she was there for a reason and that it would most certainly be in the next edition of the newspaper.

“I’ve not always been popular, but I’ve kept accountability alive through our push to cover city, county, school and hospital,” said Brandt.

While some of her reporting duties have fluctuated throughout the years, the one constant was school board, which she has covered for all 42 years of her career.

“I take pride in fair and accurate reporting, but sometimes it’s the story that people don’t want told,” said Brandt. “It’s just part of the job.”

Through it all, Brandt has had community members who have shown her support and gave her a vote of confidence when it felt like she didn’t have any friends, especially in those early years. “One of my biggest fans was Velma Biddle,” she said, remembering one of Biddle’s handwritten notes of support she found while cleaning out her office recently.

Jack Falk of Haxtun was another supporter who stood out to Brandt. “He took me under his wing,” she said.

As a reporter, Brandt has grieved with families in tragedy and has celebrated with others in their successes. She has seen people launch new careers and reminisced with them when they retired.

“I get a new friend every time,” said Brandt, noting she’s enjoyed forming relationships both in work and outside of work.

One article that had an impact on her was a fascinating interview in the 1980s with Clarence Goddard, a local man who was blind and deaf. She can still remember how she had to write the interview questions on the palm of his hand. As imperfect as it was, Goddard’s typed thank-you note “just touched my heart,” said Brandt. She probably would not have met Goddard if it hadn’t been for her role at the newspaper.

Brenda married Bob Brandt in 1983, and he has been a solid supporter of the Enterprise, from putting food on the table to accommodating Brenda’s nontraditional work hours to celebrating many a March birthday at state basketball tournaments.

Brenda had her first real extended vacations during maternity leave when their two children, Duncan and Molly, were born in 1992 and 1995, respectively.

The two kids grew up learning the tricks of the trade, and Brenda can remember that they were only age 2 and 5 when they helped deliver Enterprise notepads to businesses at Christmastime. Duncan has also contributed to the newspaper as a sports photographer, and Molly was a writer for the Enterprise.

While continuing a news writing presence in Holyoke, Brandt also took on the advertising manager role in 1994.

She began learning the ins and outs of the business community during her walking and driving route of Holyoke while she sold ads each week. “I like people,” said Brandt. “I enjoyed making those connections.”

Brandt also appreciates the network of regional newspapers for its support and shared advertising program.

“Email has made a huge difference in communication,” said Brandt, remembering how they used to use snail mail to send local ads to other area newspapers. It’s also boosted communication with her advertisers.

Fax machines were also a big deal in the business world, “and now they’re obsolete!” said Brandt with a laugh.

Since her first teeny tiny Mac computer in 1988, “computers have really simplified things,” added Brandt.

Not only did they help make article writing and ad design more efficient, computers were eventually used to lay out entire newspaper pages. In 2008, the Enterprise began transporting its pages digitally to Imperial, where the newspaper was printed.

Brandt began using digital cameras in the late 1990s, and the Enterprise has also gradually added a website, online edition and social media sites, including Facebook and Instagram.

“Everything has changed pretty drastically since 1979,” said Brandt. She said that her dad’s family was in education, and he was always encouraging his newspaper staff to learn and embrace new technology.

When Brandt’s parents retired, she and sister Lori and her husband Russ Pankonin purchased Johnson Publications Inc. in April 1999 — yet another new role for Brandt.

Brandt grew up watching her parents’ involvement with newspaper organizations in Nebraska, and she continued the tradition in Colorado. She has taken an active role in the Colorado Press Association and served on the board from 2007-2014, including the role of president from 2012-2013. CPA named Brandt the Newspaper Person of the Year for 2016, among many other awards throughout her career.

She was also involved in the National Newspaper Association, including a stint as the Colorado membership chair, giving her newspaper connections all across the country.

Holyoke involvement throughout the last four decades has included an election to the home rule charter commission, president of the chamber of commerce, swimming lesson instructor, Methodist church committees, the hospital foundation’s Legacy Event committee, the preschool advisory board, mill levy election committees for the school and hospital, Eastern Star, PEO, an organization for business and professional women and Holyoke’s centennial committee.

Brandt has supported countless projects that came to fruition in Holyoke and Phillips County, including the Peerless Theatre renovation, a junior high wing added to the high school, a new hospital, a new event center at the fairgrounds, First National Bank’s building project, new church facilities, the Carriage House assisted living addition, a new hotel and much, much more. “Simply looking out the front door of the Enterprise has changed completely,” said Brandt.

“I’ve come to appreciate the generosity and community spirit of our community,” she added.

Brandt has learned about and shown her support for nonprofits, businesses and the farming community — and from the corn field to the football field, she is Holyoke’s biggest cheerleader.

She’s seen Dragon athletic programs win several state championships and has been on the mats of the state wrestling tournament for years. She’s also watched students perform countless plays and concerts in addition to participating in other extracurricular activities that make them well-rounded individuals.

In fact, reconnecting with alumni while taking class reunion pictures is a favorite for Brandt, who can often remember how to spell everyone’s names.

Another favorite for Brandt are the special projects that she’s coordinated at the Enterprise, from the Workforce Salute that highlighted local businesses to the Emerald Awards partnership with the school district to working with advertisers for the centennial/quasquicentennial editions to the Enterprise’s 100th anniversary section.

“I’ve enjoyed knowing more about every aspect of the community,” she said.

Throughout her time at the Enterprise, Brandt has led a team of three to four staff members, and a strong staff is what makes the newspaper thrive. “It makes me look good, but it’s their work that should be commended,” said Brandt. “As I look to leave, that’s the hardest thing to leave behind.”

On Nov. 19, Brandt and the Pankonins sold the newspapers in Holyoke, Imperial and Grant to brothers Jesse and Lloyd Mullen. Brandt is finishing up her month-long help with the transition.

In retirement, Brandt is looking forward to having more time for friends and family, traveling, ramping up her Bridge playing skills and supporting Bob, who recently retired from the postal service, as he attends culinary school in Denver in 2022.

Community members are invited to celebrate with Brandt at an open house Wednesday, Dec. 15, from 3-6 p.m. at the Peerless.