Vice President and Regional Publisher Terry Ward is leaving Sound Publishing to start his own newspaper group and passing on the torch to Eran Kennedy as publisher of the Sequim Gazette, Peninsula Daily News and Forks Forum.

Kennedy, who has served as Sound Publishing’s Olympic and Kitsap advertising director for the past five years, has lived in Sequim for the past nine years and will remain based in Port Angeles and Sequim as publisher of the Olympic Peninsula News Group.

“I am truly excited about achieving this career milestone and transitioning to become the Olympic Peninsula’s regional publisher,” Kennedy said.

“This achievement is also a testament to the remarkable contributions our news group has made to the local media landscape,” she added.

“We are continuing to grow,” Kennedy said, emphasizing that “our viability is as important as the community we serve. Never has there been a time in our history where local news media has played a more essential role and with this, we pledge to continue to provide reliable, fair, balanced and factual news coverage while creating a community of interest.

“Terry Ward’s purchase of newspapers in Washington state also signals to us all that local news is vital to the core of each community and I have no doubt his new venture will be a success. We wish him well and I thank him wholeheartedly for his mentorship and partnership these past few years.

“I am grateful for our team and our community here on the Olympic Peninsula and I look forward to expanding on the exceptional work we do together.”

After eight years with Sound Publishing, Ward has acquired five community newspapers, establishing Ward Media.

“Terry’s new venture, Ward Media, will focus on delivering quality journalism and providing results-driven marketing and advertising services,” said Josh O’Connor, Sound Publishing president.

“With a deep rooted passion for the media industry, Terry is eager to dedicate himself fully to this exciting endeavor.”

It was a challenging decision, Ward said.

“I want to express my deepest gratitude to the Sound Publishing team for your unwavering support and collaboration during my tenure at Sound Publishing,” he said.

“Your professionalism, dedication and hard work have contributed immensely to the success we have achieved together. The memories and lessons I have gained from our time spent working together will undoubtedly stay with me throughout my career.”

Ward will continue to work closely with Sound Publishing through August, ensuring a smooth handover and a seamless continuation of ongoing projects.

Kennedy, 57, has been a media professional for 36 years. A graduate of the British Columbia Institute of Technology, she began her career in Vancouver, B.C., with Elty Publications/VanPress. There she rose to to the role of operations supervisor, securing home delivery for more than 500,000 weekly newspapers across Vancouver’s lower mainland, before expanding into sales leadership.

In 1999, she was appointed general manager of Black Press Media’s North Shore Real Estate Weekly and later she moved to Hawaii when the company purchased the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and MidWeek Publications.

While with the Star-Advertiser, Kennedy worked to mentor and motivate the new sales team while she managed their real estate and specialized publications. Prior to returning to Black Press Media and Sound Publishing in 2018, she was appointed marketing director for the Building Industry Association of Hawaii as well as the North Peninsula Building Association.

Kennedy has served on nonprofit boards including Dale Turner YMCA, Horizon School Board elsewhere and currently holds the position of president-elect of the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce board of directors.

She is the wife of a retired Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer and the mother of two active teenagers.

She enjoys supporting her children in their soccer and equestrian endeavours, volunteering in the community, and takes great delight in exploring Olympic Peninsula trails with her horse.

Ward took over as publisher of the Gazette, PDN and Forum in September 2015, succeeding John Brewer, who retired after almost 18 years at the PDN.

Everett-based Sound Publishing is one of several locally-operated divisions of Black Press Group Ltd. of Surrey, B.C., and Victoria, which have newspapers and websites in western Canada as well as from Hawaii to Ohio in the U.S.

Ward, who grew up as a migrant worker, began his newspaper career in Chickasha, Okla., as a reporter while in high school at the Daily Express. Throughout his career at various companies, Ward held positions as advertising director, general manager and group publisher.

Later, Ward ran sales and digital operations at GateHouse Media’s Community Newspaper Division before joining KPC Media Group in Kendallville, Ind., north of Fort Wayne, in 2012.

There, he was vice president of sales, digital and marketing before he was promoted to chief operating officer and later CEO, overseeing 22 publications in Northeast Indiana.

In April 2016, Ward was promoted to Sound Publishing West Regional Publisher, overseeing all of Sound Publishing’s Kitsap County publications in addition to the publications on the North Olympic Peninsula. In April 2018, he was promoted to vice president of Sound Publishing, Inc.

He has served as chairman of the Clallam County Economic Development Corp. board of directors and on the Olympic Peninsula YMCA board of directors.

Terry Ward