L to R in photo: John and Carol P. Zippert, holding award, with Bobby Henry, NNPA President and Publisher of the Westside Gazette in Ft. Lauderdale Florida and Dr. Ben Chavis, NNPA CEO and President.

At the National Newspaper Publishers Association Mid-Winter Training Conference, last week in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, the association of 230 Black newspapers and media organizations, presented its “Lifetime Achievement Award” to John and Carol P. Zippert, Co-Publishers of the Greene County Democrat, weekly newspaper.

John and Carol Zippert were part of a community group that purchased in late 1984, the existing Greene County Democrat newspaper, started in the 1890’s. The Co-Publishers have been producing the newspaper weekly since January 1985, a 39 year period.

“We have tried to make the Democrat representative of the people of Greene County, 80% or more are African-American, in the western Alabama Black Belt,” said Carol P. Zippert. We look forward to many more years of providing this newspaper.