David Laschinger
The Pioneer Press is a reflection of this community. As the community has grown and changed, so has this publication. By revisiting the early days of the Pioneer Press, we get an insight into the beginnings of Robson Ranch in Texas and an understanding of the change and growth experienced here.
Soon after the first residents settled into their new homes it became apparent the community needed a news publication. As the number of rooftops increased east of Robson Boulevard, so did the need to communicate events and information to the new residents. Tracy Olson, an early settler here, recognized the need and addressed it.
In early 2002 Tracy began gathering information and writing news stories. When it came time to publish what she had, she needed a name for her newsletter. Tracy remembered when she lived in Minnesota she subscribed to the St. Paul Pioneer Press newspaper. “Since the first homeowners of Robson Ranch were known as the Pioneers, I thought the name Pioneer Press had a nice ring,” she said.
Tracy gave birth to the Robson Ranch Pioneer Press in February 2002. The first issue weighed in with two sheets of 8 ½ by 11 paper printed on both sides. Tracy was committed to producing the newsletter each month, all while working a full-time job with Fidelity Investments. But gathering information and writing articles was only part of the task. She also made copies on the HOA copier and distributed them to the residences. Starting in August 2002 other Robson Ranch ladies helped distribute the newsletter.
Tracy established two goals for the publication and put them on the front page of each issue. (1) To communicate information to homeowners regarding the Robson Ranch community such as meetings, activities, socials, club news, etc. We want to help keep everyone “in the know” about what’s going on at “The Ranch” so that residents will have the opportunity to find events of interest, get to know their neighbors, and most of all feel a part of this growing community. (2) To facilitate communication between the Robson Ranch staff and homeowners. We will endeavor to articulate questions and concerns of homeowners to the staff, which are deemed to be of greatest interest to the majority of residents. We have the full cooperation of the Robson Ranch staff.
Tracy maintained files of the early issues of the Pioneer Press. Each one welcomed the new residents by name. There were stories about club events, community parties, socials, sporting activities, reminders of rules, emergency sirens and various announcements. The stories provide a historical record of the community. The first issue informed readers that Perry McNeil was our city councilman, mentioning Robson Ranch was in district 4. We are now in district 3 and this May Robson resident Kathleen Wazny was elected to fill that seat on the council. Does anyone remember Bill Butterfield who was both the HOA Manager and the Golf Pro? What about the Sock Hop and Casino Parties held in the gym of the Sports Center before the clubhouse was finished?
The June 2002 issue had a short article about a Memorial Weekend Barbeque that was the first party to ever be held on the patio of the new Grill. “It was fabulous,” the story said. The grand opening of the Grill was reported in the September issue that year. “In honor of this event, the public is invited to take part in a two-day celebration Saturday, September 28, and Sunday, September 29,” it read. Despite these “oldies,” there are many stories could be body-doubles for the issue you are reading now if you simply change the dates.
Tracy wrote and published monthly issues of the Pioneer Press until July 2003 issue when she handed the pen and paper to Diana Krug. Diana eventually turned it over to Jo Ann Arden, and in April 2005 David Laschinger became publisher. He assembled a team of residents to help write stories and produce it. Even though the Pioneer Press was published monthly, some news articles were as fresh as a daily newspaper. “I might write a hot story one evening and it would be in the paper that was delivered to every residence the next day,” David said.
As the number of Robson Ranch residents grew, so did the number of pages in the Pioneer Press. The original Pioneer Press did not have advertising revenue, and the HOA was covering the ever-increasing cost of printing. At one point residents were asked to bring empty ink and toner cartridges to the HOA office so they could be sold to local retailers who were paying a small amount to reuse them. That money was used to offset HOA copying costs. By the summer of 2005 one issue of the Pioneer Press weighed in at 24 pages. Three hundred copies were needed for residents plus some to hand out at the Robson sales center. The expense to the HOA was becoming significant, and Laschinger’s team was encouraged to look for revenue generators or publishing alternatives.
At that time Robson Publishing provided a monthly newspaper to the community called The Wrangler. Unlike the all-volunteer Pioneer Press, the Wrangler was produced by a staff of professionals like you would find at a typical newspaper operation with editorial, production/printing, circulation and advertising departments. Headed by Linda Robson, the Arizona operation had already proven they could deliver news and information to Robson residents each month.
That summer, at Laschinger’s request, Ms. Robson came here with a few members of her team and met with the Pioneer Press volunteers to discuss the strategy for transitioning the Pioneer Press into its next chapter. Afraid the transition would result in the complete demise of the Pioneer Press, the local publishing team had one final request—to preserve the name Pioneer Press. Everyone nervously awaited Linda Robson’s decision, but it came quickly and favorably: “Yes, we will do that.” Although the editorial control of the Pioneer Press was turned over to Arizona, the volunteer group was encouraged to continue contributing articles, information and photographs.
The last locally-produced Pioneer Press was generated with Microsoft Publisher and bannered as “Volume 3, Number 7; August 2005.” It was 30 pages and contained the names of 40 new residents on the front page. The volunteer team was given credit on page two: “David Laschinger (Publisher), Dian Darr (Proof-reader, Editor), Randy Hatcher (Masthead, layout, and software conversion), Coy Martin, Pat Kelley, Marguerite Rose, Patty Cohen, Midge Hicks, (Publishing team), and Lynn Fine (Reporting).”
In August this year, a 10th anniversary of sorts will be solemnly observed by those who started and worked on the early Pioneer Press. From the first issue in February 2002 until the final issue in August 2005, 42 issues of the publication were hand distributed to residents. The volunteers proudly produced those papers, and in return our fellow residents gave their gratitude and thanks. The volunteers’ hard work provided a first-hand view into the growth of this community and a feeling they had made a worthwhile contribution to its residents.