SNI Photo of the Month

Masskrugstemmen competitors concentrate on holding up their liter of beer as the task becomes more difficult with each passing second on Aug. 3, 2024. The last remaining man and woman will travel to New York City in September to compete at the national finals event.

— Erica Wilson | The Herald-Zeitung

SNI Photo of the Month

Fireworks explode above the "Running to the Fight" statue during Fourth of July festivities in downtown Nacogdoches.

Josh Edwards | The Daily Sentinel

SNI Photo of the Month

Devon B. examines the cab of a City of Nacogdoches brush pickup truck during Touch a Truck at the public library.

Josh Edwards | The Daily Sentinel

SNI Photo of the Month

Sophia Petrunin, 10, and Victoria Petrunin, 7, watch as a vendor makes cotton candy during Unicon at Oak Run Middle School on May 14, 2024.

BLAINE YOUNG | Herald-Zeitung

Photo of the Month

Diners at The Spot eat Tuesday, as the Galveston restaurant’s marquee hits back at former NBA great Charles Barkley for comments he made recently disparaging the island’s beaches.

STUART VILLANUEVA/The Daily News

April Photo of the Month

John Santos, left, Sewer Construction superintendent for the City of Lawton; and Glenn Hinton, with City of Lawton Wastewater Collections; inspect a sinkhole in the eastbound outside lane of West Gore on Thursday afternoon.

-Dee Ann Patterson/The Lawton Constitution

SNI Photo of the Month

Brazoswood's Nuria Rivas Gonzalez jumps off the starting block during practice Tuesday at the Brazoswood High School natatorium in Clute.

PHOTO: Jake Dowling/The Facts

THANK YOU for taking the time to learn more about Southern Newspapers, Inc. Your interest in our company is very gratifying. This web site presents a quick look at SNI. It tells a bit about the people who run Southern and something about each of its newspaper properties. Before you read the details, however, it may be useful to give you an overview of the company's basic approach and philosophy.

Our Philosophy

Lissa Walls, Chief Executive Officer

Lissa Walls, CEO, has been in the newspaper business since 1980. She began her career as a reporter for the Rosenberg (Texas) Herald Coaster owned by Hartman Newspapers Inc. and became COO of SNI in 1985. She was elected CEO in March 2014. She serves on the board of PAGE Cooperative and is president of the Carmage and Martha Ann Walls Foundation. She is a past board member of The Associated Press, Mutual Insurance Company, Southern Newspapers Publishers Association, Southern Newspapers Publishers Association Foundation and UTMB Development Board. She is a trustee emerita of Trinity University. She was born in Guntersville, Alabama, and moved to the Houston, Texas, area with her family in 1973. She is a 1980 graduate of Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.

Dolph Tillotson, Chairman of the Board

Dolph Tillotson, chairman of the board, has been in the newspaper business since 1969. He began his career in news, and he has served as general manager, publisher and president for two community newspaper companies – Southern and Boone Newspapers, Inc. He is a native of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and a 1972 graduate of the University of Alabama. Tillotson lives in Galveston, Texas, with his wife, Teri. He came to work for Southern in 1987 as publisher of The Galveston County Daily News. He was named president of SNI in March 2014 and chairman in January 2020.

Leonard Woolsey, President

With more than 30 years in the newspaper industry, Woolsey joined Southern Newspapers in 2014 after working 20 years with Paxton Media Group serving as publisher and eventually group publisher. Besides serving in smaller communities, Woolsey's experiences also include managing properties in metro markets, including St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Atlanta. Woolsey is also a longtime Rotarian, board member for America’s Newspapers, Texas Press Association as well as local organizations including the Boys & Girls Club, and The Salvation Army. Woolsey is a native of Kansas City, Missouri, and is married to his college sweetheart, Maryrine Woolsey. They have two adult children. In his spare time, he likes to read, write, travel, surf, and plink on a piano.

Ruby Barrow, Director of Accounting

Ruby Barrow, director of accounting/treasurer and secretary, has been in the newspaper business since 1992. Barrow began her career as a data entry clerk for Southern Newspapers, Inc. and has served as data entry supervisor, payroll manager, general ledger supervisor and accounting manager. She was elected secretary in March 2014. She serves on the boards of the Southern Newspapers Inc. Medical and 401(k) Plans. She was born in El Campo, Texas, and moved to the Houston area with her family in 1969. Barrow lives in Houston with her husband, Bart Barrow, and their three children.