We felt it was important to dedicate a portion of the SND Honors program to reflect and remember those we’ve lost since we were last able to come together.
Sherri Taylor (1950 — 2020)
During her 30 years at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School, Sherri Taylor built a reputation as a funny, tough and kind teacher who was passionate about design, type color and photography — and dedicated to her students, always holding them to a high standard and pushing them to do better. She impacted thousands of students over the course of her career. One graduate recalled: “Sherri taught me how to be a meticulous designer who works with intention, but she also taught me how to laugh at myself, how to tell a captivating story and how to properly honor those whose stories we tell. What an incredible legacy.”
Newhouse: Remembering Sherri Taylor
Daily Orange: Newhouse professor dedicated career to inspiring students
C. Marshall Matlock (1943 – 2020)
C. Marshall Matlock was a veteran journalism educator and indefatigable SND volunteer. As a professor at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School for the majority of his career, he taught and guided generations of journalists. He was also a decades-long Society volunteer and standard-bearer. He was essentially the “godfather” of the modern format of the annual Best of News Design Print Competition, and ushered it through decades of growth and expansion when it was hosted at SU. In fact, to many generations of judges, and armies of professional and student facilitators, he was the face of SND, and the doorway to their engagement with the very best news design work being done internationally.
Scott Goldman, a former SND president and fellow student of Matlock’s from the 80s, who is also here with us tonight, perhaps said it best: “Marshall brought the SND print competition to SU, and then gave everything he had toward making it a rousing success. He literally made our school an international home for excellence in news design for decades — and at every turn, he made sure an entire generation of newspaper design students got to step up and learn from some of the best visual journalists in the world.”
Flemming Hvidtfelt (1954 — 2020)
Flemming Hvidtfeldt was a renowned journalist, a global traveler and a compassionate leader.
He was a career journalist, former editor-in-chief of Nordjyske and Århus Stiftstidende; he was an SND international board member, president of SND Scandinavia since 2013, and chairman of the Best of Scandinavian News Design competition since 2002.
To many, Flemming was the face of SNDS for many years, shaping the presence of our Society across Europe.
Remembering Flemming Hvidtfeldt
Tiffany Shackelford (1974 — 2020)
Tiffany Shackelford was simply a force of nature. Her sharp intellect was often revealed with a sly smile, wrapped in a bawdy sense of humor. She was a connector — one possessing a generous spirit — who took pleasure in making introductions between those in her broad and varied network.
Many of Tiffany’s numerous accomplishments shined most when she combined her sharp strategic abilities with her enthusiastic delivery, and her powerful pull at bringing people together.
As Yuri Victor recalled: “Anyone who has been in the same room as Tiffany was instantly intoxicated with her boisterous love, laughter and occasional F-bombs. Tiffany was a tornado of goodness. She spun the world and moved us all.”
Remembering Tiffany Shcakelford
Washington Post: Tiffany Shackelford known as unique, fun ‘force’ to friends, family
Bryan Monroe (1965 — 2021)
Bryan Monroe was a fierce advocate, talented journalist, manager, teacher and connector.
“He liked to connect people who were in different worlds – whether it was the media world, Hollywood, journalism, or academia,” his friend and colleague Suzanne Malveaux told CNN.
Bryan had a long, storied journalism career that included leadership stints at Ebony and Jet magazine as well as at Knight Ridder newspapers. He was a remarkable educator and coach. But he was always a journalist — in a career filled with notable highlights, Bryan landed the last major interview with pop legend Michael Jackson two years before Jackson’s death in 2009. Earlier, he conducted the first post-election interview with former President Barack Obama.
Sam Feist, CNN’s Washington bureau chief and senior vice president said: “It was an extraordinary interview … I’ve never met someone who was as comfortable in any environment – whether with a group of politicians, students, Black journalists, or white journalists. Bryan navigated those worlds better than anybody and the bridges he built between people and between groups will be around a long long time.”
CNN: Bryan Monroe, longtime journalist and former CNNPolitics.com editor, dies at 55
Bryan Monroe was a bridge between old newspapers and the new digital journalism
Darren Long (1967 — 2021)
Born in Britain, Darren Long was a keen rugby player and music lover, but yearned to travel.
He would eventually go on to spearhead a transition in visual storytelling from print to digital platforms. His team at the South China Morning Post has collected nearly 500 awards across four continents under his stewardship.
Darren compared his role with that of an orchestra conductor bringing talent together to produce a pleasing symphony. The awards flooded in, securing an international reputation for the team.
Richard Curtis (1946 — 2022)
Richard Curtis was a founding editor of USA TODAY. He was the chief architect of an innovative design style when the newspaper was created in 1982 — 40 years ago last month, in fact. Richard, who served as the Society’s third president, from 1982-83, was the managing editor for graphics and photography at USA TODAY back then. His work has since been studied by many young journalism design students. He has influenced many of the best practitioners of our craft.
Henry Freeman, former Sports managing editor at the paper, said: “Richard made all of us better journalists and I don’t know how any of us, especially me, would have survived the early days of USA TODAY without him. We were making it up as we went, thinking outside the box, and innovating and no one was better at it than he was.”
Nanette Bisher, another past president of the Society, remembers working with Richard at The Miami News: “He was a kind man and an immense talent. I thank Richard for making our world brighter and more colorful.”
USA TODAY’S Richard Curtis, a visionary of visual storytelling, dies at 75
Phill Ritzenberg (1931 – 2022)
Among many things, Phil Ritzenberg was a consummate newspaper man, from his early days in print shops, to his tenure as a renowned expert. In fact, did you know he consulted as an expert on Steven Spielberg’s 2017 film “The Post”? True story.
Phil was a co-founder of the Society, and is still the only person to ever hold the office of SND’s president twice — from 1980 to 1982. He sometimes joked with me that no one in their right mind would ever want to do it a second time.
Phil rose from a copy boy for the Cleveland Press in the early 1950s to later become Assistant Managing Editor for Design at the New York Daily News, one of the first such management roles at a major U.S. newspaper. He went on to become a consultant and never really retired, he always seemed to have some project or another.
In 2008, Phil received SND’s Lifetime Achievement Award for 50-plus years of service to the design industry. He was honored as an innovator and a tireless volunteer. Many here may also recall a memorable essay he delivered at SND NYC in 2018.
David Miller (1955 — 2022)
David Miller was a consummate perfectionist when it came to creating anything, whether it was an airbrushed illustration for work, a piece of furniture he was hand-building, growing the perfect lawn of green luscious grass, or collecting music and making the perfect CD playlist for Christmas. It was always meticulously done.
“Perfect is good enough,” David himself once said in an interview.
He also loved baseball and stats – and thrilled on applying those passions when his son, Matt, started little league.
David delivered three decades of award-winning work at the The Seattle Times and was known as a caring and involved colleague.
Seattle Times: David Miller, a beloved Seattle Times art director, dies at 67