Kathleen Spring, Colorado Press Women’s 2026 Communicator of Achievement, was honored at our 85th Anniversary celebration in April.
A born storyteller, Kathleen would invent stories for her two younger brothers when they were doing yard work. She knew she wanted to be a writer but couldn’t afford college, so she went into business administration. After a very successful career, she decided to pursue her dream of writing at age 40. She earned an associate’s degree, magna cum laude, from Oakland Community College and a bachelor’s in journalism, cum laude, from Wayne State University in Detroit, where she received numerous honors, including Journalism Student of the Year.
After graduating, Kathleen worked for Women2Women, marketing for Princess Diana’s travelling program and Fanclub for the Arts, raising funds for youth art projects. She wrote weekly feature stories for Detroit area newspapers; published a book, “Small Towns, Detroit’s Crown; and produced two widely praised documentaries.
Drawn to the mountains, Kathleen moved to Colorado in 1998, settling in the Lyons area. She founded Rocky Mountain Retreats and Workshops, “Finding Your Mission in Life,” as well as Spring Time Writers, creative writing retreats.
Kathleen began writing for the Lyons Recorder in 2000, and when the 100-year-old paper went out of print, she put it online and has served as owner/publisher/editor since September 2020, writing 14 to 17 articles bi-monthly. Her writing and photography have won awards from CPW and NFPW.
It is truly a labor of love and her mission, Kathleen says. She works 40 to 60 hours a week and “the pay is in pennies. I really have to consider it a volunteer job.”
“Doing meaningful work, things you love, are more important than money,” Kathleen says. “I love writing, interviewing people, history and historical research.” She enjoys promoting the town of Lyons and its people, and notes that no other publication is journaling the daily life of her beloved community.
Although only 2,000 people live in Lyons, her online paper boasts about 6,000 unique views. Kathleen writes a column featuring such topics as wellness, government and business as well as news briefs about local, state and national events. She covers arts and culture and gives voice to local poets. Her philosophy is to be neither partisan nor political, but instead to present the facts and let people arrive at their own conclusions.
Kathleen is concerned about the future of newspapers in our country, and she hopes that when she is ready to retire, someone will want to continue the legacy of the Lyons Recorder.
Kathleen has published an award-winning book, “Writers Birthing Creative Writing and Capturing Random Memories,” which offers creative writing tips with matching sample stories from writers who had taken Spring Time Writer classes.
She is also a documentary producer, and her credits include Lyons History Video Project, an oral history of local pioneers; Lyons Geology; and “These Rocks Don’t Gather Moss,” a documentary about Lyons’ history and geology.
Kathleen volunteers with the Lyons Redstone Museum and Lyons Golden Gang as well as working with students at Lyons Middle/High School and Lyons Elementary School.
Her membership affiliations have included Colorado Press Women, National Federation of Press Women, Colorado Authors League, Denver Press Club, Society of Professional Journalists (lifetime member), Loving Lyons Senior Group, Minnie’s Red Hat Club and Tea Time Poetry Club.
Congratulations to Kathleen Spring, a most deserving honoree!!
