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The Journal is Turning 65!

8/1/2014

 

65 Years and Counting!
The 65-Year Journey of the Journal

 

In 1949 the then named Florida Water and Sewerage Works Operators Association conducted a study of its membership, spearheaded by Emory Dawkins, the president elect of the organization. One of the results of the study indicated that the members were in favor of a formal and monthly publication to address issues of importance to water professionals. By action of the board of directors, a newsletter was created and the title of edi tor was added to Dawkins' position.

Dawkins, having access to the necessary printing and production equipment, and with the aid of the University of Florida sewage treatment plant operating staff, began publishing the newsletter, to which he gave the name The Overflow.

Initially, the new publication was a small, black-and-white, mimeographed, and stapled newsletter, but it was providing important information to the industry. The editor post was a volunteer position, and in 1952, Dawkins was followed by George Lohmeyer, who was succeeded by Bob Simon in 1955. In that year, the newsletter began accepting advertisements.

In 1957, the operators association welcomed its sister organizations, the Florida Section American Water Works Association (FSAWWA) , and the wastewater group then known as the Florida Sewerage and Industrial Waste Association, to help produce the newsletter.

In its tenth year, in 1959, the newsletter progressed to a magazine, with its first full-color cover in 1961. Dawkins returned as editor in 1965. The following year a contract was signed with Cody Publications in Kissimmee to provide editorial preparation, advertising sales, printing, and distribution of the magazine; the editor would now be mainly responsible for gatherings articles and other editorial information.

The first editor under this new arrangement was Bill Simpson. In 1967, Dawkins, proposed a name change for the magazine to something that would be better descriptive, but no action was taken.

The editor position remained voluntary. In 1971 Ellis K. Phelps took over as editor until1979, when he was replaced by Everett Kinloch.

In 1985, the organizations ended the contract with Cody Publications and Emory Dawkins returned for his third tenure as editor. The name of the publication was changed to Florida Water Resources Journal.

John Crane took over as editor in 1987; he also sold the advertising and produced and published the magazine. In 1988, the Journal became a monthly periodical, and in the following year, it was printed in a full four-color format.

During Crane's tenure, Florida Water Resources Journal Inc. was created as a nonprofit corporation to oversee the magazine's production. A board, consisting of a president, vice president, treasurer, and secretary, includes representatives from FWEA, FSAWWA, and the operators group now known as the Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Association (FWPCOA).

In 2002, Buena Vista Publishing, a Florida company, became publisher of the magazine, handling advertising sales and all production. The company also hired James Allen as the new editor, which was now a paid position.

Allen retired in July 2011. Rick Harmon, who worked for AWWA in Denver for 25 years, totf< over and is the current editor.

With technology not imagined in 1949 at the magazine's inception, Harmon is able to remain in Denver and conduct all business for Buena Vista and the Journal online.

The magazine continues to serve the Florida water industry and today prints nearly 10,000 copies for distribution throughout the state. It can also be accessed from its website at www.fwrj .com.