Nation Publishing Returns to Roots in Church Service to Commemorate 50th Anniversary

Several Nation Publishing staff members returned to the company’s roots on Sunday when they attended a church service to celebrate the upcoming 50th Anniversary.

The service was held at St Mary’s Anglican Church, which is adjacent to the Nation’s first building on St Mary’s Row in The City.

In attendance were representatives from the board of directors, including Dr Grenville Phillips Sr; Chief Executive Officer of the Nation Group, Noel Wood; members of the executive management team including Editor-in-Chief, Carol Martindale, Group Advertising Head Paulette Jones and Group HR Manager Margaret Husbands; relatives of late co-founders Sir Fred Gollop and Harold Hoyte, and many others.

After the church leaders prayed for the organisation’s continued success, Reverend Joseph King encouraged the company to lean on God and embrace its employees who have contributed to its development.

“You’ve come to this point in the life of the organisation where you are celebrating 50 years of service to our nation by keeping citizens up to date with current affairs. You did not reach this half-century overnight or because you solely relied on the reputation of your predecessors. You reached this occasion because you depended on the strength of the Lord for your success.

“You reached this occasion because of the patience, perseverance and readiness in the making of wise choices over the years,” King said.

During an address, Wood thanked the church for their welcome.

He recalled some of the Nation’s journey from its November 23 1973 inception at St Mary’s Row to Fontabelle at the Harold Hoyte & Fred Gollop Media Complex.

“We have come a long way from the days on St Mary’s Row when we produced a weekly publication. Today, the Nation Publishing is a juggernaut in the media landscape, producing multiple publications catering to many demographics including specialist publications, which focus on health, lifestyle, homecare and other areas. We are always on the lookout to diversify further.”

While highlighting that the company has advanced with the times, Wood made it clear that the tenets of good journalism still had to be upheld.

“In this still unfolding digital world, we at the Nation have moved with the times, staying on the cutting edge of all digital advancements in journalism. However, we know that we must hold on to those values and principles on which the Nation was built.

“Truthfulness, integrity, honesty, reliability, good customer service and faithfulness to our partners. Those partners being our employees, vendors, advertisers, support personnel and most of all our readers, for it is on the backs that this organisation has been able to rise from its humble beginnings to where it is now, 50 years later,” Wood said. (TG)