Ray Cooney
Ray Cooney was elected president of The Graphic Printing Company in December 2023. He became publisher of The Commercial Review on July 1, 2020, while retaining the title of editor he has held since Dec. 1, 2014. He served managing editor from July 2013 through November 2014, assistant managing editor from November 2005 through July 2013 and sports editor from March 2001 through July 2013.
He earned the most awards of any journalist in Division III in the Hoosier State Press Association Better Newspaper Contest for four consecutive years from 2013 through 2016. His first-place honors this year were for in-depth feature, sports feature, general news photo and video.
In his career he has also won HSPA awards for sports commentary, editorial writing, use of graphics, community service, news writing under deadline pressure, sports action photo, sports feature photo, headline writing, editorial page, profile feature and multiple picture group. He had picked up nine Indiana Associated Press Media Editors awards earlier in the year, including first place for business writing, non-deadline sports story and headline writing.
Cooney was honored with the Indiana High School Athletic Association Distinguished Media Service Award in 2012, and also received the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association Outstanding Baseball Media Award in 2009.
A native of Avon, Ohio, Cooney graduated from St. Edward High School (Lakewood, Ohio) in 1996 and Cleveland State University in 2000. He was the inaugural editor of The Cleveland Stater at CSU, and also worked for The Morning Journal (Lorain, Ohio) and The Chronicle-Telegram (Elyria, Ohio) before moving to Jay County.
Cooney lives in Portland with his dog, Scooter.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
ACLU files lawsuit against Prescott
A Portland resident is suing State Rep. J.D. Prescott over access to his Facebook page.
NEWS
Unfavorable vote
The local stone quarry’s rezoning request now moves to Portland City Council. It does so with an unfavorable recommendation from the city’s plan commission.
NEWS
Bridge work starts Monday
Traffic patterns through Portland will be different beginning next week.
NEWS
City is out of running to buy building
Jay School Board is expected to make a decision Monday on the sale of its administration building.
NEWS
Jay County is rated yellow again
After five weeks in the blue, Jay County is yellow for the second week in a row.
NEWS
Getting Current
After nearly 20 years of stability, the last few have been full of change for the Jay School Corporation business office.
OPINION
Feeling the heat has no substitute
There's no better way to learn about a profession than to actually do it.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Cajun on wheels
Six months ago, René and Rena LeBlanc were weighing moves to Illinois and Florida. Now they’re bringing Cajun cuisine to northeast Indiana.
NEWS
No local restrictions planned
Most state restrictions related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic will be lifted April 6, but local government units are still allowed to implement their own rules. Local officials currently have no plans to institute such restrictions.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Plan proposed
Portland is considering a new idea for mitigating downtown flooding.
NEWS
County shifts back to yellow
After five straight weeks at “blue,” Jay County ticked back up a notch in the state’s coronavirus metrics.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Opening up
Beginning next week, coronavirus vaccinations will be available to all Hoosiers 16 and older. Less than a week later, state COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Federal funding could cover project
The first phase of the Portland airport runway extension will be constructed at no cost to the city. Now the hope is that the second phase will be fully federally funded as well.
LOCAL CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE
Jay is rated ‘blue’ again
The positivity rate went down while overall cases went up. Still, the county was in the blue again.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
More funding may come
The first phase of the Portland airport runway extension will be constructed at no cost to the city. Now the hope is that the second phase will be fully federally funded as well.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Board seeks final building offers
Jay School Board had a busy evening Monday as it approved the sale of one parcel, held off on selling another, hired a new business manager, heard an update about food service and listened to comments and information about a proposed business expansion.
NEWS
Council to get building appraisal
Portland Police Department would like to make a new home in the current Jay School Corporation central office building. Whether or not that is a possibility will come down to appraisals.
NEWS
Murder trial to start Monday
The first of five murder trials scheduled for this year in Jay County will begin next week.
POLICE/COURTS
Boyd trial is moved to October
The trial of a Portland man charged with murder has been moved again.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Work underway
Jay County’s hospital is in the midst of a year-long makeover. Work is already underway at IU Health Jay on projects that were announced in December and will continue throughout 2021.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Variance OK'd
A pond expansion will provide the dirt for a runway extension.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Quarry pitch faces opposition
US Aggregates continued to make its case for expanding its operation to the north.
SPORTS
Kenney comes up short
LAS VEGAS — Casey Kenney went punch-for-punch against one of the greatest competitors in this history of his division. He just didn’t do quite enough to get the win.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Blasdel re-elected GOP chair
Local Republicans kept their leader in place.
SPORTS
Kenney to meet former champ
Casey Kenney wants to stand atop the bantamweight division. He sees no better way than to go through someone who has been there before.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Police proposal
Portland officers make pitch for a new facility citing various shortcomings of current space
SCHOOLS
United front
Jay School Board and teachers association stand against vouchers and education savings accounts
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Council hears about quarry proposal
US Aggregates made its first pitch to Portland City Council on Monday.
SPORTS
TOs bury JC in finale
Sitting on the steps next to the locker room Tuesday night at Winchester Fieldhouse, Jerry Bomholt listed the things his team would need to do to succeed in its next game.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Hospital shifts to new era
This weekend marks the end of another era for Jay County’s hospital.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Boyd murder trial moved
The trial for a Portland man charged with murder has been pushed back again.
NEWS
Jay stays blue
Make it blue times two. Jay County was rated “blue” (minimal risk for the spread of coronavirus) for the second week in a row in the metrics Indiana State Department of Health updated Wednesday.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
District honors efforts
Farmers are typically honored for their various efforts at the Indiana State Fair each year. With the event canceled because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, that did not happen in 2020.
NEWS
Back on stage
It’s been more than 11 months since anyone has performed live from the stage at Arts Place. That will change Thursday, though the seats in Hall-Moser Theatre will remain empty.
SPORTS
Two-minute drill
WINCHESTER — The Patriots played essentially even with their hosts for 22 minutes. It only took two minutes for the game to get away from them.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Sweep success
The last time the Patriots had a two-victory weekend was late in the 2018-19 season.
JAY COUNTY
Patriot boys swimmers finish sixth at sectional
The Patriots improved on their preliminary times in just over half of their events. In a meet that saw Delta break three sectional records, that wasn’t nearly enough to compete for a team title or state berths. The host Jay County High School boys swim team’s top finish in any event was fourth as it placed sixth in the 11-team field with 179 points in the sectional meet that concluded Saturday. “For us to come in and swim the way we swam, I’m extremely pleased with how our kids performed to their capabilities,” said JCHS coach Matt Slavik. “They all got in and gave it everything they had.” Delta, led by Brady Samuels’ record swims in the 50-yard freestyle and 100 butterfly and Sam Bennett’s record diving effort, won seven events to take its seventh straight sectional title with 426 points. Norwell was the runner-up with 320. The lone Patriot who will continue his season is senior Justice Murphy, who advanced to tonight’s diving regional at Fishers with a fourth-place finish in the event that was contested Friday. The winner of each swimming event advances to the state finals while the top four divers move on to the regional. Jay County’s Kyle Sanders wasn’t able to repeat his effort from the preliminary round two nights earlier, but still posted the best Saturday finish for the team as he matched Murphy from the night before. He was about a half-second off of his preliminary pace in the 200 freestyle, placing fourth in 1 minute, 55.45 seconds. He was also seventh in the 100 freestyle. The Patriots were able to cut time in all three relays, with Nick Lyons, Griffin Mann, Aaron Funkhouser and Sanders delivering the highest of those finishes with a fifth-place effort in the 200 medley relay in 1:50.05. Sam Crump, Funkhouser, Mann and Sanders were fifth in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:42.93, and Konner Sommers, Ralph Link, Wyatt Kunkler and Lyons came in eighth in the 200 freestyle relay by slicing more than two seconds for a time of 1:43.18. “Our depth is in our relays,” said Slavik. “Our relays are young … When I look at those relay splits and look at where they started the year at to where they ended the year at, it’s been truly positive.” Mann followed Sanders in the individual events by taking fifth place in the 100 breaststroke and seventh in the 50 freestyle. The only individual event that saw multiple Jay County swimmers cut time was the 500 freestyle, in which Kunkler dropped 2.43 seconds for 11th place in 5:48.83 and Josh Monroe sliced 0.44 seconds for 13th place in 5:52.95. “Wyatt Kunkler and Josh Monroe both swam lights out,” said Slavik. “They swam to the maximum of their abilities. That’s what we like to see …” Also scoring for the Patriots in consolation races Saturday were Monroe (ninth – 100 breaststroke), Ralph Link (12th – 100 breaststroke), Kunkler (13th – 200 freestyle), Lyons (13th – 100 backstroke), Sommers (13th – 100 butterfly) and Funkhouser (16th – 50 freestyle).The Patriots improved on their preliminary times in just over half of their events. In a meet that saw Delta break three sectional records, that wasn’t nearly enough to compete for a team title or state berths.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Quarry queries
The local stone quarry is hoping to expand its operation north of its current site. Some local residents would prefer that it not be allowed to do so.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
And then there were ...
FRHS production shifts away from comedy with classic Agatha Christie murder mystery
LOCAL CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE
Jay moves to blue
For the first time in months, the state department of health considers Jay County to be at minimal risk for the spread of coronavirus.
HOMEPAGE ROTATING ARTICLES
Nearing normal
Jay County was close to being back to normal, though a frigid normal, this morning. But more snow may be on the way.
NEWS
STAY HOME
Stay home. That was the advice from local emergency officials this morning after more than a foot of snow was dumped on Jay County beginning Monday afternoon and continuing through the night.
Top Stories
9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit
Chartwells marketing
September 17, 2024 7:36 a.m.
Events
250 X 250 AD