Kathy Farren and her husband, Jeff, represent what good community journalism is all about. Kathy is the editor and Jeff is the publisher of The Record newspapers. During more than 20 years of newspaper ownership, they have done it all: covered news, sold ads and even delivered papers. In a newspaper world where local ownership is increasingly rare, Kathy and Jeff are true throwbacks: newspaper people who know more about their community than just about anyone else.

Kathy was born and raised in the Bridgeport neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. She started working on the Northern Star copy desk as a freshmen in spring 1968. After serving as assistant copy editor as a sophomore, she switched to the news desk and became a reporter. She completed an internship with the former DeKalb Journal during summer 1970 and continued working there for part of her senior year. When she returned to the Star in 1971, she was the public relations director. As a senior, she served as president of the student chapter of Theta Sigma Phi, now called Women in Communications.

After graduation, Kathy covered education issues for the Chicago Tribune in an internship with the National Association of Education Writing, and briefly worked as a writer for the College of DuPage Public Information Office.

She married fellow Star alum Jeff in fall 1971, and shortly thereafter joined him in working at The Record. She has remained as editor as the business grew to include The Plano Record, The Oswego Ledger-Sentinel and The Sandwich Record. A longtime board member of the Northern Illinois Newspaper Association, she served as its president at the same time Jeff was president of the Illinois Press Association.

Kathy also is an officer of the Yorkville Area Chamber of Commerce and was a founding member of the Yorkville Riverfront Festival Committee. She also serves on the Board of Christian Education at the Yorkville Congregational Church.

The Farrens have one daughter, Colleen, a senior at the University of Illinois.