Panhandle Press names Estlack to Hall of Fame

Ruby Dell Estlack, former co-owner of The Donley County Leader, was inducted into the Panhandle Press Association Hall of Fame during the PPA’s 101st annual convention in Amarillo last Friday.

During a banquet at the American Quarter Horse Museum, Estlack was recognized for 38 years of service and commitment to the newspaper industry in the Texas Panhandle. Doug McDonough of the Plainview Daily Herald was also honored.

Estlack began working at the Leader shortly after she married George Wayne Estlack in 1936. She was assigned the job of collecting on accounts, which she did in person in order to improve goodwill between the paper and its customers. She later would take on the role of Society Editor as well before she and her husband became the paper’s sole owners in 1958.

Estlack was not able to attend the convention, but her daughter, Jackie Patterson, accepted the award on her behalf. In an acceptance letter, Estlack wrote:
“At the age of 19 when I married and became a member of the Estlack newspaper family, I never dreamed of seeing this day. I found myself working in all departments of The Donley County Leader – except Linotype. And now – to see my name among so many noted newspaper people, I am humbled.”

Estlack and her husband were very active members of the Texas and Panhandle Press Associations. As secretary and president of PPA, George Wayne published the association’s magazine, and Ruby Dell was responsible for reading all the area papers to provide content for that publication.

She was on hand for several innovations at the Leader, including the moves from a flat bed, hand-fed press to a roll fed press in the Leader shop and then finally to an offset press in Childress. She was always involved from start to finish with the paper. After the printing operation moved to Childress, she drove the proofs to Childress each Wednesday – often late at night – and then returned it for Thursday’s mail.

In 1974, George Wayne and Ruby Dell sold The Donley County Leader to The Clarendon Press, but the Estlacks remained in the office supply and printing business into the mid-1990s. At 93, Ruby Dell still maintains her independence in her home in Clarendon.

“I have many happy memories from my association with PPA,” Estlack wrote. “This award means a lot to me. The many years of newspaper publishing have been my way of life and most rewarding. I’ve been so blessed.”

Estlack’s late husband, who passed away in 1994, is also a member of the PPA Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 1998.