Jill Martinez

Owner, The Irving Journal

Jill Martinez was born in Detroit, Michigan. She was the second of five children—one older brother and three younger sisters. She attended Catholic schools through 10th grade. In elementary school, the basics of reading and writing—grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc.—were drilled into the students to the degree they became almost second nature. Those fundamental skills have provided a great foundation for her career path as well as for personal journaling and correspondence

Attending college on the nine year plan, she graduated from Wayne State University in 1978, majoring in Sociology and Computer Science. Despite the extended term in college, she was smart enough to realize that, as a divorced mother of a young daughter, taking the technical path was the wiser choice.

In 1978 she began working for a legal services pilot program funded by the United Auto Workers. She headed the data processing department—and was its sole employee. She designed the data system that would be used to analyze the efficacy of the program for continued funding.

Robert was hired by the U.S. Department of Justice which landed them in Dallas in 1981 where Jill transitioned from duties that were primarily programming to writing technical documentation. Her technical knowledge and good writing skills were a rare combination. Although, to this day, she still possesses very good technical and computer skills, her career direction changed at that point. For the next 10 years her focus was on application training and documentation.

They returned to Detroit in 1984—just in time to enjoy the Detroit Tigers’ World Championship. They hung around to enjoy the Detroit Piston’s back to back world championships a few years later. In 1992 Robert was recruited by a Dallas litigation firm so they trekked back to Big D.

In 1997, Robert joined a Fort Worth law firm so they moved from their Lake Highlands home to Valley Ranch to lessen his commute. She had been self employed for more than a dozen years and, after the move to Irving, she sat in her home office in Valley Ranch wondering what to do with her time…

She volunteered for the committee that produced a newsletter for the local HOA where she learned all the necessary skills and steps required to publish a small newspaper. She formed her company, SAM Scribes & Designs, L.L.C. d/b/a The Irving Journal in 2001, and published her first Irving newspaper in Irving in 2001, added a second in another area of the city a year later, and, in 2004, combined them to create The Irving Journal, to serve the entire city.

She is strongly committed to providing a high‐quality newspaper focused solely on Irving. Although main large newspapers are losing share, all indicators are that the community papers will still be around in years to come. Ms. Martinez explains, “To paraphrase, ‘All news is local.’ People still want to know what is going on locally—arts, neighborhoods, local elections—and that only exists in community papers.

“I am very proud of our product. We have a solid business plan but we are able to make adjustments where necessary. We are recognized for the quality of our product and our mission.”

The Irving Journal is a certified WBE through North Central Texas Regional Certification Agency. and was a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Small Business Blue Ribbon Award winner in 2007.

Jill is an active member of the Greater Irving‐Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce. She serves as Chair of the Ambassadors, and is a member of the Education Task Force. She is also a member of Irving Women’s Network, a member of the Board of the DFW Humane Society and a former member of the Irving YWCA Advisory Council.

She has been married to Robert for almost 30 years. They have two children, Angela, a fourth grade teacher in Michigan, and Michael, the assistant Executive Chef at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle. They have three wonderful grandchildren: Tyler, 11; Jenna, 9; and Charlotte, 5 ½.

Jolayne Thompson

Business Manager, The Irving Journal

Jolayne Leopold Thompson has almost thirty years experience as a business manager for medium and small businesses that span a range from radio to print publications to non-profit 501(c)3 organizations.

As a student at Wayne State University in Detroit where she graduated with a degree in social work in 1978, she worked with at-risk youth at a home for abused teens, and was active in a community mentoring program. While finishing her degree, she worked full-time for a local accountant, attended college full-time and interned at a runaway shelter for teens. During that time, she discovered that she had a natural talent for bookkeeping, accounting and finance.

In 1980, she took a turn from her planned career in social work and accepted a job as business manager for WWWW FM radio (W4) in Detroit. She supervised all aspects of the business side of the organization including HR, accounting, office management and scheduling. In 1986, her employer purchased an AM radio station which expanded the experiences she carries in her bag.

She left broadcasting after 16 years and established herself as a self-employed contractor, providing business management, accounting and HR services to various small businesses. Her list of long-term clients includes a magazine for those in the creative industries of marketing and advertising; a non-profit organization that assists low-income individuals with housing issues; a non-profit that provides early childhood development and literacy services to families; and a wine store.

In addition to her contract clients, she is also a partner in The Irving Journal, a community newspaper in Irving Texas. In her role as business manager, she is responsible for all business and financial tasks and reporting and assists as sales manager, cultivating and supervising the Journal’s sales personnel.

Jolayne is co-founder of The FACES Foundation, a non-profit organization created in memory of her very close friend and former W4 station manager who died in 2005 of lung disease. She serves on the Board and is active in fundraising, Web site and program development for the Foundation which provides support and education for families and professionals caring for patients with lung disease.

Ms. Thompson grew up in Berkley, Michigan. She was the third of five children and still lives in the area. She has been married to Brian Thompson, a well-established sales rep in the medical field, since 1980. They have one daughter, Emily, a recent graduate of the University of Michigan and a case worker for a U.S. Congressman, and Frazier, Jolayne’s beloved 96-pound Golden Retriever.

In addition to her professional experience, she is a passionate cook, loves to garden, and is an avid reader.