Looking back on his childhood, Franklin D. Schurz Jr. felt he was indoctrinated into the field of communications, having been influenced by his family members who were newspaper editors and publishers. Working summers from the age of 15 in various newspaper departments, he has since served in several publishing roles with such publications as the South Bend Tribune and the Morning Herald & Daily Mail, located in South Bend, Indiana, and Hagerstown, Maryland, respectively. Ascending the ranks from executive assistant to director, editor and publisher, he subsequently decided to join Schurz Communications, Inc., in 1983.
Schurz Communications was founded in 1872 when Alfred B. Miller and Elmer Crockett founded the South Bend Tribute. Spanning over five generations, the communications business seeks to connect clients with informational services through the acquisition of newspapers, radio and television stations, digital companies and cloud services providers. First serving Schurz Communications as treasurer from 1983 to 1989, Mr. Schurz also served as president from 1982 to 2006 and chairman from 2006 to 2007. He now holds the title of chairman emeritus.
Equally involved in his local community, Mr. Schurz has been an elder of the Bowman Presbyterian Church in Montana since 2018. He previously served on the board of directors of the American Museum of Fly Fishing, trustee of the Culver Educational Foundation, on the president’s council of Indiana University Bloomington and on the board of directors of the Indiana Endowment for Educational Excellence. In the past, he was president of the South Bend/Mishawaka Area Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the Indiana Arts Commission, campaign chair of the United Way of St. Joseph County, Indiana, and Washington County, Maryland, and board of trustees member of the Indiana chapter of the Nature Conservancy.
Likewise, Mr. Schurz has been a foundation honorary trustee of American Women in Radio and Television since 1996. He has also maintained affiliation with numerous communications-related organizations and societies, including C-SPAN, the American Press Institute, the Associated Press, the Chesapeake Associated Press Association, the Newspaper Advertising Bureau, the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the American Newspaper Publishers Association, among myriad others.
Mr. Schurz attributes his success to his supportive family, friends and colleagues. Looking toward the future, he intends to remain healthy and active, as well as help others such as the younger members of his family. In his spare time, he enjoys fly-fishing, bird hunting and golfing. He also loves participating in philanthropic endeavors.
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