SUNBURY – The Daily Item looked into its past to carry it into its future. Fred Scheller, who was a part-time employee at The Daily Item in 1976 will take over the publisher job on July 16 when Frank Leto departs for an opportunity in Missouri.
Scheller says he’s pleased to be coming back home, “It’s great to be back and working for my hometown newspaper, a newspaper I have been reading since I was a child. I do know a lot of people in the area and I look forward to getting back into the community.”
Scheller shared with us what his goals are for DI, “The mission of the newspaper, like all community newspapers is to serve the community, be the watch dog of the community. Local news is our most valuable asset and we need to continue down that path.”
Scheller has been serving as publisher of The Daily Star and the weekly Cooperstown Crier in New York since 2015. Scheller tells us he will retain those roles in addition to his new duties for The Daily Item and Danville News. He says he will move back to the area and work remotely for the two New York papers.
Leto on his departure, “Thank you to all the folks who made me feel welcome, who made sure I was connected to the right organizations, who educated me on the challenges of this whole Valley. It’s been a great two and a half years, thoroughly enjoyed it, and now I’m looking forward to the next chapter of my life.”
Leto served as publisher since 2015.
