Meet the ULN

The Uvalde Leader-News is raising $50,000 through our partnership with Report for America. Hali Mecklin joined our team on July 7, 2025, and is reporting on education and public safety for the Uvalde Leader-News. Donate here: app.ribbon.giving/links/JWbuGP

 

 

 

 

Phone: (830) 278-3335 • Fax: (830) 278-9191
110 N. East Street • Uvalde, TX 78801

 

The Uvalde Leader-News, published each Sunday, has served Southwest Texas communities for more than 145 years. Its predecessors include the Uvalde Umpire, The Weekly Hesperian, The West Texan, The Uvalde News, The Uvalde Herald, and The Uvalde Leader.

John Nance Garner, who later became vice president of the United States, once edited a Uvalde paper, likely a predecessor of the Leader-News. The Hornby family shaped the newspaper’s history for decades, starting with H.P. Hornby Sr., continuing through Harry Hornby Jr. (editor and publisher, 1946–1978), and Kathryn Hornby (editor and publisher, 1978–1989).

Craig Garnett took over as editor and publisher in 1989. He launched the paper’s online presence in 1998, offering sports, editorials, classifieds, and local information, and added a full e-edition in 2007. Garnett continues the Hornbys’ tradition of supporting community growth, promoting new enterprises, and backing local industry.

We will ever work for the building of the community and section and every new industry – every new enterprise that can be of any benefit whatsoever will receive our full support.

 

Owner/Publisher
Craig Garnett
cgarnett@ulnnow.com

General manager
Pete Luna
pluna@ulnnow.com

Managing editor
Meghann Garcia
mgarcia@ulnnow.com

Staff writer
Julye Keeble
jkeeble@ulnnow.com

Staff writer (Report for America)
Hali Mecklin
hmecklin@ulnnow.com

Staff writer

Kaitlyn G. Alejandro
kalejandro@ulnnow.com

Sports editor
James Volz
jvolz@ulnnow.com

Contributing writer
Charley Robinson

Circulation clerk
Joanna Garza
jgarza@ulnnow.com

Classified manager
Norma Ybarra
nybarra@ulnnow.com

Bookkeeper
Josh Haby
bookkeeper@ulnnow.com

Graphic designer
Neil Sturdevant
nsturdevant@ulnnow.com

Advertising executive
Kimberly Mata-Rubio
krubio@ulnnow.com

Newspapers in Education coordinator
Olga Charles
ocharles@ulnnow.com

 

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Owner/publisher Craig Garnett
cgarnett@ulnnow.com

Craig Garnett joined the Uvalde Leader-News as its general manager in November 1982. He took ownership of the then-biweekly, Thursday and Sunday, publication in 1989. Garnett has won dozens of regional and state press awards for column and editorial writing over the last four decades. His commentary has attracted national attention in the aftermath of the May 24, 2022, tragedy at Robb Elementary School, and he received the Tom and Pat Gish award for courage, integrity and tenacity in rural journalism in 2023.

His first impression of Uvalde came when he was 14 years old, passing through on a trip with family friends. Although enamored with the city’s downtown and greenery, the Oklahoma native didn’t know he’d one day find himself living here permanently. “It came full circle in a way,” he said. As general manager, he oversaw the entirety of the paper’s operations, involving paper production, reporting, advertising, and delivery.

One of the biggest changes he’s seen in his tenure is increased polarization among people, politically and otherwise. It’s admittedly dispiriting, he said, and has altered the way many journalists today approach coverage. People are a bit more worried about inciting retaliation or stepping on a nerve these days. “You didn’t really have to tiptoe so much then,” Garnett said. “You could kind of dive right in.” Although grateful for the tech developments tied to modern-day journalism, Garnett said he did enjoy the messiness of earlier newspapers, a time when staff lined up elbow-to-elbow to lay out pages.

Although current newspaper staff aren’t crammed as physically tight as they once were, Garnett said he thinks the office is now closer than it has ever been. Recent years and the state of democracy have underscored for Garnett just how important community journalism is. “What we do is essential to ensure transparency, that our government bodies release information they owe to the public,” he said.

 

General manager Pete Luna
pluna@ulnnow.com

Uvalde Leader-News general manager Pete Luna’s favorite parts of the job are photography, telling others what to do, and payday. He joined the newspaper staff in June 2006 and celebrated his 19th anniversary in 2025. Ever the newspaper champion, he says he learned about the job opening for a production assistant via the Uvalde Leader-News Classifieds pages. He formatted copy, designed pages, and took photos for nearly two years before transitioning to the circulation department, where he spent about 13 years before becoming general manager.

He got his start taking photos for the newspaper when the assignment came with the offer of free passes to the annual Palomino Fest musical festival. He loves music, whether he’s at a live performance or curating playlists for himself and friends at home or around a fire. His tastes are eclectic, spanning from norteño, rap and Texas country.

When he’s not selling ads, telling jokes, or covering crime or sports with his camera, he enjoys grilling, fishing, serving up drinks and sarcasm, and watching sports and documentaries. He earned an Associate of Arts from Southwest Texas College in Uvalde and pursued, but never finished, a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Sul Ross State University. He feels he learned far more about people running the streets of his hometown of Batesville and Uvalde, where he attended high school and now resides, than in a classroom. Because assistant managing editor Melissa Federspill wants to know everyone’s favorite movie, he would probably pick “Nightcrawler,” though, with the exception of the “Roadhouse” remake, he’ll usually recommend anything of Jake Gyllenhaal’s.

Luna’s world revolves around his adult daughter and 5-year-old grandson, who thinks Grandpa’s office has a better stocked toy section than Walmart or Target.

 

Managing editor Meghann Garcia
mgarcia@ulnnow.com

Meghann Garcia joined the Uvalde Leader-News in October 2008 after graduating from the University of Texas with a bachelor’s degree in government. She worked as a production assistant, staff writer, and assistant editor before taking on the managing editor role in summer 2013. She also guided the paper through its 2010 redesign and helped move the Leader-News into the social media era.

She loves seeing a hard-fought story come together, and her favorite part of the job remains designing newspaper pages. She dislikes writing cutlines and headlines — too few words for someone who prefers all of them — and struggles to follow the word limits she sets for others.

When she isn’t at her desk, she enjoys pulling weeds, planting flowers, and participating in long conversations and sing-alongs with her dogs and cats. Her backyard is a continual work-in-progress as she aims to transform it into a drought-tolerant landscape that rivals even the most lush botanical centers.

Her favorite books include anything by Michael Connelly, Karin Slaughter, James Grippando, David Baldacci, Tess Gerritsen, Alafair Burke, Mary Higgins Clark, Jodi Picoult, and Emily Giffin. Must-watch TV shows include Queen Latifah’s The Equalizer, Will Trent, Bosch, Lincoln Lawyer, and Only Murders in the Building. Her Apple Music “Replay” is 89 percent Taylor Swift, with John Mayer, Rodney Crowell, Hall & Oates, and Johnny Rodriguez sharing the other 11 percent.

 

Staff writer Julye Keeble
jkeeble@ulnnow.com

Julye Keeble, a summer baby whose parents named her after the month she was born, started working at the Leader-News as a receptionist on July 16, 2012.

This decision came after a friend from the newspaper repeatedly encouraged and demanded she apply. Responsibilities included processing payments, greeting visitors, answering calls and directing them to appropriate departments. She made several lateral career moves at the newspaper, venturing into coordinating the non-profit Newspapers in Education program, and briefly working in in-bound sales. Keeble spent years crafting anniversary, wedding, birthday and obituary announcements for the newspaper.

In September 2019, she accepted a staff writer position. Her portfolio now includes feature stories and coverage of city and county government affairs, and water-related news about rain and droughts, a subject she thinks is vital to the rural community. With a father who served in the U.S. Navy, Keeble reports on military events such as Veterans Day and Pearl Harbor Day commemorations.

She relishes curating the “Remember When” section, revisiting news from 10 and 50 years back, where she often sees parallels to contemporary life.

An avid bookworm, her favorite novel is “The Secret Garden.” She shared a love for John D. McDonald’s Travis McGee series with her father, and enjoyed many Mary Higgins Clark novels with her mother. When off-the-clock, Keeble is frequently found reading the latest works by Ilona Andrews, Dean Koontz, John Sanford or Nalini Singh.

Though working at a community newspaper was unplanned, Keeble discovered a passion for it.

She has an associate degree in Management Information Systems from Southwest Texas Junior College, where she also spent years tutoring accounting students. After years spent cranking out 10-page APA style business papers, she appreciates the ability to learn and explain complex information quickly—skills that have greatly benefited her career and life.

 

Staff writer Hali Mecklin
hmecklin@ulnnow.com

Before joining the Uvalde Leader-News as a Report for America corps member, Hali Mecklin covered arts, culture and local news for Los Angeles Magazine. She also served as managing editor at Annenberg Media, the University of Southern California’s digital news outlet.

She began her career in journalism at 16 as an intern with the Santa Barbara Independent in her Southern California hometown. During COVID-19 she took a break from reporting to work at the zoo as a giraffe experience specialist, where she helped guests feed and learn about endangered Masai giraffes. In between writing stories, she’s also worked at a Vietnamese restaurant, a live theatre company and a dental school.

Her favorite part of the job is the writing and editing process, and she loves getting to know her new community in Uvalde while she covers education.

Her favorite book is Pride and Prejudice, and so is her favorite movie — though she thinks the 1995 mini-series is better. Demon Copperhead and When Harry met Sally are close runners-up.

 

Staff writer Kaitlyn G. Alejandro
kalejandro@ulnnow.com

When Kaitlyn G. Alejandro isn’t road-tripping across Texas with her Australian Shepherd, Newt, meandering among mesquite trees with her black-as-a-crow Dutch Harness horse cross, Midnight, or reading the likes of Robert Frost to Leigh Bardugo, she’s writing features and editing the Daily Update for the Uvalde Leader-News.

Alejandro never foresaw a career in journalism before February 2025 when she began working as a staff writer and newsletter editor for the Leader-News. From reporting on the aquifer to telling community stories, the nosey-by-nature writer has enjoyed the career path and all of its challenges and triumphs.

She graduated from Texas A&M University – San Antonio in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with an emphasis in literature; and before that, graduated from Uvalde High School and Southwest Texas College in 2022.

In addition to journalism, Alejandro enjoys creative writing. Her flash fiction piece “May” was published in Texas A&M University-San Antonio’s first edition literary magazine, the Mosaic, and she also won first place in SWTX College’s 2025 creative art competition for poetry, essay, and fiction in the community division. She is also in the midst of writing (and has hopes of finishing) a fiction novel — which, if she stuck to one project at time, would be near completion.

Alejandro is the daughter of Jennifer and Dylan Alejandro, and the granddaughter of the late English fanatic, Uvalde native, and author, Ann Toombs Alejandro.

 

Sports editor James Volz
jvolz@ulnnow.com

James Volz is the oldest and longest tenured member of the Leader-News editorial staff, having joined the newspaper in June of 1978.

“When I began at the Leader-News, I was the youngest member of the newspaper, in terms of age. Now, I am the oldest member of the staff and I have worked here longer than any other staffer.”

He came to the Leader-News following reporting stints for the Zavala County Sentinel and the Uvalde County Citizen.

Volz’s educational background includes Crystal City High School, Southwest Texas Junior College, and the University of Texas at Austin.

He is married to Trisha, who is retired from the Uvalde public school district. They have one daughter, Julie, and two sons, Jason and Jeffrey, two grandsons, Joshua and Noah, and two granddaughters, Amelia and Eleanor.

James and Trisha love dogs and cats.

“We share our home with three dogs – Molly, Emma and Chloe – and five cats – Apostrophe, Lucy, Sophie, F-1, and F-2. They are our furry friends.”

He is a life-long practicing Catholic and attends Uvalde’s Sacred Heart Catholic Church. “Giving praise to God, and loving and serving others is important.”

Volz enjoys watching sporting events, movies, and other televised programming.

As for movies, he has a lot of favorites, but not one movie he favors overall.

He loves to read, especially books about history. He loves music, all types of music.

His favorite part of his job is writing news stories. “Gathering news and then putting the news together in an informative, organized, and entertaining manner for a new story is a challenge that I enjoy.”

He says the toughest part of this job is dealing with mistakes. “Getting names spelled correctly, making sure every detail in a story is correct. I hate mistaking mistakes on anything, but part of being a human being is accepting that fact that we sometimes make mistakes, no matter how much time and effort we put into a news story.”

 

Contributing writer Charley Robinson

Charley Robinson’s history at the Uvalde Leader-News dates back to 1970, when then-newspaper owner Harry Hornby hired him as sports editor. That stint lasted six years, but the career educator has frequently held dual employment. Working within the public school system, he has also held part-time, full-time, and contributing writer roles with the newspaper.

His 50-year career in public school education included 32 years with the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District as a teacher, coach, and administrator. The Texas Tech University graduate also had stints in Sabinal, La Pryor and Carlsbad, New Mexico. He played in the Baltimore Orioles Minor League Organization.

In 2017 he was inducted into the Texas High School Six-Man Football Hall of Fame and the Middle Rio Grande Development Council recognized him with the distinguished Regional Statesman Award. Robinson is the third recipient of that award in the council’s 50-year history.

“I have witnessed many come and go during the last 53 years,” he said. His favorite part of this job has been getting to know the subjects of his award-winning feature stories and his co-workers.

His hobbies aren’t so much hobbies as other employment opportunities. “Mr. Hornby asked me one morning, ‘How many damn payrolls are you on?'” Robinson said. “At that time it was seven! People interest me! You would be surprised who mingles among us.”

He enjoys Christmas movies and the western genre. He doesn’t have a favorite, but the ones he has seen the most are “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “The Devil and Daniel Webster.”

“But I don’t go to movies since John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart died,” he said.

He took his education seriously, racking up college credits. “I’m even certified to be a superintendent of school,” he said, “However, I would never consider such!”

Robinson said his greatest education came from his students and his seventh-grade teacher.

He and his beloved wife, Ann, celebrated 63 years of marriage before her death in 2022.

 

Circulation clerk Joanna Garza
jgarza@ulnnow.com

Newspaper circulation clerk Joanna Garza has been keeping readers up-to-date with their subscriptions since October of 2022. She heard about the job opening through the newspaper, and her favorite part about the job is working alongside her co-workers.

She has three children, the youngest of whom will graduate from Uvalde High School in May of 2024.

She has attended Southwest Texas Junior College and Sul Ross State University.

During her free time, she enjoys painting on canvas with her daughter.

Her favorite movie is “Titanic.”

 

Classified manager Norma Ybarra
nybarra@ulnnow.com

Uvalde Leader-News classifieds manager Norma Ybarra found her forever job by accident.

She initially went to First State Bank of Uvalde for a job. They didn’t have any openings and instead referred her to the newspaper.

That was in August 1981, and little did the 24-year-old know one job would lead her to redefine her sense of self.

“My closest family is the Leader-News,” she said.

Publisher Craig Garnett and sports editor James Volz both teasingly call her “mom,” a name that developed from years of Ybarra scolding some of her younger co-workers for staying out too late on work nights.

She started the job as a young mother, and said that the flexibility Garnett provided as a boss allowed her to work and take care of her family.

Ybarra said that although she sometimes wished she had done more with life, such as pursued higher education or became a nurse, having a workplace that took care of her allowed her to nurture what she called her greatest accomplishment: her children and grandchildren.

On the day-to-day, Ybarra said she enjoys being able to help people place listings in the Classifieds section. She said she feels good knowing she was able to lend a hand, especially when she can help a caller who only speaks Spanish.

Her favorite memory on the job: “It was when Nick Nolte walked in through the front office and we got his autograph,” she said. Nolte was passing through to shadow a Texas Ranger living in the area for an upcoming film at the time, she said.

When she’s not at work, she likes crocheting, watching movies, and traveling. Her favorite movie is “Footloose.”

She graduated from Carrizo Springs High School and attended Southwest Texas Junior College.

Ybarra is married to Mario Ybarra and is mother to Jessica, Joana, Mario, and Michael.

 

Bookkeeper Josh Haby
bookkeeper@ulnnow.com

Josh Haby, who goes by Joshy, began working at the Uvalde Leader-News in November 2022. As the company’s bookkeeper, Joshy enjoys immense popularity and flattery when he delivers paychecks – and on most other days, too, being that he maintains a friendly disposition and is always willing to lend a hand. He oversees financial data and compliance by maintaining accurate books on accounts payable and receivable, payroll, and daily financial entries and reconciliations. He also performs daily accounting tasks.

Joshy enjoys finding ways to be more efficient and expand on his knowledge.

“There’s so much more to my position than just number crunching. I’ve always been skillful at taking a procedure or process, studying and analyzing it, lengthy though it may be, and simplifying it to make the job easier and more streamlined without cutting corners,” he said.

“This in turn helps to provide EOM reporting and financials to management in a more timely manner and helps to keep more detailed records.”

He graduated from Leakey High School in 2010.

Joshy loves audio books and podcasts, and his favorite things to listen to are Dark History with Bailey Sarian and Petty POV with Charlotte Dobre. In his spare time, he enjoys geocaching, putting together Lego models, going to theme parks, and traveling. Mexico is one of his favorite destinations, due to its rich culture and amazing food.

When asked about his favorite movie, Joshy said he highly recommends a mini series called “The 10th Kingdom.”

 

Graphic designer Neil Sturdevant
nsturdevant@ulnnow.com

Colorado native Neil Sturdevant joined the Uvalde Leader-News in October of 2021 as its graphic designer.

He and his wife moved to Uvalde to be closer to her family.

He is taking classes at Southwest Texas Junior College and plans to pursue a law degree through St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.

Before moving to Texas, he was an MMA fighter for 11 years and studied Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai kickboxing, and Sambo.

His favorite movie is “Lonesome Dove” and while he couldn’t pick a favorite book, his favorite writers are Chuck Palahniuk, Kurt Vonnegut, Charles R. Cross, Hunter S. Thompson, and Shel Silverstein.

 

Advertising executive Kimberly Mata-Rubio
krubio@ulnnow.com

Years before she became an outspoken advocate for gun control, judges who selected Kimberly Mata-Rubio’s reporting for nearly a dozen state and regional journalism awards lauded her fearlessness at tackling controversial issues. “She reports them well and represents good, solid journalism in South Texas.”

Today, however, Kimberly is an advertising executive for the newspaper, having rejoined the staff in June of 2023, just over a year after her youngest daughter was killed in a preventable act of gun violence at Robb Elementary School.

A 2007 graduate of Uvalde High School, Kimberly began working for the Uvalde Leader-News in 2010 as a receptionist, moving to staff writer in 2012, and assistant editor in 2017 before leaving to pursue higher education in 2019.

She earned an Associate of Arts in general studies from Southwest Texas Junior College in August of 2020 and a Bachelor of Arts in public history from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio in December of 2022.

She and her husband, Felix, share six children: Julian Rubio, Alexandria Rubio, Jahleela Rubio, David Falcon III, Kalisa Barboza, and Isaiah Rodriguez.