Old dog is learning new tricks

Newcastle High School 2000 graduate Kyle Jorrey got far away from Wyoming after graduation, but he knows his roots. Jorrey’s parents, Doug and Debbie Jorrey, still reside in Newcastle, so he likes to come back as often as he can, and this weekend’s reunion provides a great excuse to do so.

“The All School Reunion is the one time every five years where you can catch up with all of the old friends from your class, and the other classes as well,” said Jorrey, who credits a fulfilling and successful professional history to connections and experiences he first enjoyed as a Dogie. 

After graduating from NHS, Jorrey attended college at Pepperdine University and has been living on the West Coast ever since. He took his small-town charm to California and has shared his talents around the community that became his new home. The bulk of his career was spent at the Thousand Oaks Acorn, a newspaper based in Thousand Oaks, California. He held various roles at the paper, such as sports editor and reporter, but the majority of his time with the paper, though, he was editor-in-chief. 

Jorrey got his introduction to the news business during his time at NHS. He was the first journalism intern, to work under a program started by current NLJ Publisher Bob Bonnar and former publisher Tom Mullen Jorrey’s successful stint at the local paper got the ball rolling for many successful high school and college internships that would come later. 

The NLJ offered him an experience that would be nearly impossible to come by in a big city when Jorrey was brought on as a young reporter and allowed to cultivate and produce stories from start to finish. 

“We gave him an opportunity to really do the job,” said Bonnar, who continues to serve as editor-in-chief and publisher.  

Bonnar knew Jorrey through family connections while he was growing up, and said he was eager to give him the chance to play the field. 

“I knew he was smart, and I knew he could write,” Bonnar said. “He had all the skills and qualities necessary. It was just whether or not he could put them all together and do the job.” 

Living in a small-town community gave Jorrey an interesting introduction to the profession, and he was taught a lot of accountability. He mentioned how he would write a story and see that person the next time he went grocery shopping. 

“There is a big responsibility to get things right,” Jorrey said, “especially as a young reporter.”

When he moved to California, he took his learned love for writing with him. He majored in journalism and went on to secure a job at Thousand Oaks Acorn as a sports editor. The publication was a locally focused, weekly paper, mirroring the structure of the NLJ. 

“He turned his experience into a significant and successful career,” Bonnar said. 

Jorrey said that he has always wanted to have a job that worked for a greater good. Working for the paper gave him the opportunity to work for his community and “deliver truths.” 

But after 18 years of hard work, Jorrey said he “had a revelation that [he] should try something different,” after having an impressive career arc in his chosen profession. 

“What a dream it was to cover the news in the city that I lived in, and doing what I went to school for,” he said. “It was a real blessing for a long time, but now I am excited for this new challenge.”

This change in pace fell into his lap through someone he met while working at the paper. A friend owned Five07, a coffee shop in the area, and was opening a new location. Jorrey was brought on to be the operations director of the second location, even though he possessed no real business experience. 

Jorrey brought his journalistic talents to the business side of the coffee shop instead, and it also proved successful. 

“It was still about making connections,” he said. “I was telling the story of the coffee shop.” 

Jorrey claimed that it was an eye-opening experience, because journalism is very different from the traditional business world, and after a couple of years at Five07, Jorrey was offered an opportunity to take over a local nonprofit, Hospice of the Conejo. 

A group of volunteers work with the organization to provide emotional and social support for people with terminal illness. Part of the project is also providing some relief for the primary caregivers for these individuals. 

Hospice of the Conejo has been operating for 48 years, and Jorrey said he is happy to be a part of the organization. 

“Our volunteers are just amazing people,” he said. In some cases the people have diseases such as dementia or Alzheimer's and won’t even say a word during their visit, but the volunteers will just sit there and hold their hand. 

“We have these great volunteers that care for these people and have the heart for these people in these situations,” Jorrey said. 

Again, Jorrey was able to use the skills he developed at the paper to help him with this role. 

“In the nonprofit world a lot of times, it is about being able to tell a story,” he said. “You have to tell the story to raise money and awareness for what we do.” 

Jorrey’s main job is to fundraise so that the organization can keep providing these services at no cost. Jorrey said he has always enjoyed the selfless aspects of his jobs. At the paper he was serving the community and writing for an audience, at the coffee shop he was working for and with the people that he loved, and the hospice has given him that same satisfaction. 

“It is another opportunity to be in a field where it isn’t so much about the bottom line,” he uexplained. “It is just about the type of impact you could have.” 

While Jorrey has spent the past couple of years of his career moving around, he has never lost his love for journalism. 

“I still root for it,” he said. “I still root for journalists.”

He explained that he was thankful to get the opportunities offered to him living in rural Wyoming after being an Army brat and moving around until he was 14. 

“It grounded me,” he said. “Never be ashamed of being a small-town kid.” 

As a small-town kid himself, Bonnar was thrilled to give Jorrey the experience he craved, and said the track record of successful interns is one of the things he is most proud of in his time at the NLJ. 

“He paved the way,” Bonnar said. “Our internships have been absolutely amazing over the years.” 

According to Jorrey, these small-town relationships are what make the All School Reunion so special. He said that all of his closest friends are from Newcastle and he “gets giddy” about coming back. 

“I am excited to see everyone,” he said. “That is the magic of the All School Reunion.”