Forum Communications Company has sold its weekly Stevens County Times in the western Minnesota town of Morris to Reed and Shelly Anfinson, publishers of four nearby community papers.
The purchase was expected to close by September 1.
“We look forward to getting to know the people of the community better in the months ahead,” Reed Anfinson told the Times. “We are passionate about community newspapers.”
The couple are owners of the Swift County Monitor-News in Benson and the Grant County Herald, Herman Review and Hoffman Tribune, all of which are published from Elbow Lake, Minnesota.
Reed Anfinson said the couple believe newspapers are vital to providing a sense of belonging, connection and purpose in healthy communities.
“We believe these are the characteristics at the heart of what a good community newspaper must provide its readers,” Reed Anfinson said.
“We have appreciated the opportunity to serve the greater Stevens County community through The Stevens County Times and are pleased to transfer ownership of the paper to Reed and Shelly Anfinson,” Aaron Becher, Forum’s vice president of newspaper operations said. “They will continue to build on the legacy of the newspaper and its service to the community.”
In addition to being publisher of community papers, Reed Anfinson is a partner in Quinco Press, a facility in Lowry, Minnesota, that prints 35 newspapers as well as other publications. He is currently the president of the National Newspaper Association Foundation.
Shelly Anfinson, a dental hygienist by profession, has been actively involved in the newspaper business not only as an owner, but a sales and graphic designer for the newspapers as well as an occasional columnist.
