Whether she was helping a member of her family, preparing to craft a column, mentoring a young reporter, serving as a board member for a local nonprofit, laughing with or comforting a friend, participating in an event or opening pathways for women in the news industry, Marian Houser played a vital role at the Herald-Star and in our community for decades.

“Her circle of influence contributed to a positive culture of unity and achievement in Jefferson County,” Laura Meeks, the former president of Eastern Gateway Community College, remembered a few days after Houser’s Jan. 7 death at the age of 90.

Houser’s career in journalism covered more than 40 years, all but just a few of which were spent at the Herald-Star. She held numerous positions at the newspaper, including copy editor, reporter, city editor and community editor.

“She was our friend and role model — Marian was comfortable in board rooms and at teas, and she even agreed to model clothes at women’s club fundraisers,” Meeks continued. “Marian was committed to us — someone described her as having grace and wisdom. I agree. We looked up to her and asked for her advice. She cried with us and laughed, too, and her presence was appreciated.”

Houser’s career at the newspaper began in 1968, when she was 33. Her first job included writing cutlines and obituaries. The daughter of the late Carlisle and Mary Elizabeth Sterling Davidson and 1953 graduate of Steubenville High School worked hard to prove her skills as a reporter, writing news stories, feature stories, covering the courthouse and even writing an occasional sports story.

After leaving to work at the Wheeling News-Register for a brief period in the 1970s, her return to the Herald-Star on April 25, 1977, was announced in a front-page story. In 1979, she was named city editor, the first woman to hold that position at the Herald-Star, which traces its origins to 1806.

While tough and demanding as a city editor, Houser also served as a teacher and mentor, and was always willing to share her experiences with younger reporters.

“I called Marian the matriarch of the newsroom, because she was a wonderful blend of pioneer, mentor and friend,” said Summer Wallace-Minger, a former reporter and community editor at The Weirton Daily Times who had the opportunity to work with Marian after the newsrooms at the papers were combined. “She broke glass ceilings for women in journalism in the Ohio Valley. While there were things that her editors hesitated to allow her to do, I was trained in them as a matter of course, because Marian was there first.”

Those sentiments were shared by Jody Wisbith, who became the city editor in 2002 and spent several years in that post.

“When I came to the Herald-Star, Marian was the matriarch of the newsroom,” Wisbith said. “She held that title long before I came into that job. Her professionalism never wavered, as she was a guiding force in our workplace for myself and many of my newsroom co-workers and friends.

Members of the newsroom became members of a second family, thanks in part to Houser’s leadership and caring personality. Those traits endeared her with her co-workers from the time she started at the paper until her retirement in 2010.

Houser’s love and respect for the community was given back to her through numerous retirement celebrations.

“Marian was the silent backbone of the community,” said the Rev. Richard Davis, TOR, who delivered the invocation at one of those celebrations. “She knew the community, reported on the community and she loved the community. She considered it to be a real privilege to be able to report on the community and do the work she did.”

Calling hours for Houser will be held from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and from 10 a.m. to time of services at 11 a.m. at the Shorac Funeral Home on Fernwood Road in Wintersville.