Florida Press Association Chairman Sandi Kemp, publisher of the Navarre Press, announced during a ceremony at the association’s annual convention Thursday that S.L. Frisbie IV and Robert Vedder had both been granted lifetime membership into the association.

Frisbie joined the family newspaper business in 1953 at the age of 12 as a carrier for The Polk County Democrat, the fourth generation of his family to pursue a career in journalism. Frisbie is a graduate of Florida State University, and while in Tallahassee he was employed as a reporter at The Tallahassee Democrat. After serving a two-year hitch as officer in the Army in Washington, D.C., he rejoined the family newspaper business.

The Democrat was founded in Bartow in 1931 by his great-grandfather, Sayer L. Frisbie, and grandfather S. Lloyd Frisbie. Ownership ultimately passed to S.L. Frisbie, who became general manager in 1976 and publisher in 1981. In 2007, S.L. Frisbie and his wife and business partner, Mary, sold the company to Sun Coast Media Group. He retired Dec. 31, 2009, yet continues to write a column, “Thinking Out Loud.”

He served as president of the Florida Press Association and continues on the board of the Florida Press Foundation.

Although honored by the distinction, Frisbie attempted to hide his pleasure behind a veil of humor.

“Someone asked me what a person had to do to win a lifetime membership,” he said. “I told him that one, a person has to be old, and two, retired ... so that they won’t be an embarrassment.”

Clearly, though, Frisbie was humbled by the acknowledgement his peers thought highly of him to bestow upon him that honor. He was also honored to be included with a person he considered a longtime friend, Vedder. Frisbie said Vedder had been a journalist almost as long as he (Frisbie) had.

Vedder was born and raised in Urbana, Ill. He attended college at DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind., where he earned a bachelor of arts. After spending 10 years with Dow Jones and Company and ending up as national production manager of worldwide operations, he moved to Venice where he served as general manager and publisher. He was also vice president of the company that owns the newspaper, the Sun Coast Media Group. He worked for that company from 1978 to 2010 when he retired. He continues as vice president and a member of their board.

He served as president of the Florida Press Association and continues on the board of the Florida Press Foundation.

The Florida Press Association is the trade association of the newspapers of Florida. Founded in 1879, it serves every daily newspaper and most weekly newspapers throughout the state, and has offices in Tallahassee and Orlando.