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Stations of the boss

From a 1996 memo written by representatives of Lancaster Management Incorporated to Marty Backus Jr. Backus was employed by the company, which owns several newspapers, as a publisher and editor until June 2001. In March 2002, Backus filed a lawsuit against Lancaster for wrongful dismissal, claiming that company representatives had told him he was "evil in their eyes" for failing to comply with the provisions of the memo. Vickie is Backus's wife, and Adam is their son. Waldron Newspapers is a subsidiary of Lancaster Management.

Consider yourself on probation. The following is a listing of our non-negotiable terms for allowing you to continue in your position at Waldron.

• Both you and Vickie go to a Christian counselor. These sessions will probably need to be weekly or at least semimonthly. Yes, it costs money. Spend it. Make the commitment. Regardless, be sure you are seeing a Christian counselor. There are all kinds of wacko "counselors" out there.
• Attend church weekly. Without fail. No excuses.
• Have dinner as a family at least five times a week. At the very least, you and Vickie should eat dinner together at the table every night. Start each meal with a prayer. Clean up together.
• You and Vickie must go to bed with each other every night without fail. If she likes to go to sleep early and you like to stay up late, compromise where she stays up a little later with you and you go to bed a little earlier. But go to bed together. Besides saying good night to each other, the last thing you should do each night is say a prayer out loud together. And start each morning the same, with a prayer out loud together.
• This goes for you and your sons: Turn the TV off and leave it off. Allow yourself limited TV of some sports and some news, but that's it. No prime time. No soaps. No talk shows. No Letterman. And certainly no videos that depict violence or sex. Focus on the family.
• Read Scripture daily. Proverbs is good. Read a chapter of Proverbs a day to correspond with the day of the month. Romans is good, too. One favorite passage, which we suggest you carry with you at all times, is James 1:12: "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." Also see Romans 8:28.
• You must trust each other. You are a team. Vickie has much to do with your success or failure in your personal life together, in the business, and in this effort to resurrect your marriage. But while that is true, you must take charge of this situation. You must lead by example. Be Christlike in all you do.

We want a short written report from you faxed to us every Monday morning and on our desk here by 8 a.m. In this report should be your triumphs and tragedies of the past week, the high points and the low points you hit. Business and personal. Tell us about a successful promo you all did. Tell us how the press broke down in Mena. Tell us about a good Scripture passage you found. Tell us about the time you got so mad you had to go for a walk. Tell us about Adam's curveball. Tell us about Adam's curveball breaking the window on the house.

We want you and Vickie to succeed in all personal and business areas of your lives — in that order. You are accountable to us; do not forget this. You must comply completely.

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SEE ALSO: Career in journalism; Dismissal of; Backus, Marty, Jr.; Personnel management; Religion in the workplace

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