About Us
The Sunshine Way
Sunshine State News was born from a desire to cover a side of issues and stories that was absent in the news landscape, to fill the vacuum.At Sunshine State News, we believe this is the right time to focus on the inextricable relationship between politics and business in Florida and how it affects the success of our state.
To that end, we strive to cut through the jargon and speak in a fresh, no-nonsense way to an audience of lawmakers, lobbyists and strategists, to Florida’s job creators and economy protectors, in fact to all Floridians who expect their leaders to make common-sense decisions and set lofty, yet attainable, goals.
Sunshine State News fills a void – and that is our principal reason for being. We are the only news organization in Florida with an editorial board that believes free-market, less-government solutions will prove successful in addressing the problems challenging our state.
Our news stories deal with facts, but we are more than happy to espouse our opinion in columns. We make it our job to tell the side of the stories that other outlets choose to ignore. We cover news statewide, putting the right amount of emphasis on untold stories and up-to-the-minute blogs, the ones that illuminate a rapidly changing economy, the clash of ideas and relationships at the state Capitol and political strategies playing out in all corners of Tallahassee and beyond.
We aim to present our stories in a bright, attractive, reader-friendly package. And, we strive to avoid the stuffy conventions of traditional newspaper storytelling, instead writing compellingly in everyday language, using as much wit, personality and insight as we can muster.
Sunshine State News welcomes reader participation. In fact, we encourage it by calling for comments on each story and blog, by inviting letters to the editor and op-ed articles and by soliciting readers’ photographs and videos in our unique “Snap” section.
Sunshine State News is always evolving, always adding features, looking for ways to make ourselves not just content, but a community for Floridians who care deeply about how and what our leaders are doing to improve our lives.
Meet Our Team
Nancy Smith - Executive Editor
A Connecticut native, Nancy Smith began her journalism career at The Daily Mirror and The Observer newspapers, both in London, England. She served as city editor, managing editor and associate editor at The Stuart News/Port St. Lucie News for 28 years, retiring from Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers in 2005. She was president of the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors in 1993-1994. More impressive than her wall of awards, she found a way to be stepmother to seven children and still write one of the most compelling and controversial columns on the Treasure Coast. She brought her long-suffering husband Mick and the children back from England in 1974. "Some people go to London and bring back an ashtray," she says. "I came home with something a whole lot better." Contact Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or (850) 727-0859.
Kevin Derby - Associate Editor
Originally from Jacksonville, Kevin M. Derby serves as a political reporter for Sunshine State News. Formerly an articles editor for the Sayfie News Group, Kevin's work has appeared in Taki's Top Drawer, Big Think and Examiner. Kevin spends his free time following the Jaguars and working on an 11-volume study of Francis P. Fleming's term as governor of Florida. Contact Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or (850) 727-0859.
Kenric Ward - Chief Political Correspondent
Kenric Ward is a veteran journalist and author who most recently served as editorial writer with Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers in Vero Beach. Prior to his arrival in Florida in 2003, the native Californian was editor of the Columbus (Ind.) Republic and assistant managing editor of the Las Vegas Sun. He also was an editorial writer with the San Jose Mercury News and executive news editor of the Fort Wayne (Ind.) News-Sentinel -- both Pulitzer Prize-winning newspapers. Ward has garnered several journalism awards, including first-place honors from the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Education Reform, Indiana's Hoosier State Press Association, the Nevada State Press Association, the Las Vegas Urban Chamber of Commerce and United Press International. While in Las Vegas, Ward authored two books: "Saints in Babylon: Mormons and Las Vegas" and "The Insiders' Guide to Las Vegas." He also wrote regularly for the Las Vegas Business Journal and Gaming Today. The Phi Beta Kappa graduate of UCLA also earned a master's in business administration from California Pacific University in San Diego. "I'm excited to have the opportunity to write about the business of Florida and its politics," Ward said. "There are so many issues and decisions that can make or break this state. I look forward to digging into them." Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or (772) 801-5341.
Jim Turner - Reporter
A New Jersey-native who went to college in North Carolina, Jim Turner found he really enjoyed warm weather by spending the past 20 years in Florida with Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers. With the Scripps chain, he predominately served as a business editor and political and government reporter. His beats ranged from government and environment to education and sports. During a three-year period in which he covered sports, he also served as the as official scorer for the Florida State League’s Jupiter Hammerheads. Outside of the office, when he’s not posting updates to Twitter – jimturner23 - Jim can be found bicycling, checking on the latest happenings at Cape Canaveral or following the New York Yankees. Contact Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or (850) 727-0859.
Denise Struempf - Web Editor
Denise Struempf was born and grew up off the coast of Montara Beach, California. She graduated from Florida State University in 2010 with a bachelor of fine arts degree in graphic design and an advertising minor. Working at various restaurants in Tallahassee, she created artwork for everything from flyers to menus at these establishments. She has created advertising pieces for La Rumba Mexican Restaurant, Studio 1 Recording Studio, and Acapulcos Mexican Grill, as well as having work exhibited at the Kasha Research Laboratory on the FSU campus. Most of her time is spent on the computer, hanging out with her dog Zelda and eating candy. Contact Denise Struempf at dstruempf@sunshinestatenews.com.
Chris Moran - Copy Editor
British-born Chris Moran grew up and was educated in England. While privately trained to be a concert pianist from a very early age, her forte and college major was English. Pursuing an editing career seemed a natural. Initially freelancing as a teen, "to help buy my first car," she later joined J.I. Rodale & Co. Ltd., the British subsidiary of Pennsylvania-based Rodale Press, located in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. There she served as international editor of Prevention magazine. An opening at The Stuart News/Port St. Lucie News, now part of Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers, brought her to the United States and to Florida where she became a U.S. citizen and lived and worked as editor on the newspapers' opinion pages for almost 18 years. Along the way, she won a number of headline-writing awards. Chris is a voracious reader, an avid gardener and above all, an animal lover.
Joseph Patton - Vice President of Business Development
Joseph spent 10 years in management positions at Colgate-Palmolive, CBS and Remy Martin. In these roles, he had P&L responsibility for brands with annual sales over $100 million, including Speed Stick, Fab, Ajax, Remy Martin cognac and Macallan Scotch. At CBS Sportsline.com, he helped to manage the relationships with AOL, PGATour.com, NFL.com, and MajorLeagueBaseball.com among others. Joseph is adjunct faculty and teaches economics, entrepreneurship and management at the University of Miami, Florida Atlantic University and Lynn University. In his personal time, he has climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, hiked the Inca Trail, spent two months in Africa, held an IGFA fishing world record, completed the NYC marathon and travelled to over 70 countries. Nowadays, he mostly loves playing tennis and spending time with his family on the Treasure Coast. Joseph was raised in Florida and attended Florida State University and the University of Salamanca (Spain) and earned his MBA from the University of Miami. Contact Joseph Patton at JPatton@sunshinestatenews.com or (561) 644-6550.
