The news of the passing of Josephine Ayers crept through the area slowly, like the cold temperatures felt as the sun set Wednesday afternoon.
The cold on All Saints Day felt strange to us Southerners who had been enjoying a mild October. The saddening knowledge of her passing at age 83 felt strange, too, to those who knew her and knew how much she had given of herself — not only to friends, but also to people unaware of the many ways she had served their community.
Long before she assumed the title and duties of publisher and chairman of Consolidated Publishing in January of 2018, Ayers had been a strong influence throughout the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s to promote the arts in Calhoun County, in Alabama and around the world.
