IN APPRECIATION Baldwin Steps Down

This month, KERA Channel 13, KERA 90.1 and KDTN Channel 2 salute Peter W. Baldwin, who is stepping down as chairman of the North Texas Public Broadcasting Inc. (NTPB) board of directors. Baldwin will be succeeded by chairman-elect Leland A. Hodges Jr.

Owner and chairman of the board of The Baldwin Company, a real estate brokerage firm, Baldwin was elected NTPB chairman in 1981. Since then, he has presided over the NTPB board during a significant period of growth for public television and radio in the history of North Texas.

NTPB as an entity did not exist when Baldwin was elected to the chairmanship of the Public Communication Foundation for North Texas (PCFNT), then the licensee of KERA Channel 13 and KERA 90.1. Under Baldwin’s leadership, PCFNT joined forces with the Denton Channel 2 Foundation to form NTPB, which secured the rights to the dormant Channel 2.

After a concentrated fund-raising effort spearheaded by Baldwin, vice-chairman Roy Appleton Jr. and Denton attorney Fred Patterson, NTPB launched the Denton-based channel in September 1988. “Pete was the trigger that brought 2 and 13 together,” Appleton said. “I’ve appreciated being able to know and to work with him.”

Baldwin’s tenure also has benefited Channel 13 and KERA 90.1, which have experienced steady growth in membership, underwriting, corporate support and overall financial health during his term as chairman. The two stations also have received scores of local, national and international programming awards. In addition, ambitious productions such as Channel 13s The West of the Imagination and Katherine Anne Porier: The Eye of Memory and 90.1’s Eduardo Mata’s World of Hispanic Music and Willie Nelson’s Lone Star Saturday Night have brought national acclaim to KERA and the Dallas/Fort Worth/Denton area.

“One of the major reasons I came to this job was the fact that Pete Baldwin was the chairman of the board,” said NTPB president and chief executive officer Dr. Richard J. Meyer. “I admire his dedication to public service, and he and I share a genuine rapport. While I’ll miss his daily involvement with the stations, he still will be one of my most valued advisers.

“We’re fortunate that another man of great leadership, intellect and integrity, Leland Hodges, is assuming the duties of chairman of the board.”

NTPB will honor Baldwin with a dinner chaired by Arlene J. Dayton on Monday, November 13. Call 871-1390, ext. 216, for details. D.F.