It’s likely that in each of every life, there are moments that you can remember the exact time, date and place they occurred.

For me, one of those moments happened at 11:04 a.m., Feb. 4, 1981.

That happened to be a Wednesday, and the weather outside was not much different than what we have been experiencing for the past week or so.

It also was the first time I walked into the newsroom at the Herald-Star, ready to start a career as a sports writer. The room held a lot more people than it does now, and after I had finished filling out all of the necessary paperwork, the time came for the late Tom Waller, who was then the managing editor, to take me around to introduce to everyone.

There were some titans of the news business in that room –from Jim Joyce, whose coverage of city and county government remains the standard, and John Phillips, the longtime sports editor who had stepped into another role not too much earlier — both of whom are now gone — to Matz Malone to Janice Hout (who become Kiaski), Fred Rossano and Mark Sharp — staff members not a whole lot older than I was who become dear friends.

The last person Waller introduced me to was the city editor, Marian Houser. That was the first time I had actually had the chance to meet her, and that would begin a longtime professional and personal relationship. There were many lessons that would be learned during the next 45 years, and a lot of memories made, all of which came flooding back on Jan. 7, when word came that Marina had died at the age of 90.

It’s not possible to even begin to name the number of lives she touched during her life, from members of the community to those who had worked with her.

“From my first days in the newsroom fresh out of college, Marian made a point to both welcome me with open arms and to provide strong guidance on what the expectations were for this new reporter,” remembered Sharp, who grew up in the Cleveland area, graduated from Bowling Green State University and would have a long career with the Matsushita Corp. in Washington, D.C. “Under her tutelage, I learned the importance of writing a tight news story and submitting it on time.

“Beyond her professional guidance, Marian always was a caring person to the young staffers, offering emotional support as needed. She was a beacon of light for us 20-somethings, for which I will always be grateful,” Sharp added.

Houser’s career spanned more than 40 years and included stints as a reporter, a member of the copy desk and community editor. She would become the first woman to serve as city editor at the Herald-Star, which has served the community since 1806.

“Marian knew people and understood what they wanted in their newspaper,” said Mark Law, who covered Jefferson County for many years before his retirement. “She spread her wings in the industry as a young female reporter in a then-male-dominated newsroom, which showed her fortitude.

“She nurtured and trained dozens of young reporters,” Law continued. “She was more than a mentor — she was a second mother who smiled when she saw her young reporters spread their own wings.”

Malone, who covered Brooke County and the business beat, said Houser always played an important role in the newsroom.

“When she was given more responsibility as city editor, Marian became a ‘lion tamer’ for a very talented band of social misfits who ultimately became a pretty damn good working newsroom,” he remembered.

“We worked together, argued together and maybe stomped out swearing. But when a job needed to be done, Marian had that innate ability to know who was to be trusted for the assignment, bring back the story and make the deadline,” Malone added.

That feeling that the staff was a big family made the newsroom a special, welcoming place, from the first day she walked into the office in 1968 until her retirement on Aug. 20, 2010.

“I basically had very little knowledge as to the workings of a daily newspaper,” said Rossano, a native of New Castle, Pa., who came to Steubenville after graduating from Penn State and worked as a reporter, copy editor and news editor. “Marian took me under her wing, as she did with so many newbies in the office, and she kept us there long after she retired. Some of us referred to her as Mom II because that’s how we saw her, and I believe she cherished that role probably as much as her role as city editor.

“Marian always was available to listen and provide comfort and advice to us regarding any personal or delicate issues we were experiencing,” he continued. “In all honesty, we shared way too much information, but that was Marian — she could always sense when something was bothering us and she was there to help.”

Paul Giannamore, a former reporter, copy editor, news editor, city editor and business editor, agreed.

“She was not just my boss, but a second mom, a sense of strength and grace and dignity,” he explained. “And, our newsroom mom could, at turns, have me talking to myself in the mirror because she could really push hard to make me a better reporter and writer in the truist, hard-nosed sense of every great editor.”

Houser, Kiaski said, cared for the staff as individuals.

“She would applaud our progress and dispense instruction and encouragement with equal parts of correction, advice and expectations,” Kiaski said. “Marian not only cared about the work we did as a newsroom, but about us as individuals. She shared in our personal development as well, and saw us through marriage, divorce, deaths, parenting and beyond.”

Houser had a special ability — she felt at home at the smallest church luncheon, where crock pots filled folding tables pushed up against the wall, as well as the finest restaurant or banquet hall. Congressmen knew her personally, and she had the opportunity to interview the Rev. Billy Graham and President Jimmy Carter.

That showed in her writing, from feature stories to her daily column, as members of the community remember.

“Marian was the classiest, but yet the most common woman I have ever known,” said Ken Perkins, owner of Tri-State Financial Services. “She carried herself with a class that few women could, and she never looked down on anyone or met anyone she did not become friends with. She truly made you feel like family.

“Together, during the past 35 years, we have served on boards, went to events, shared stories, dinners and travels,” he added. “I was fortunate to get to know her personally as well as professionally, and she was passionate about her work, her family and friends.”

Marian was a special person who left a lasting impression on the newspaper and our community. Her work and the love she brought to everyone and everything she was involved in will forever be remembered.

(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is executive editor of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times.)