Henry Hyora, 1950-2026 - Chronicle Publisher Remembered For Fierce Independence And Loyalty

CHATHAM – Henry C. “Hank” Hyora, the longtime publisher of The Cape Cod Chronicle, passed away Feb. 5 at Cape Cod Hospital after a series of medical setbacks. He was 75 years old.

 Friends, staff members and local residents lauded Mr. Hyora for his dedication to the communities served by The Chronicle and his insistence that the paper remain independent despite today’s difficult media environment.

 The Cape Cod Chronicle, as it exists today, is almost entirely attributable to Mr. Hyora’s vision and leadership over the past four decades, said Editor Tim Wood. Mr. Hyora’s devotion to independence and the local communities was the paper’s guiding light. 

 “Many of us owe our careers to Hank,” said Wood. “He provided the steady foundation that allowed us to pursue the news with the flexibility to explore different aspects of our communities. It’s fair to say that without Hank, The Chronicle would not be the successful newspaper it is today.”

Mr. Hyora stressed the importance of staff remaining connected to the community by volunteering with local chambers of commerce and other nonprofit organizations. He provided an extra week of vacation for employees who spent the time volunteering. One of his mantras was “Shop Local,” which he modeled by frequenting local shops and restaurants.

 But it was his insistence on keeping the paper independent and supporting his staff that may be his greatest legacy. 

 “Hank made running The Chronicle his life’s work,” said Edward Maroney, a former staff member. “That commitment gave his staff and his community assurance that the paper they relied on would not be flipped to corporate ownership so Hank could profit.”

"I was going to say that outside of family, no one had a bigger impact on my professional career than Hank Hyora, but that’s not a true statement, because Hank was family to me,” said Eric Adler, who became The Chronicle’s sports writer right out of college. “He welcomed me in and made me feel right at home.”

 “I so admired his commitment, dedication and all-around joy for community journalism,” added Adler, now a photographer and photo editor for the New England Patriots. “He cared. And his caring made me care — greater, deeper, and in ways I never thought I was capable of. I believe he had that effect on everyone who got to know him and work for him. It’s a truly special quality he passed onto me, and for that, I’m eternally thankful to Hank."

 “He was the rock, glue and silly string that kept our Chronicle family together,” added Chuck Stanko, another former staff member who maintained a long and close friendship with Mr. Hyora.

Managing Editor William F. Galvin worked with Mr. Hyora for more than 50 years. 

 “He was a man of great humor,” Galvin said, “but his respect for fellow staff members and the work they produced for The Chronicle was his shining light.” The fact that many staff members have long tenures at the paper and former staff members stay in touch says a lot about Mr. Hyora’s management style, he added.

 Courtney Wittenstein was a 17-year-old Chatham High School student when she interned at The Chronicle. She’s worked at the paper on and off ever since and is currently a member of the production department.

 “Every time I gave my notice, he would cry and I would cry,” she said. “Every achievement I had, he would cheer me on. Every time he would talk about his love for the Bee Gees and Barbara Streisand, I would make fun of him. He wore his heart on his sleeve.” 

 “Hank saw his employees as family members,” said Executive Editor Alan Pollock. “When I had young children, Hank allowed me a flexible schedule so that I could meet the school bus, giving me a much bigger role in my daughters' childhoods than I would have had working a nine-to-five job elsewhere. And that helped shape the amazing adults that my daughters became. This place, and Hank's leadership, have changed so many of our lives for the better.”

 Mr. Hyora held his staff and the paper to the highest standards, said Orleans resident Bill Amaru, a Chronicle columnist who knew Mr. Hyora for 50 years. 

 “He loved and respected the staff, who were faithful, long-term employees,” Amaru said. “His newspaper was like a family, his troops like brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles. He had a sense of community that set an example and will be sadly missed.”

 Although he wasn’t born on Cape Cod, Mr. Hyora’s roots in the community run deep. He came to Chatham from Colorado as an infant in 1950 when his father, Robert, moved to the Cape to work as a commercial fisherman. A product of the Chatham school system, Mr. Hyora was president of his Chatham High School class and even worked as a janitor at the school during his student days. 

 In those days, Mr. Hyora was “pretty serious” but “easy to be around,” classmate Phyllis Nickerson Power remembered. 

 “He was a loyal friend, he always had integrity,” she said. “He was kind and appreciated people’s kindness as well.” After she helped him purchase the current Chronicle offices at Munson Meeting Way, Mr. Hyora sent Power a magnum of champagne.

 “Nobody ever sent me a magnum of champagne before,” she said.

 Jack Gillis, who met Mr. Hyora in the first grade at Chatham Elementary School, recalled both of them getting a job in eighth grade at the Chatham Beach and Tennis Club delivering sandwiches to members for $10 a week. After two weeks, Mr. Hyora realized he could make more money in a day digging quahogs.

 “That was the beginning of his successful entrepreneurial adventures,” Gillis wrote in an email. Mr. Hyora, he added, “was an amazingly talented publisher who took a fledgling paper and developed it into the most turned-to media outlet on the Lower Cape.”

 After graduating from Chatham High School in 1968, Mr. Hyora didn’t follow his father and two of his brothers into the commercial fishing industry — indeed, his stories about the few fishing trips he went on underscored the reasons in graphic detail — but instead went into the military, serving in the U.S. Air Force in Maine and Alaska.

 Upon his discharge from the service in 1974, Mr. Hyora returned to Chatham and was hired as an advertising sales representative at The Chronicle. 

 “I wanted to live in Chatham and knew there was no way I could make a living off the water like most of my family did,” Mr. Hyora wrote in “From the Publisher” in The Chronicle’s 50th anniversary edition in 2015. “I was lucky enough that two very kind owners hired me directly out of the Air Force.”

Mr. Hyora worked his way up to sales manager and later president. He became part owner in 1979, eventually buying out the other owners to become publisher in 1984. Hyora Publications was officially owned by Mr. Hyora and his late wife, Karyn. The couple married in 1981.

 Under Mr. Hyora’s ownership, the paper grew from a full-time staff of seven to 13 and expanded news coverage from its previous focus on Chatham and Harwich to include Orleans and Brewster. For many years he worked in the paper’s production department, creating ads and laying out news stories, as well as serving as publisher and handling the business side of the paper.

Mr. Hyora always maintained a low profile, preferring to let the paper speak for itself. In his 50th anniversary column, he made clear why: “This story isn’t about me. It’s about the good people who have worked here over the years and through the good and the bad have enabled The Chronicle to remain independent and profitable.” He went on to praise the paper’s “loyal” advertisers and readers. He wrote with pride about weathering the changes to the newspaper industry on Cape Cod. “At The Chronicle we are fortunate that we haven’t had to lay off people during this transformative time,” he wrote.

During the turbulent years in the Cape’s media scene, Mr. Hyora was approached more than once by representatives of large corporations seeking to buy the paper, sometimes for temptingly high figures. But he always held steadfast, putting the paper, its staff and readers before his own gain.

 “When several ‘big guys’ sought to buy the paper, I would look around the office and realize this would probably all be gone,” he wrote in 2015. “It wouldn’t be fair for me to profit off their hard work.”

Perhaps the biggest challenge the paper faced during Mr. Hyora’s tenure as publisher was the COVID pandemic. He insisted on keeping the paper’s doors open, not missing an issue, and was able to secure financing to ensure that there were no staff layoffs. It was critical, he said at the time, that the paper continue to inform the community in the midst of the crisis.

 Mr. Hyora firmly believed in giving back to the community. The Chronicle’s Helping Neighbors fundraiser for the Family Pantry of Cape Cod, launched in 2004, has raised more than $2.3 million for the pantry. In 2018, he was recognized for his support with the Family Pantry’s Founders Award. He was always willing to provide space in the paper for nonprofit organizations and charity fundraisers, and he himself contributed to many local causes. 

 “Hank was an amazing boss,” Pollock said, noting how the publisher set an example with his philanthropy. “He was a mentor and one of my best friends. I can't describe how much I'll miss him.”

A transition plan that will ensure continued local, independent ownership of The Chronicle is in place, said Pollock. Additional details will be announced soon.

 Mr. Hyora lived most of his life on Barcliff Avenue, first with his family and then in a home he shared with Karyn, who passed away in 2024. He loved cats and took in many rescue felines at home and doted on a series of Chronicle office cats, including Trigger, Buddy and Graycie. He was a voracious reader and especially enjoyed thrillers and mysteries; Stephen King was one of his favorite authors. He enjoyed spending time at the couple’s condo in Stuart, Fla. and their cabin in Sunderland.

 Mr. Hyora is survived by his brother Nick and his wife Cindy of Chatham and brother Wyatt and his wife Lily of Vero Beach, Fla.; sisters- and brothers-in-law Donna and Rick Bosworth of East Longmeadow, Pam Williams of Deerfield, Paula and Jeff Osborne of Amherst, Kim and Glenn Birnbaum of Tacoma, Wash., Sandy Klemyk of Camino, Calif, Wendy Beaubien of Montague, and Jay and Amy Kelmyk of Sunderland; and many nieces, nephews and grand nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents, H. Robert and Del Hyora, his brother Mark, nephew Wesley and wife Karyn.

 Donations in Mr. Hyora’s memory may be made to the Family Pantry of Cape Cod, 133 Queen Anne Rd., Harwich, MA 02645; or the Animal Rescue League of Boston, 3981 Main St., Brewster, MA 02631.

 A public celebration of Mr. Hyora’s life will be held at a later date.