Hometown girl to run hometown paper

JULY 19, 2017 — A familiar face took the helm of The Examiner this week, as Ana Cosino was named the new publisher and advertising director. 

“I am so excited about this decision,” said Granite Publications Group Manager Jim Beaver. “I have been working with Ana for eight years and I always thought this day would come.”

Cosino, a 2000 Rattler graduate, has been with the newspaper for eight years but has held jobs in Navasota for as long as she can remember.

“I have lived here my whole life and I started working when I was 12-years old at the Jockey Lot flea market on weekends,” said Cosino. “When I was 16, I took a job at the Bank of Navasota and stayed there for 10 years.”

She took a year off from working when her son, Jason, was born in 2009. It was a twist of fate and family ties that drew her to The Examiner when her son was just two months old. 

“My friend Christina Torres called me when I was at home babysitting my son and a few other relatives,” Cosino remembered. “She said she was looking for someone just like me and that I needed to get dressed and print my resume.”

Her interview with then-publisher Dave Kucifer felt more like a conversation with an old friend than a perspective boss and he told her to start on Monday as a receptionist and typesetter.

“I was in shock because I wasn’t actually looking for a job,” she said. “I remember leaving the office and calling my mom crying and she thought something was wrong, but really I just didn’t know if I wanted to leave my son when he was so little.”

As Cosino said, “the rest is history” and she was moved to the sales representative position when it opened up in 2010. 

“I have always told everyone that I am not a sales person,” laughed Cosino. “But I think working at the bank so long, developing that customer service experience and people knowing me has helped. I can’t deny Scott McDonald was a great coach when I first started too.”

Cosino has been active in the Grimes County community her entire life. As a member of the Christ Our Light Catholic Church, John C. Webb PTO, booster club, director on the Navasota Education Foundation and the Ambassador Chair for the Navasota Grimes County Chamber of Commerce, she can often be seen at after-hours events and activities.

“My family, especially my partner and my son are understanding of the positions that I have taken and I couldn’t do half the things I do without my mom,” said Cosino. “She watches my son when I need to go to all of those meetings.”

“If there were a Miss Navasota, Ana would definitely be crowned,” said Beaver.

She considers the community more than just her neighbors and friends, to Cosino the residents of Grimes County and Navasota are “my folks.”

“As much as I would love to not be so attached to this paper, caring about every little detail and concern, I can’t,” said Cosino. “I love my folks, I truly admire all of them and love to work and take care of them.”

Cosino said that her heart is in the paper and she is looking forward to continuing the good work that previous publisher Tony Farkas had set in motion. Farkas resigned from The Examiner to return as the publisher of the Madisonville Meteor.

“When I was offered the job, I asked Tony if he thought I was capable of handling the publisher position and he said I had already been doing most of it and that is why he referred me for the position when he resigned,” said Cosino.

With no intentions of going anywhere, The Examiner looks to have Cosino at the helm for good.

“I want us to be what every community newspaper should be,” Cosino said. “You can count on us and we will always be here to help at any time, I really want to help our advertisers pick their businesses back up as the economy improves. And don’t worry everyone will still see me and I will still be out and about.”