The Austin Voice newspaper is returning to regular publication starting this week under Strategic Human Services, the Austin-based nonprofit that also publishes the North Lawndale Community News newspaper.
Founded in 1986, the Voice hasn’t seen regular publication since founder and editor Brad Cummings, 76, perished in a June 2025 arson fire that also took the lives of Gina Brown Henry, 32; Destiny Brown Henry, 28, and Jayceon Henry, 5. Lontray Clark, 23, reportedly threw a Molotov cocktail at a friend’s apartment because he believed the firend may have been dating his ex-girlfriend.
Cummings launched Austin Voice launched in 1986, after newspapers that covered the community for decades either closed down or left in late 1970s. The Garfield Lawndale Voice edition launched in 2005.
SHS executive director and North Lawndale Community News publisher Isaac Lewis told Austin Voice that the Voice Newspapers advisory board approached him about potentially taking over the paper early last fall. A few October issues of the NLCL included a smaller version of the newspaper, simply called the “The Voice” as an insert. A special 40th anniversary issue was published on Feb. 14.
Lewis said that the upcoming issue will be the first full-fledged issue under SHS. He said that he initially wasn’t sure whether the paper would come out once every two weeks or once a month, but he got enough advertising revenue to make it bi-weekly, at least for now.
“It’s going to be critical that we get businesses and the organizations and the individuals who advertise to support the paper going forward,” Lewis said.
He said that North Lawndale Community News still be published weekly.
