By admin 
On his final day at The Fresno Bee, hours after a retirement celebration to honor his 39-year career, John Rich logged onto his laptop from home to keep working.
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Double-checking and tinkering with headlines and stories, monitoring for any breaking news until midnight.
It was only after access to company programs was denied because he was no longer an employee that Rich stopped working.
Rich, arguably the most dedicated and hardest working person at The Bee who also played a pivotal role in shaping journalism coverage in the central San Joaquin Valley, died Thursday.
Rich was 64 years old. His death followed six years of declining health as he battled Parkinson’s disease.
“He was such an example of a person dedicated to his craft,” said Joe Kieta, The Fresno Bee’s executive editor from 2018-2023. “He was a really amazing journalist who had such a long career, and was filled with institutional knowledge of The Bee and of the Fresno community.
“I never worked with anyone who had a stronger sense of the mission of journalism, and understood the hard work it takes to produce quality journalism.”
Driving force behind the scenes
Rich held a variety of positions since he started at The Bee in 1984, including as sports editor and metro editor, before spending his final eight years as managing editor, the No. 2 person in charge. He retired in June 2023.
Though Rich did not have a byline or a photo of himself that’d run regularly in the newspaper or online, his contributions behind the scenes helped strengthen The Bee’s news coverage.
His news judgment, often derived from the simple question of “what does the reader want to know,” provided the foundation for the types of stories The Fresno Bee pursued.
“His news sense was second to none,” said popular, longtime Fresno Bee columnist Bill McEwen. “He was a hard worker, a give-me-the facts editor who improved thousands of stories.
“He died much too young from a terrible disease, and it breaks my heart.”
Jim Boren, a longtime Fresno Bee staffer who served as executive editor from 2012-2018, noticed Rich’s ability to have a lasting impact, too.
“For generations of Bee readers, his work helped ensure that the newspaper was more than a collection of stories,” Boren said. “It was a trusted source of information about the people, institutions and issues that mattered in the San Joaquin Valley.
“And for the journalists who had the good fortune to work with him, his influence went beyond any individual story. He helped teach what good journalism looks like — and why it matters.”
More than a love for journalism
Rich was often the first person in the newsroom and sometimes the last person to leave, all in the same day, juggling an array of responsibilities.
Sometimes out of a sense of duty.
Other times out of love.
But it was more than just his love for journalism — but a love for The Fresno Bee and for his colleagues.
Time after time, Rich showed how committed he was to quality journalism, as well as to his coworkers as he provided guidance, leadership and genuine care.
In 2006 when longtime Fresno Bee reporter Don Coleman suffered a fatal heart attack during his lunch break, Rich gathered folks from the newsroom for an emergency meeting.
“We had a sickening feeling that it was bad,” recalled veteran Bee reporter Bob Rodriguez. “In a calm and comforting voice, he told us Don had died. Several of us became emotional.
“As we stood there numb, John offered to say a short prayer. I don’t remember what he said, but for me, it provided a tremendous amount of comfort. … He’s been a leader in this newsroom for decades, and one we have turned to for professional advice as well as emotional support.”
Rich also played a key role hiring and helping train and develop many reporters who’d leave a significant impact in the Fresno community, and sometimes beyond.
Like former ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, who Rich helped hire in 1995 as a sports columnist at The Bee.
Wojnarowski, known for his “Woj bombs,” became one of the biggest names in sports journalism.
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“John Rich was one of the finest, most capable and dedicated editors and newsroom leaders with whom I ever worked,” Wojnarowski said. “As a young columnist with big — and sometimes wayward — opinions at The Bee in mid-1990s, John always had my back with both management and the community.
“He held our staff to high standards and cared deeply for not only the people in the newsroom but also those with whom our work served in the community.”
Other notable hires by Rich: Award-winning columnist John Canzano, longtime Fresno Bee columnist Marek Warszawski, and success story Anthony Galaviz, whom Rich hired out of The Bee’s packaging department. He gave him a job that was considered at the bottom of the sports department as an agate clerk. Galaviz would steadily rise and become one of the most read reporters currently at The Bee.
Then and in more recent years, Rich’s primary advice to journalists boiled down to four words: “Tell me a story.”
“For 100 years, our approaches may have differed,” Rich said in a 2022 story that celebrated The Fresno Bee’s 100-year anniversary of existence. “But our intent has always remained the same: Tell stories that matter to the Valley.”
Leaving, protecting a legacy
Following Rich’s retirement, his impact on the Fresno community became recognized by those outside of The Fresno Bee building.
Longtime U.S. Representative Jim Costa applauded Rich’s career.
“John worked to the highest journalist standards for accuracy and fairness.” Costa said in 2024. “During his career, he evolved with technological advances and changes to the newspaper environment, but he never lost sight that his job was to deliver the news that matters to the people of the Valley, whether the latest details of a Fresno State Football game or an in-depth expose on corruption at city hall.
“Mr. Rich also leaves a legacy as a mentor and coach. He has been an inspiration for other journalists in the field.”
Added former deputy editor Matt Lloyd: “John’s dedication to journalism was unparalleled. He represents the legacy of The Fresno Bee going back to its heyday.
“He really had a vision of strong journalism. He took the legacy of The Bee really seriously, the journalism and the editors and the reporters who came before us.”
As much as Rich loved working in journalism and pouring countless hours to his job, he still always found time to focus on his family.
Alongside Denise, his wife of 40 years, the Rich couple turned to athletics to help their family grow close. Both by playing and watching sports together, which translated to fond family memories and career successes.
John threw countless buckets of baseballs as part of batting practice for his son Andrew while growing up. Andrew has since become the Boise State softball coach.
John and Denise also would fly out of state to attend their daughter Tori’s softball games. Tori Hildebrandt is now entering her seventh season as the Washington Union High varsity softball coach.
The family also came together to cheer for Denise during her longtime stint as the Washington Union varsity coach, then assistant coach with the Fresno State softball team.
Attending San Francisco Giants and Golden State Warriors games, even sprint car races, became a Rich tradition, too.
“Sports were our family’s life,” Andrew said.
Andrew also noticed how his dad’s selflessness with his family and in sports carried over to his job.
“He just did everything he could to help others and never thought about himself first,” Andrew said. “It was always, what can I do to help everybody else?”
Added Wojnarowski: “As much as I learned from John about the craft of reporting and writing, I learned much more from him away from the paper. In every way, John illustrated to all of us about how to be a better husband, father and person.
“He had an incredible journalism career, but his love for Denise, Tori and Andrew are the truest measure of that man.”
This story was originally published October 2, 2026 at 6:23 PM with the headline “Longtime Fresno Bee editor John Rich, who inspired many as he elevated local news, has died.”
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