The founder of the Bellevue Journal-American, John McClelland Jr., died Saturday in Mercer Island, according to the Longview Daily News. He was 95 years old.

McClelland was well-respected during his career for strong editorial column writing and an ownership style committed to community journalism.

McClelland was instrumental in the creation of the Journal-American when his Longview Publishing company bought weekly newspapers in Kirkland and Bellevue and merged them to form the new paper. It went through various incarnations as the Eastside Journal and King County Journal, before ultimately shutting its doors in 2006.

McClelland was married for 71 years to his high school sweetheart, Burdette Craig. She died on Oct. 4, and her memorial service in Seattle on Saturday coincided with her husband’s death.