The Barbara Spector Yeninas Memorial Fund, established in support of the Gwen Ifill Mentorship Program, was created to honor the role that journalism and mentorship has played in Barbara’s life and career, keeping that legacy alive through the work done by the IWMF. Barbara’s career concluded as a public relations founder and executive, but her time spent as a journalist and her enduring love of writing was foundational to her career and identity.
Barbara was born on March 21, 1940 in the Bronx, NY, and later moved with her family to Lakewood, NJ, where, as a gifted student, she skipped two grades and graduated high school at the age of 16. She discovered her love of journalism while attending New York University; her college editorial column “Barb Wire” was known around campus for its sharp wit and peek into local life. Barbara held a BS and MA in journalism and mass communications from NYU. Her first professional position as a journalist was with the Asbury Park Press, but she very quickly – and very famously – moved over to its competitor, the Newark Evening News, as a general assignment reporter. “At its apex, The Newark Evening News was widely regarded as the newspaper of record in New Jersey.”
While covering the port-driven city, Barbara became immersed in the maritime sector at a time when maritime reporting was almost non-existent. She immediately recognized the magnitude of containerization and a new transportation concept called “globalization,” and was encouraged by her colleagues to develop a maritime beat for the paper. She became the Newark Evening News’ first maritime editor: a move which launched her career, pushed the Port of Newark into the global spotlight, and ignited her lifetime love affair with the industry.
It was also at the Newark News where she would meet her future husband, Joseph Yeninas, an editorial cartoonist and art director at the paper. The two met as co-captains on the picket line during a newspaper strike. They fell in love, and were married in December 1971. The Newark Evening News eventually folded in 1972 “proving to be the best thing to ever happen to my career. I could give free rein to an entrepreneurial spirit that had been forming within me.”
She took the goodwill developed in what was then a newly forming industry, containerization in international trade. “I did not know that 50 years ago I would be launching a new career.” She moved easily in maritime circles to address specific needs recognized when working the waterfront. “There was a need to convey the reality of 21st century transportation. Many of them were not tuned in to the refinements of corporate communications. They would have to hire us.”
And they did. In 1974, Barbara created Barbara Spector Yeninas Associates (BSY Associates) as the premiere voice in maritime and transportation public relations and marketing. Barbara’s integrity, tenacity, and drive was the key to her success at a moment when women were rarely seen on the docks. It wasn’t long before she established an illustrious, international list of clients, which included Pacific Australia Container Express Line (PACE), Taiwan-based Evergreen Marine Corp., Port of Hamburg, Horizon Lines, Global Terminals, INTTRA and Maher Terminals.
Over the course of her career, she became an industry figurehead, and loved bringing people from all corners of the transportation industry together. She served as Executive Director for the Containerization & Intermodal Institute for 35 years, and as the Executive Director of NY/NJ Foreign Freight Forwarders and Brokers Association for 18 years. And for almost five decades, she produced the United Seamen Service’s Admiral of the Ocean Sea Awards, an annual black-tie gala which celebrated the leaders of maritime.
But even as her business was advancing, Barbara made time for her personal passions. She traveled all over the world (from Panama to Prague, Hawaii to Hong Kong, and beyond), loved to cook for her family and friends, and was an avid collector of antique posters and art.
Known for her quick self-deprecating wit, unrelenting memory and commitment to mentoring women especially wanting career guidance, Barbara Yeninas retained the respect of her colleagues both in the public relations and marketing arena, as well as in international markets. In 2000, she was named New Jersey Businesswoman of the Year by the Girl Scouts and in 2007, one of the top 50 Businesswomen in New Jersey by NJ Biz Magazine.
But what Barbara will be remembered for most of all was her deep commitment to helping, caring for, and lifting those around her. She was always thinking of others-and as good friend and colleague Joe Bonney said, “She just made everyone better.”
Her favorite quotes — “Never, never, never give up” – and Nora Ephron — “Slap on some lipstick, you’ll be fine” – for spiritual guidance.
