High Plains Public Radio has just concluded its latest fund drive. It did so with a fascinating tribute to the late Teel Bivins.

It had received a pledge in Bivins’ memory from someone who noted that two of his brothers were instrumental in bringing HPPR to Amarillo and the Texas Panhandle. Why is that so fascinating?

Well, consider that the Bivins family has long been associated with conservative Republican politics. Consider, too, that HPPR and its parent company — National Public Radio — have become favorite targets of those who accuse the “mainstream media” of tilting too far to the left; Paul Greenberg, the great editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, refers to NPR as “National Propaganda Radio.”

The late Levi Bivins started the effort to bring NPR to the Panhandle. Levi died in the 1990s and brother Mark took the effort forward. So, it became something of a family affair. Teel, the one-time state senator and ambassador to Sweden, wasn’t so much out front on the NPR campaign.

But the tribute given in Teel Bivins’ memory speaks to the quality of a family that would seek to enlighten the Panhandle with the news and information that National Public Radio can bring.

Good job, Bivins Brothers — and thank you.