Donald Alan Sayre

He was born on November 7, 1954, in Longview, Texas to Sidney and Frances Sayre. He married his devoted and beloved life partner, Terri Lewis Sayre, on April 18, 1993.

Growing up in Longview, Alan frequently made the local newspaper for his top grades and chose journalism as his future profession while in high school. After graduating from Baylor University, he reported the news for radio stations in Bryan-College Station and San Angelo.

He joined the AP in 1979, starting in Austin, Texas, before moving to Dallas. He spent most of his three decades at the AP in Louisiana, covering politics in Baton Rouge and business in the New Orleans bureau. He was known for being a dogged, speedy reporter on deadline and for his deep-voiced greeting when answering the phones: “AP – Sayre.”

His coverage included state political battles, the growth of legalized gambling, including video poker, the Gulf of Mexico oil and gas industry, and the recovery of the state’s economy after Hurricane Katrina, among many other stories.

Alan loved horse racing, betting only a dollar or two after studying the racing form at the New Orleans Fairgrounds. He taught his daughter how to pick the winners, scribbling his calculations in pencil on the form. He was a fan of the Chicago Cubs, in good times and bad, and traveled to Wrigley Field with Terri for games.

He is survived by his wife, Terri, and his daughter, Katherine Sayre, of Los Angeles.

Alan’s family would like to thank his former AP and radio colleagues Bill Fuller, Van Goodall, Kent Prince, and Kevin McGill – among many others – for their friendship with Alan over the years.

Funeral services will be held at Leitz-Eagan Funeral Home, 4747 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, LA, on Friday, February 27, 2026. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m., followed by a Memorial Service at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.