From the field: Farewell for now

Hannah Alden, Reporter, The Record-Review It’s time again for me to take a break from the newspaper life. It’s hard to say if I will return to the career at some point or freelance occasionally, but for now I’ll be saying goodbye.

I joined The Record-Review about a year ago and am happy I did so. It was great to work alongside the wonderful folks at the TP Printing office, connect with area communities and get paid to do things I enjoy, like writing and design work. However, I have decided to commit more of my time to my farm and other aspects of my life. It wasn’t an easy decision, but it feels necessary to allow for someone else to come in who can devote more time and attention to the job than I am able to.

This move feels a little like déjà vu — several years ago, I quit my journalism job to pursue a full-time career in agriculture. It’s a bittersweet feeling, going from something mostly comfortable to step into more unknowns. But I’m excited to report that plans to expand my farm operation next year are in the works.

Putting together community newspapers each week is no small feat and I applaud the TP staff for the jobs they do day in and day out to reach area readers. There are government meetings to dissect, sports games to photograph and local events to cover. There are lots of phone calls and emails to answer, pages to design, advertisements to gather, inserts to stuff into papers and a million other small things that have to be done before a newspaper reaches mailboxes.

You don’t always get thanked for your good work. Mistakes happen and need to be corrected. There are technology crashes, unanswered questions and people who don’t want anything to do with you just because they don’t like “the media.”

It’s not an easy job, but working in the newspaper industry has its rewards. Sometimes you get a nice note about your writing or photography. Occasionally an official at a meeting will make a comment about something the paper did right. Eventually (hopefully) locals get to know you and see that the work you do is important. A newspaper can be a connection builder, a way to keep people accountable and a tool to bring communities together. I hope the area communities within The Record-Review’s coverage range continue to support the paper and see it as the asset that it is. Even though I’m signing off from regular work for the paper, there’s always a chance you will see my byline again. Until then, take care.