Editorial: Thanks for the ride

And so it ends.

This is my last editorial leader for Whanganui Midweek and my last time as editor, reporter, photographer and tea boy for this illustrious publication. It has taken 15 years to get to this point and it has been well worth the ride.

I was a sub-editor for the Chronicle, with some admin responsibilities, when Midweek’s Kate Spencer decided to go travelling. I applied for the job and here we are, a decade and a half later.

I have this job to thank for many things, but mostly the people I have met along the way. Some have remained acquaintances and some have become friends, enriching the life of this reporter and giving me a sense of place in this town. How lucky am I?

There has been a succession of Chronicle reporters, photographers and editors, sales consultants, designers, as well as all the jobs that no longer exist in a regional newspaper. It is my pleasure to have met, worked with and enjoyed the company of all those people. Some I still call friends.

Then there are all the people I met when I wrote their stories. I have been invited into their homes, businesses, workplaces and galleries, or listened to their tale over a hot drink in one of Whanganui’s many quality coffee houses. Their photographs appeared in these pages and, often, on the great cyber world of the internet, there to remain for the foreseeable future.

Meeting those people, hearing their stories, learning about the things they do and how they fit into this community has been uplifting, empowering and, occasionally, sad or even comforting. Reporters are people too. Take it from me: Whanganui has more incredible people than you can point a knighthood at. They may not be obvious or clamouring for attention, but they are there, working quietly, making this a better place with each day.

I must acknowledge all the people who have supplied the Midweek with content. From sending in occasional photos, letters or well written opinion pieces or slices of Whanganui history, to those who have always managed to turn out a well-constructed regular column. I can’t name everyone, but you are all a valuable component of a community newspaper.

It is the job of Whanganui Midweek and papers like it to serve their local community, to be the source of news and information essential to the wellbeing of all those who reside in its distribution area. I like to think Midweek lived up to that expectation while I was at the helm.

As far as I remember, there was only one case of “fake news” in this paper, and that was when April 1 fell on a Wednesday. It was a photograph and a story of how the sewage ponds on Airport Rd were to become a lake and an upmarket residential area. Chronicle photographer Stuart Munro doctored an aerial photo of the poo pond, inserting flash homes, jetties and luxury yachts. Of course, nobody fell for it ... as far as I know.

At the end of every year I thank all those who make this paper possible. That thank you stands. Keep up the good work, people.