By Rose-Marie Fagerholm

Pioneer Publisher

So here we are, at the 10-year mark, which, in this industry in this fast-moving digital era, is quite the feat. The concept born by the Edes and the dedication to deliver a quality newspaper by Elinor Florence in the first six years, provided a great foundation on which to build.

There are so many people to thank, too many to mention by name who have contributed to The Pioneers success. In the past four years that I have been the publisher of The Pioneer under the ownership of Robert W. Doull, there has been no lack of engagement from the community.

Rural communities tend to love or hate their local paper (there is often no middle-ground), and an engaged readership is crucial to a community newspaper. Without it, we would be nothing. On the wall in my office, there is a quote: Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides. And we do; we get it from both sides. You, the reader, are the barometer that tells us if we are doing our job. We thrive on the connection with the community. We love the stories we get to hear, the outpouring of passionate opinions. Not to mention the Cheers and Jeers written late at night that we would never print, even if the writer didnt send us a frantic plea via email the next morning to disregard their midnight rant.

The staff have been nothing short of amazing, every day giving it their all, owning the responsibility to deliver The Pioneer newspaper that everyone loves.

A big thank you goes out to our loyal advertisers. Without you, this newspaper would not be what it is today. Your support over the past 10 years has given the community this newspaper, and has given our staff a great job to go to with a pay cheque to support their families and to spend in our communities supporting other businesses. These have not been easy years. The economic downturn in the Columbia Valley has prompted us, like many other businesses, to look at different ways to do business, think outside the box and dig deeper. Together we will be successful.

To another ten years!