This year, I had the honor of stepping in as CEO/Publisher of two of the oldest, surviving community weekly newspapers. After more than 20 years with The Lakeville Journal and The Millerton News, I’ve witnessed the highs and lows — including the pivotal conversion to a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2021. I am glad to report that because of your support, this has been a strong year for our local community publications.
News
Our mission is to deliver trusted local news to our communities. On that front, we have expanded the newsrooms of both The Millerton News and The Lakeville Journal which has added breadth and depth to our coverage and set us on a path to a more sustainable news operation.
This year’s reporting highlights include the invasive hydrilla threat to our waterways; the EMS cost crisis in Millerton and beyond; policy changes in our schools and challenges around a proposed merger at Sharon Hospital. We continue to cover key projects like the proposed redevelopment of the Wake Robin Inn and efforts to rebuild the pool at Eddie Collins Park.
We welcomed several new members to our newsroom, including Colleen Flynn, a Marist College journalism graduate and former intern, as a reporter for The Millerton News; Alec Linden, a recent Dartmouth College graduate, to The Lakeville Journal; and Nathan Miller, a University of Missouri journalism graduate, as Editorial & Digital Content Coordinator. Krista Briggs, with a background in journalism and education, joined us this fall as Managing Editor of The Millerton News (see story, Page A1).
In the Spring, Natalia Zukerman was promoted to Engagement Editor and worked to launch a new email newsletter titled “What To Do,” with great success. I’m excited to share that she will be expanding her editorial role to a new position of Arts, Lifestyle & Engagement Editor and will be responsible for guiding and further developing all of our arts and lifestyle coverage.
Sustainability
The sustainability of local news has been in the headlines recently and we are working very hard to ensure we continue serving our communities for the long term.
To that end, we’re building our business staff both through internal promotions, including Caitlin Hanlon’s new role as head of our Production department, and through new staff including Sally Andre as our Development Associate, and Tom Carley, a former New York Times executive, as Chief Operating Officer.
And, we have identified additional Board members rooted in our communities. This year, we were fortunate to add Henry Blodget of West Cornwall, Rob Fish of Salisbury, Meg Downey of Millerton, Scott Siegler of Sharon and Dick Hermans of Pine Plains.
Generous grants are helping to stabilize our infrastructure, including multi-year support from the Foundation for Community Health, along with contributions from the Cowles Charitable Trust and The Miami Foundation. The Google News Initiative is supporting website improvements, and LION Publishers is funding upgrades to our financial systems.
Community Engagement
This summer, we met with community members in Norfolk and Millerton to hear directly about what you would like to see in your local news source. And, we again convened a festive gathering of local nonprofits at the Street Fair in Salisbury.
And, in October, we presented the inaugural Estabrook Community Leadership award to the Harney family at a Jubilee Country Luncheon. In addition to honoring the Harneys for their community leadership and spirit, we welcomed a broad swath of community members.
The Next Generation of Journalists
We continue to nurture the next generation of journalists thanks to the generous support of The William and Mary Greve Foundation, the Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation, the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, the 21st Century Fund — along with individual donors. This year, we hosted nine interns from across the region and beyond. We are encouraged by the strong interest in our program and each “intern season” is an opportunity not just to share what we know, but to learn from these talented people.
As always, our top priority remains delivering the news and information essential to life in our communities.
Thank you to our readers, subscribers, advertisers, and donors. Your trust, partnership, and support enable us to look ahead to a strong 2025. With gratitude.
James H. Clark
CEO/Publisher
Reach out to us
Please don’t hesitate to contact me directly with questions, comments, concerns at 860-435-9873 x401 or jamesc@lakevillejournal.com.
News: Reach Editor-in-Chief John Coston at johnc@millertonnews.com, Millerton News Managing Editor Krista Briggs at kristab@millertonnews.com, and Lakeville Journal Managing Editor Riley Klein at rileyk@lakevillejournal.com.
Letters to the Editor may be emailed to publisher@lakevillejournal.com or submitted via our websites.
Obituaries may be submitted to editor@lakevillejournal.com or via our websites.
Advertising questions can be directed to Mary Wilbur, maryw@lakevillejournal.com, or Roxanne Lee, roxannel@lakevillejournal.com. And for classified line ads, Lyndee Stalter at lyndees@lakevillejournal.com.
Legal Notices can be sent to Michelle Eisenman at legals@lakevillejournal.com.
Subscription questions including new subscriptions, renewals and address changes can be sent to circulation@lakevillejournal.com.
Photo by Graham Corrigan
