When you take a job, you don’t always know what to expect.
As I commuted by Route 116 from Cheshire to Greenfield for a month and a half in 2021 when I was trying to find an apartment, I often wondered what I had gotten myself into, as I covered a whirlwind of graduations, government meetings and what had felt like a never-ending avalanche of local news.
Four years — and hundreds upon hundreds of stories later — I am so grateful I took the plunge and landed in Franklin County.
With Thursday marking my last day at the Greenfield Recorder, I’ve done a lot of reflection, and while reporting the news may come naturally, writing about myself is quite difficult, so I’ll keep it brief.
I am heading east of Interstate 495 to Weston to join the Weston Observer, a new, nonprofit newspaper where I will serve as the assistant editor/reporter — think player-coach, like Celtics legend Bill Russell — covering all aspects of the town of nearly 12,000 residents. In a fun twist, I’m moving from one of the oldest newspapers in the country to one of the newest. Additionally, transitioning from a place with centuries of established news media coverage to face a new challenge of rebuilding media relationships is an exciting prospect.
As I head out to eastern Massachusetts, Franklin County and, in particular, the wonderful towns of Conway, Deerfield, Sunderland and Whately, will always hold a special place in my heart.
I cannot thank this community enough for entrusting me with delivering stories on town government, house fires, local history, education and the odd sporting event here and there. In what was my first job after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Boston University, I have been to nearly every nook and cranny of Franklin County (Monroe still eludes me) and will be taking these experiences with me for the rest of my life. The hospitality of this region is unmatched, as town officials greeted me with smiles as I introduced myself at town halls from Charlemont to Orange and Sunderland to Northfield.
With my departure, I just want to thank each and every person who has ever worked with me on a story or who has read a story in the Recorder. Local news is only as strong as the community around it and everywhere else in Massachusetts would be a little better off if it took some lessons from Franklin County.
So, please continue supporting local newspapers, as well as local TV and radio stations, as you really don’t know what you have with community news until it’s gone.
All of this is to say: Thank you, Franklin County, I hope you have appreciated me as much as I have appreciated you.