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The first editor of the Free Press didn’t have a nightly newsletter emailed to readers.
After all, it was 1872 and the telegraph was as hi-tech as things got.
Fortunately, the 15th editor in our 150-year history does have a nightly newsletter, and tonight I want to give thanks for how it’s allowed me to connect with readers like you over the nearly 1,000 days since COVID landed in our province.
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When the pandemic began, I had no idea these daily dispatches would bring me closer to readers and readers closer to me, especially given that this briefing began at a time when everything was suddenly being socially distanced. And yet, that is exactly what has happened, and I’m convinced that unexpected development helped me do my job during this extraordinary time in the life of this newspaper.
The latest evidence of the benefits of that relationship came as we marked our 150th anniversary at the Winnipeg Art Gallery with 150 members of our audience.
Over the course of the evening, I was able to hear time and time again from those whose pandemic journey included reading what I wrote. For some, it was a chance to say a simple thank you. For others, it was a chance to catch up because we had corresponded or chatted on the phone. One reader was kind enough to have brought me a book about E. Cora Hind, the legendary Free Press writer who was the first woman to work in our newsroom. Another handed me a lovely card with a Van Gogh painting of almond branches in bloom on the cover. “Your comments have given me comfort and inspired me to see that there is an end in sight,” was part of her message to me.
When the pandemic began, I couldn’t have imagined I would still be writing about it on Dec. 1, 2022. But as we begin our next 150 years, I can’t imagine not maintaining this newsletter connection with readers, even when this damn pandemic finally ends.
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