Thanks for Your Support

Twenty years ago this paper's predecessor, The Southside Neighborhood News, published its first issue. Ten years later, the "Southside" went city-wide as The Hartford News. And it was in 1989 that Lynne Lumsden, my wife, and I acquired the business from Southside's founder, Bob Pawlowski. In looking over some of the early issues of The Southside, it is clear that the publication has gone through significant changes, as has this city.

In the early years, this paper's news was dominated by neighborhood groups confronting City Hall and the corporate community over issues like linkage, tax differentials, housing development, support for small businesses, etc. There was a clear division between the "fat cat" corporations and the neighborhoods. The Southside served as the voice of neighborhood interests, demanding a fair deal from those in power. There was often a "we versus they" editorial position too.

But how times have changed in Hartford. Former HART members now serve as Mayor and minority leader; and our deputy mayor is a former neighborhood activist. It is no longer assumed that those in power have to be confronted in order to get them to do what is right. Everyone seems to agree now that, for the neighborhoods to succeed, the whole city has to work together to help homeowners and small businesses by lowering taxes, improving the schools, creating more jobs, and providing better police protection.

The neighborhood groups now have their seat at the table, and it is as much their responsibility to find solutions to problems as anyone else's. The corporate community no longer controls the city; in fact many residents now wish some of the formerly visible corporate powers would get more involved in the future of Hartford.

The Harford News has also changed. There are fewer stories about protests and more about cooperation between groups working to solve the city's problems. We also try to report on Hartford, not so much as a city of divided neighborhoods, but as a richly diverse cultural community. We try to focus on the positive by reporting on our school children, church groups, local sports, senior activities, local politics, arts and cultural groups, and so much more.

The fact that The Hartford News has succeeded in covering community news for 20 years is a tribute to the wonderful people who have given so much of themselves to this paper, for so little financial reward.

For reasons that are hard to understand, many advertisers do not appreciate the need to reach you, the readers of The Hartford News. The loyal support of our major advertisers, whom you see represented in this issue, has been crucial to our continuation. Believe me, we celebrate your business! Without you we would have had to close our doors long ago. We work hard every week to make the pages of the paper more informative and interesting to read in order to make it a more effective advertising vehicle, as well as a voice for those who often have no other media access. Hundreds of people have worked on the paper over the years, many student interns and young freelancers were able to get their first real-world publishing experience with us and have gone on to successful careers in journalism, writing, graphic arts and publishing.

Others have stayed with us through the years. Photographer Juan Fuentes handled the production on the first issues in 1977. Ethel Austin and Fernando Rosa have been contributing their columns for over 17 years. I don't think Ethel has ever missed a week writing "Senior Scene." And her column is always in on time too! The staff we have now is the greatest. Multi-talented general manager, Andy Hart is a life-long Hartford resident who grew up on Canterbury Street in Blue Hills. He excels at every aspect of publishing the paper - he's an award-winning photographer, a talented graphic artist and ad designer, an excellent reporter and art critic, and an advertising salesperson. In addition to all that he still delivers the paper to downtown locations. Don Rully covers more events and writes more stories every week than any one reporter should have to. Janice Ford has the impossible task of covering 32 schools in the city while selling ads and handing special issues. She is everywhere. Photographer, Tony DeBonne has been taking pictures in Hartford since 1942 and still gets around to events that are happening today. Robert Molden has also not missed a week in five years of distributing the paper throughout the city. Liz Noli has joined our design team and shares her creativity with our clients. Julia Frederick Daddi has also turned our classified section into a much larger and very useful part of this paper, while charming her advertisers.

Southside Media has had to develop other businesses to help support The Hartford News. Earlier this year we joined forces with Hipolito Cuevas to start El Reportero as a Spanish language supplement to The Hartford News. We hope that it will grow and perhaps become a stand-alone newspaper distributed to the Hispanic community throughout all of Greater Hartford. We are also co-publisher (with Thom Harris and Mike McGarry) of Hartford Tonite!, a monthly arts and entertainment magazine that focuses on events and attractions in Hartford. Other Southside Media publications include the "Welcome to" series of small town booklets, managed by Carl Candels, and a group of guides and directories produced in collaboration with Rosemary McCarthy.

We look forward to the future and hope that The Hartford News continues to play an important role in the community by reporting on positive news in the city. We want to recognize and acknowledge all those in Hartford who are excelling at what they do and making positive contributions. We also want to provide entertaining coverage of local sports and special events, and continue to give you informative articles and columns that will help our readers in their daily lives.

And we want to do more. But we would need more pages to give adequate coverage to the many deserving people and events. We already have the largest readership of Hartford residents of any of the local weekly papers, but we need to try harder to find out how to make the paper a better choice for advertisers. Advertising dollars ensure more pages. You can help us. We need you to write letters about what you want to see in the paper, and we need you to tell our advertisers that you read about them in The Hartford News. Together we will continue to be a strong voice for the City of Hartford. Thanks to all of you who read and contribute to our publications.