HOT PURSUIT

Local newspapers provide a niche that can’t be found anywhere else.

I still remember my childhood days of rushing down to the mailbox on Thursdays to get no less than three local newspapers in the same day. I even recall some sibling competitiveness with who got to see the paper first. My older brother usually won out.

While much has changed since the pre-social media days in the way we gain information, other things never change. Most notably is how local newspapers are still the heartbeat of a community. No one covers a community better than the local newspaper.

Sadly, today only one of my home area papers remains in existence. It’s a scenario that has played out across America, often shuttering and leaving communities without a voice.

For years the Steele County Times has always taken pride in being relevant to Steele County and the communities within it: Blooming Prairie, Owatonna, Medford and Ellendale. As our slogan implies, the Times is always local, all the time.

Let’s take a journey across our front pages and some of the inside pages over the past couple months to review what stories and photos have been prominently featured.

One of my favorite stories was the profile I did just last week on a West Concord couple dealing with Alzheimer’s and how they have found strength in dealing with the horrifying disease. The husband is the caretaker for his wife of 40 years. She came down with the disease at only the age 53.

Three weeks ago, we celebrated with the Blooming Prairie Cancer Group as it raised more than $100,000 from the annual Paint the Town Pink fundraiser. In the same edition, we learned about Glenda Janning’s 20-year battle with three different types of cancer. She, too, has found strength in her own attitude and faith in surviving the harrowing bouts of cancer.

In the last issue in August, we saw four “corny girls” chomping on sweet corn at the annual Corn and Brat Feed in Blooming Prairie.

Of course, we brought you pages and pages of coverage from the Steele County Free Fair, also in August. In a single issue, our post-fair coverage consisted of 80 photographs and 21 stories from the fair alone.

Back in July, we featured a young man from Blooming Prairie who enjoys “swinging for peace” as a way to calm himself after tragically losing his father a few years ago. Our photographer captured him on the swing in the city park.

We also like to take a shot at profiling new businesses like Inside Swing in Owatonna. Several golf enthusiasts are taking their own swing at opening a golf simulator and bar later this year.

My point in highlighting just a few of the stories is that you most likely won’t find them in any other media publication. That can be said for most of the other stories and photos you see on the 30 plus pages we uniquely package together every week.

Nearly 220 million American adults turn to their local newspapers regularly for news and information they need to stay informed, feel more connected to their neighbors and improve their lives and communities.

I hope you will agree that journalists are filling an important role in the health of our communities and country. Newspapers are crucial to our communities in many ways.

Next week marks National Newspaper Week, a week-long promotion of the newspaper industry. This year’s theme is “In Print. Online. For You.”

Don’t underestimate the significance of your local newspaper. It’s a responsibility that we don't take lightly and do it for the betterment of our communities. Our team is proud of the work we do, and we hope you will continue to support our efforts to bring you all the local news.

One thing is certain. You can depend on us to stay informed as we go in hot pursuit of covering the local news.