Change: The Only Thing We Can Be Certain Of
By Steve Rensberry, Editor
It is with a mountain of memories and unforgettable experiences as editor these past few years that I must bid farewell to the readers of the Times-Tribune, with Jan. 31 being my last day, and newly hired editor Kyle Cunningham coming on board this week. Kyle comes with significant experience at other community papers and I urge you to show him your support.
I first joined the paper in June of 2010, after nine years as news editor at the Edwardsville Intelligencer and roughly six years working at three Belleville News Democrat weekly group newspapers; namely, the Marissa Messenger, the Cahokia Dupo Herald, and the Highland News Leader. I had worked as a stringer or freelancer for the News Leader in the early 1990s when Jane Dotson was editor, and for the Alton Telegraph while studying journalism and political science at SIUE. I felt lucky to have enough clips and experience to be offered a position as editor in Marissa right after graduating in 1992.
It’s hard to express the gratitude I feel for the privilege and opportunity it has been, and for the large number of people I’ve interacted with and become friends with in Troy, Maryville, St. Jacob, Marine, Collinsville, and everywhere else in-between because of my work here. After close to 30 years in the newspaper business however, I’ve decided to focus on my piano tuning and service business — a secondary occupation I have had for even longer, 38 years to be exact, and which continues to demand an enormous amount of time and attention.
The Times-Tribune has been among the survivors in the land of newspapers, gaining hundreds of new subscribers just this past year due to its expansion into Collinsville, but it remains a challenge and it takes a lot of hard work. Please, support your hometown newspaper!
If there’s one thing I’ve learned as a community journalist, it’s that behind every person, family, business, and endeavor is a story waiting to be told. One just needs the patience, focus and willpower to seize the opportunity! I wish all of you the very best in the years ahead, and if you see me on the street, please don’t be afraid to say hi!
