A Light in the Distance

I’m encouraged that talk is now turning to when the state recovers rather than whether it’s ever going to happen. Can we all join together and shout, “Hallelujah!”?
I know that I am not alone in feeling out-of-sorts – can I say depressed? – over the past four-plus weeks due to the restrictions in place resulting from the pandemic.
And I’m one of the lucky ones; because CV Weekly is considered an essential business, I’ve been able to come to work every day. I’ve interacted with people, whether in-person or on the phone, which has helped in maintaining a sense of normalcy. However, being a reputable newspaper also means that I’ve been inundated with COVID-19 information that, with reporter Mary O’Keefe, I’ve worked hard to go through then pass along the pertinent information to our readers. For those who don’t know it, every weekday (and some weekends) we prepare an update for that day that includes COVID-19 numbers from the county and other information that we want to share immediately instead of waiting until the following Thursday’s paper. I post these on our Facebook page, share them with other pages and also send out via our e-blast. To sign up for our e-blast, send an email to our office manager at Rachelle@cvweekly.com. She’ll add you to our “blast zone” so you’ll get updates as often as we send them out – and currently those are almost every day.
Though I’ve been feeling out-of-sorts, the pandemic has provided an opportunity for our readers to offer support. I’ve shared with you before that there have financial “gifts” that have helped to ensure that the paper will continue to be produced and delivered every week. These gifts have played a huge role in our ongoing production since, as of Wednesday, no financial support has come from the numerous outlets that I’ve pursued. Since many of our advertisers have had to shut down their businesses, thus canceling their advertising, we have suffered a financial loss. However, the support by readers and those advertisers who are still in operation has been overwhelming and mood lifting. “Thank you for a really nice area newspaper,” “The CV Weekly is amazing and we look forward to it every week,” and “As I was [grocery] shopping with masks and gloves, it was so comforting to see the CV Weekly at the door … I grabbed the issue with a happy heart.” These cards all came with checks and I want to publicly thank these readers and the others who have sent us words of encouragement and support.
I am grateful to them and those in positions of power who have shared their thoughts on how the state will “reopen.” It indicates to me that at some point we will be coming out of one of the toughest times in history, though undoubtedly changed. I look forward to when we reach the end of this tunnel.