Letter from the publisher: Here we grow again

Dear readers,

With erasers and whiteout in hand, I am ready to move forward in 2013. I’ll spend weeks writing 2012 and needing to correct the year. Despite the advantages of digital technology, I’m still a hands-on pencil, pen and paper type of gal.

It’s sometimes hard to let go of one year and spring into another, especially if one gets comfortable in their current situation. 2012 was a good year for us, despite the challenges of staff restructuring, newspaper transitioning and a slowly recovering economy. Yet here we are heralding another new year – not knowing what lies in the months ahead, but strong enough to handle anything that may come our way. It’s all about teamwork. And as a team, we are excited, geared up and ready to start a new chapter.

Our community media portfolio continues to evolve with growth expectations in 2013. The Winter Park/Maitland Observer traditionally has covered its namesake territory and close neighbors, Goldenrod and Baldwin Park. We’ve recently expanded that coverage into College Park in an effort to incorporate our neighbor that lies just south and west of Fairbanks Avenue, which has been dubbed the future “gateway into Winter Park.” We want to integrate a complete community ambiance for both our readers and advertisers.

I’m sure you’ve noticed that we recently launched our first Ovations awards for the area, and no one knows this community better than those of you who make it great. You decide who gets “a feather in their cap” by voting for your favorite places to shop, dine and visit.

New things are on the horizon, so be on the lookout! The Seminole Voice is our sister paper, covering the Oviedo, Winter Springs and surrounding area. This community newspaper is now publishing weekly, positioning us better as the No. 1 hyper-local news source in this Seminole County area. Another periodical in our portfolio mix is Baldwin Park Living magazine, which is a niche publication serving the residents and businesses of the Baldwin Park community. We are proud to present a monthly publication that keeps them informed of community happenings and neighborhood accomplishments.

Our community newspapers and their respective websites, Facebook and Twitter sites offer our readers a variety of methods in which to gain access to news affecting their municipal area. And we invite you to engage in them all!

Our goal is always to help meet the needs of our community businesses and leaders as best we can, while reinforcing the value of our community publications and its loyal readers. I want to personally thank you, our readers and advertisers, for your loyalty and support. We are blessed and appreciative of your trust. May we make you proud!

— Tracy Craft, publisher