When I first accepted the job at the Hollister Free Lance almost
a year ago, the hope was that this would be the last stop of a
nomadic 27-year career.
When I first accepted the job at the Hollister Free Lance almost a year ago, the hope was that this would be the last stop of a nomadic 27-year career.
A nice, quiet town to work 10 more years until retirement. Maybe, just maybe, finally settle down and enjoy the wealth of experience that doing just about every job there is at 13 different newspapers would bring.
Fitz’s Band on the Run would play its final gig in small-town California.
Well, hello, is anybody home at Mike’s?
This has been Las Vegas, Honolulu and Chicago wrapped into one, with a splash of every place I’ve been.
It has not been quiet or final. But it has been fun.
And I have learned this over the years: We’re not here for a long time, we’re here for a good time.
I’d like to write that I’ve been kicked out of better joints, but I’m leaving at the end of this month completely on my own decision.
There is another good editor coming in, also with a strong reporter background, who will continue to take the Free Lance onward and upward.
The new owners, Steve Staloch and Tony Allegretti, are two good guys who care about quality community journalism, and I want to thank my past boss, Bill Barry, for giving me this opportunity.
There are too many people in the county, San Juan Bautista and Hollister to individually thank. I don’t want to trust my malty memory to remember you all.
But I do want to say cheers to my pals at Whiskey Creek Saloon. They are the blue collar thread of Hollister and have been so very kind to me – along with providing some great story ideas and a million laughs.
Most of all, I want to thank my co-workers at the Free Lance and especially the newsroom staff.
Kollin, Erin, Morgan, Nick, Terri, Nathan and now Christine are not the future of good journalism. They are good journalism. They brought the energy and dedication and commitment that was missing at the Free Lance. I will miss them individually and as part of a terrific team.
They are the reason that the newspaper has improved so dramatically. Thank you for welcoming them into your homes and hearts and for sharing your stories.
I have kept one promise to myself and my family when I took this job, and that was to be honest in every way. It paid off with trust and confidence in what we are doing here at the Free Lance.
It showed me once again what my dad taught: You get paid for hard work, not for lies and deceit. It’s sad that some have not learned that valuable lesson in life.
I am blessed with a network of good friends from Hawaii to Florida, Chicago to Texas. My destination at this minute is simply the good old road.
Helen Keller said: “Life is a daring adventure or nothing.”
A book on my many years in the newspaper business is hopefully on the horizon. Writing is a passion that still makes my heart pound.
“Write with your mind and your heart,” Sister Mary Faith Schuster told me long ago.
Thank you good people of Hollister and San Benito County. Best wishes to each of you, personally and professionally.
We have worked very hard at the Free Lance to improve your daily hometown newspaper and that is very important to me.
Thanks again for all of your friendship, support and kindness.
I’ll never forget it.
