This is the last issue of the year, and oh so bittersweet. I am glad that I will be moving on, away from this job that has sucked a decade from my life like the machine in the pit of despair in The Princess Bride. However, there is quite a bit of sadness as I break up with The Free Press. I know that it was an unhealthy, codependent relationship, and ultimately, we can still be friends, but there is still a lingering feeling of a heavy heart as I begin to take things off the walls of my office.
Photos of staff from the first semester like Jessica Trudeau and Peter Dugre. A poster Mark Henley gave me. Letters from former editors, supportive University administrators, and Adviser Bonny Rodden. My first freelance article published last spring in the Penobscot Times, thanks to my sports reporting for The Free Press. Reminders to myself such as large signs declaring “positive,” “confident,” and “What would Colin Powell do?”
Although there are pangs in my chest, be it the stress of the last issue or the tears weeping from my heart, I leave this newspaper in good hands.
Arts Editor Christy McKinnon will be moving into my old office come the end of May as the executive editor for the ’03-’04 volume.
She has been with the paper for a year, far longer than I was with the paper when I became editor. She has improved her writing and skill set astronomically in the last year and will make a fine editor, backed by the staff base that she will have in the fall.
The news editor in the fall will be John Bronson, who has been interim news editor for the past few issues. He is a very strong writer, and his reporting skills have gotten much stronger in his issues as interim news editor. He has a lot of moxie, and his leadership qualities have really been showing in the past few weeks.
Liz Baish will be moving from the copy desk to the big computer as she slides into the production manager position. She will be laying out the paper on Friday and Saturdays, using her experience in high school and previous college newspapers, and her insatiable desire to learn as much as possible.
I will be the advertising manager, avoiding the editorial side of the paper entirely as I aim to hold up the financial aspects through my sales. I also intend to be an active member of the Student Communication Board, along with Christy and Bronson. With my additional free time I hope to contribute much to the SCB, with intention to re-establish the original goals and purpose of the organization.
The Free Press has seen so much this year, as have I at the helm. I have actively participated though my position in several different events, milestones, and experiences of the University. Christy will do the same. I am proud to pass the torch on to an enthusiastic young woman such as Christy, in a time of less conflict than the year I was brought in. There will be difficulty for Christy, to be sure. No matter how bright-eyed and bushy-tailed we begin, it is hard to know what things wait around the corner. With Christy, though, I think she will be able to face these challenges head-on. I am hoping things will be a bit easier for her, but she will have a new adviser to train, and a staff to fill out. She is not alone, however. She will be able to call on the executive editors from the past: myself, Steve Peoples, Liza Watts, Theresa Flaherty …
This year has taught me much, and I have worked very hard. I have learned about the intricacies of interpersonal relationships, the importance of taking time to just sit quietly and relax, how to interact with public figures, and to notice the little things that people do every day and let them know that I appreciate everything that they do.
I cannot thank my staff enough for all their hard work. I have seen many people come and go these two semesters, and my memories of each will linger endlessly as I reflect upon my time at The Free Press as its executive editor. I have made some very important friendships while at The Free Press, including people in other organizations such as the Portland Events Board and the Student Senate, which interact frequently with The Free Press.
I encourage everyone at USM to make the best of their time here. When I first attended USM in 1998, I went to work, I went to class, and then I went home, just like about 90 percent of the people who go here. In the last two years, I became involved, and realized just how much the University has to offer in terms of things to do, ways to improve community, build careers and friendships. It is so easy to do nothing and complain about what a crappy place and “what the hell is a student activity fee anyway? I don’t do activities! Damn!” Make use of that student activity fee. There are about a billion things to do around here. Make your money work for you – you will be rewarded in so many ways.
It is hard to believe this year is over.