From broistas to Big Apple, it's been simply grand

I’ll never forget the morning I drove through my favorite Dutch Bros. location and was asked what I do at the newspaper. One of my stories was on the front page that day, so I simply pointed to my byline at the top of the stack of newspapers they give customers.

Upon seeing my byline, two of the “Broistas” — Lexi and Corey — retrieved a Sharpie and had me sign a copy for them.

Now, I likely will keep this memory with me forever because it was a rare moment when I felt like more of a rockstar than anything else in my career ever has, or probably ever will. But, as I prepare to say goodbye to the Coeur d’Alene Press and North Idaho, I am realizing there’s an important lesson about community journalism in there as well.

To truly thrive and excel in community reporting, you can’t just be a spectator relying on secondhand information. You have to get right into the mix and be a part of things.

You have to be all too aware that, should you report something inaccurately, you might hear about it while at your favorite restaurant or the grocery store. You have to know that community triumphs and tragedies will hit you just as hard as the people you’re sharing the news with.

And, like any good relationship, you have to build trust through communication and hard work.

For almost four years now, this community participated in that relationship with me. You have let me into your homes and trusted me with your stories. You have agreed to talk to me over the phone and struggled, through tears, as you relayed your accounts of what was likely one of the hardest times of your life. You have allowed me to be a fly on the wall and observe and engage while you celebrate all the best this community has to offer.

Most importantly to me, you’ve allowed a young journalist to develop and grow, both

professionally and personally, in a multitude of ways.

In August, I will be embarking on the next chapter in my professional journey as I begin a graduate program for Political and Global Affairs reporting at Columbia Journalism School in New York City. The one-year program, geared toward allowing journalists with previous professional experience an opportunity to learn how to specialize in a singular subject and report to a larger audience, admits only about 50 students each year.

When I arrive in the Big Apple, though, I won’t be there alone. I will be there because of the time I spent working and reporting in North Idaho. I will be there because of the strong journalistic foundation I was able to build here through a deep connection with the community.

Those lessons, both good and bad, learned from my time here will remain ingrained in my core as I continue to progress and move forward.

There’s not a big enough thanks I can give to this beautiful community for that. Nor are there the words to properly thank Mike Patrick, Maureen Dolan and the rest of the leadership team at the paper for taking a risk on a young guy without any previous daily newspaper experience. I am forever grateful for the opportunity to work here and learn this craft that I have fallen so in love with.

Although I am leaving, I would encourage each and every one of you reading this to continue to nurture that relationship with your local newspaper. I know the hard-working, amazing people at The Press will do the same.