Reflecting on 35 years

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By Nick Seebruch
Reflecting on 35 years

Reaching 35 years in business is no small feat. Seaway News reached this milestone this month through the dedication of many employees over the years, and also through the support of our community. We are so grateful to have the trust and support of our readers in Cornwall and SD&G, trust and support I believe we have earned thanks to our unceasing efforts to reliably serve them throughout the past three and a half decades.

Our commitment can be seen in print every week, having never missed an issue whether it be through holidays, the great Ice Storm of ’98, and now through a pandemic. Seaway News has continued on and has supported community organizations and businesses ever since 1985.

As a weekly, community newspaper, we provide a service to Cornwall, SD&G, and Akwesasne that cannot be found anywhere else. Namely, a reflection of the people that make up our community and access to that community to businesses in a way only a a media outlet like Seaway News can offer.

Being a community newspaper gives us a distinct flavour and purpose. A part of that purpose means serving as an advertising platform that offers businesses direct access to their client base. Our advertisers know that the clients they want to reach are not going to be found by advertising in national papers or in television, and we certainly have a further reach than a simple billboard.

Cornwall Seaway News is in over 30,000 homes throughout Cornwall and SD&G every week, and our monthly website traffic is in the hundreds of thousands. This is the value we offer to local businesses, a value dependent on our faithful coverage of our people, our readers, our community.

We have this kind of support from our readership because our stories reflect what is important in their neighbourhoods and in their daily lives.

In 35 years, we have covered United Way campaign kickoff breakfasts, county fairs, every Santa Claus parade, and fundraisers of all kinds. Often you will see familiar faces in front of the camera too, not just behind it. Since co-founding Seaway News in 1985, Rick Shaver has been involved in the community throughout the years. If not supporting community events and organizations through volunteering, he is supporting them through Seaway News with coverage and advertising.

An important part of the character of a community paper is the ability of the community to see itself in its pages. One of the first things I learned as an Editor of a community paper early on is the importance of faces. Faces, the faces of their neighbours and friends, should be what our readers see on the front page every week.

We provide more than news, we provide a voice for the community. We have always had a roster of columnists. These columns are not syndicated, but are written by local people, the neighbours of our readers.

We have always maintained our Scuttlebutt section where our readers send in their comments, their thanks and show their appreciation for each other.

Additionally, we must and do provide news for our community. A study conducted by the University of Notre Dame in the United States found that when a community in that country lost their community paper, their taxes went up, because there was no one there to hold politicians accountable. Seaway News is dedicated to covering council news, news from the provincial MPP, the federal MP, school boards, the health unit, and everything else relevant to the lives of our readers so they can remain responsible informed citizens.

The past 35 years have been an honour for us at Seaway News to be the community newspaper for Cornwall and the surrounding Counties of SD&G. You, our readers, can count on us to continue to be a reflection of our community, and a valuable platform for local businesses.

As always, if you have a comment on this column or any other topic, email me a Letter to the Editor at nseebruch@seawaynews.media

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