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We want more input from you, the community

It has been about two months now since the Lacombe Express first came to be with its inaugural edition on April 25.

It has been about two months now since the Lacombe Express first came to be with its inaugural edition on April 25. Since then, the paper has slowly begun to grow.

I find that I am more often being recognized when I attend events to cover them. When I am recognized, people often ask me how the paper is doing. My answer of course is that the paper is doing well. Our presence in the area we serve has become more prevalent, more people are reading the paper and as I said, more people actually know who I am when I show up to take photos of their concert, sporting event, or other special occasion.

While it is true that the paper is doing well, the Lacombe Express still has a lot of growing to do. We need a little help to do it too. Your help, to be precise.

That’s right, we want you, the readers, to help us become a bigger, better, stronger community newspaper. In fact, we rely on it to a certain degree.

A lot of people often think that newspapers are responsible for covering news and therefore should know everything that is going on. However, it is difficult to know about all of the goings on in Blackfalds and Lacombe without anyone telling us about them.

Now, I’m not saying I don’t go out looking for stories on my own. Indeed, I am always searching for and researching story ideas to fill the paper each week, but often I hear of something I missed simply because I didn’t know it was going on.

Thus, I am asking you, the readers, for a little help.

As I said earlier, the recognition of the Lacombe Express is growing, and people have already started to become involved with the paper. Even as I write this column, I am frequently interrupted by the ringing telephone as people call me to inform me of events and story ideas in the area.

It is something I am always delighted to hear as it is always a good thing. Having said that, more is always better in this business and I’m always looking for more story ideas.

Newspapers, particularly community papers such as this one, do best when members of the public get involved. Community involvement helps us know what our readers want to see in the paper, what events going on in the area are worth covering and help create discussion within the paper and the community.

That is the key to a community paper, the community. Community newspapers can only succeed as such when the community gets involved in the paper. Otherwise, we are just a weekly collection of stories that the community may or may not care about.

Keep in mind also that we serve more than just the City of Lacombe. Events and stories happening in the Town of Blackfalds and Lacombe County are also of interest to us. There is more than enough room in the paper for stories concerning all of these municipalities, so please, if you live in these areas, or know of something happening within them, let us know.

There are many ways to get involved with improving and growing the Lacombe Express. Readers, send us your letters to the editor, we want to hear your opinions. Clubs, send us your contact information and meeting times, we want to know what you are up to. Coaches, send us your team rosters and schedules, we would love to cover your games.

If you have something you think would be of interest to our readers, please send it along to me at news@lacombeexpress.com. If you have a story idea or other suggestions for the editorial content of the Lacombe Express, give me a call at 403-782-5306. I would be happy to hear from you and am always looking for more content and input from the public.

news@lacombeexpress.com