SCN: Its birth and the people who parent it

The newly formed Stockbridge Community News Task Force convened September 22, 2016, at the home of Jim and Patrice Johnson. Discussions focused on ways to guide and grow the new SAEF-sponsored public communications service. (L-R: Nancy Wisman, Jenn Hammerberg, Molly Howlett. Emma Lockhart, Chuck Wisman, Judy Williams, Patrice Johnson, Hope Salyer) Not pictured: Roberta Ludtke.

by Patrice Johnson, SCN board president and editor in chief

As one of the founders of the Stockbridge Community News, it is my pleasure to take this opportunity to recognize some of the talented, dedicated people whose tireless efforts brought SCN into existence and keep it humming.

In 2016, the area was losing its newspaper. Stockbridge Area Garden Club members raised concerns that without a hub for local communications, the community would lose the neighborly connections that glued it together and made it special.

Chuck Wisman, Judy Williams, and this writer took PowerPoint in hand and commenced a blitz of presentations intended to inspire local residents and organizations to underwrite and undertake the publication of a local news and information hub. To a person, our listeners agreed the community needed a news hub, and nearly all asked questions:

“What would be the costs?” “How would the service cover its expenses?” Structure? Purpose? Insurance? More than a few skeptics cast wary glances our way, no doubt questioning our judgment or wondering what nefarious, dark scheme we were hatching. “Careful,” spouses warned. “You could end up holding a tiger by its tail.”

For reasons beyond our ken, no one eagerly stepped forward to carry the torch of our brilliant entrepreneurial concept. One by one, our options slid off the table. What to do? Well, we decided, we might as well do it ourselves. After all, how much trouble could operating a news organization be?

Fortunately, high school journalism/yearbook teacher Elizabeth Cyr shared a S.W.O.T. assessment of the area’s communications needs, and she graciously explained to our blank faces that S.W.O.T. stood for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Cyr also recommended we hire an SHS graduate, currently attending Eastern Michigan.

Wisman and this writer interviewed EMU student Hope Salyer, and to our delight, the stellar candidate indicated she could be available to help design an online service and print edition. The Stockbridge Area Education Foundation expressed interest, so we drafted a market analysis/business plan and proposed an internship.

With the blessing of Ruth (Camp) Wellman, the SAEF voted to allocate funds from the Charlotte Camp Endowment to jumpstart the public service.

Nancy Wisman, Jenn Hammerberg, Molly Howlett. Emma Lockhart, Chuck Wisman, Judy Williams, Patrice Johnson, Hope Salyer, and Roberta Ludtke formed a task force. In November 2016, the Stockbridge Community News circulated a four-page print edition. A month later, SCN formed a board of directors and filed documents, officially becoming a Michigan nonprofit organization with IRS 501(c)(4) tax status. SCN was off and running.

Pictured on these two pages (apologies to anyone overlooked) are the 40-plus volunteers and assistants who contribute their time and talents to ensuring SCN fulfills its mission:

To promote the common good and welfare of residents in the greater Stockbridge area through quality, consistent collection and dissemination of local educational news and social-benefit information.

Many local groups report doubling and tripling attendance due to awareness created through SCN. Thanks to support from our readers, donors, and advertisers, our website and Facebook pages host an estimated 2,700 views each day. Our print edition, regularly 24 pages, circulates to approximately 21,000 residents in nearly 9,000 households in our 125-square-mile school district.

Some doubted our motives. Others doubted our abilities. I suspect more than a few thought we had gone soft in the head for tackling this unique and arduous public service. But here we are, grasping the tiger by its tail. We thank you and invite your continued support.