Spring of 2011 Renee & I were just married, I had been working on yachts in San Diego Bay and was also selling newspaper advertising part time. As we headed into summer, the yachts were not showing up as frequently and the ad sales job was becoming frustrating.
My newspaper experience was slim to say the least. My first job ever was a paper route delivering The Boston Herald. My father worked 50 years at the same company The Boston Globe as did his father.
Dad retired while I was in college and upon graduation, I thought I could ease into a job at the Globe. He made it clear it was not happening, the industry had changed and the New York Times bought the paper. His famous line, my siblings and I still use to this day, “my connections have all dried up”.
Post college, I was working in offices and then found a career in El Segundo, CA working on tugboats and oil tankers, so began a decade plus career working on the ocean. More crisscrossing the country and I fell backwards into the newspaper industry part time in Clairemont.
Fall of 2011, I took a leap of faith and founded The Clairemont Times with the support of Renee, family and friends. I wanted to create my version of a community newspaper. At the time, the print business was in dire straits and is even worse today, however, I believed, and still do, there is a place for little neighborhood newspapers like this one.
If by now you are thinking this is some great “creating something from nothing, getting rich and living happily ever after story”…… breaking news….. it is not. I did create something from nothing and took a chance, it was a struggle then and still is a struggle today. I enjoy the job, meeting new people, learning new things and of course sharing news.
We are living in an information overload age with constant scrolling news feeds. This paper is your slowed down news feed.
There is a reason I am always shouting out the advertisers and the contributors on a regular basis in my “From the Publisher” column, it’s because without the help of so many people this paper would not exist.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not specifically thank Elaine Hall my graphic designer and layout person. She is the best in the business, does great work, has taught me so much and more importantly, she puts up with me.
Every year around this time I am always thinking about the business, reflecting on the past, thinking about the current operation and wondering what the future holds. This is and always will be a work in progress.
Thank you to all the readers I appreciate the support.
