As I sit writing this column, the cheesy video for the ’90s hit from Boyz II Men, “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday,” instantly comes to mind.
The group’s three members stand around a coffin sadly serenading times lost, finally dumping out a 40 oz. bottle of some sort of liquid (presumably malt liquor) on the camera from a first-person perspective.
On Aug. 23, I will dump out my 40 to the Reporter and a world I’ve known the entire 11 years of my professional career — print journalism.
A technical writing job at a Fortune 500 company was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up — especially with a growing family. My wife, Melanie, and I, have our first baby due in a few short weeks.
While I look forward to what the future holds, I will never forget the past.
As the last remaining original member of the Issaquah/Sammamish Reporter, I possess a lot of pride in this paper.
I was hired just days before the first edition was scheduled to come out, Sept. 14, 2007. Admittedly, I didn’t know much about Issaquah or Sammamish at the time. I was only aware as the new paper on the block, I had to soak in a lot of information quickly, and produce a near flawless product.
It didn’t take long for those uncomfortable feelings of not knowing the community for Issaquah and Sammamish to become my second home. Covering the highly successful local teams and meeting great kids, coaches, community members and coworkers made it a pleasure to come to the office every day.
Skyline’s run of four football championships in five years (I missed covering the 2012 title), stepping into the New York Yankees’ locker room to interview Issaquah grad Colin Curtis and standing shoulder to shoulder with actor Will Smith on the sideline of a nationally televised high-school football game remain highlights of my time here.
In reality, I’ve enjoyed every feature story I’ve done, no matter how small or large. Heck, I’ve even had fun covering city government the last year and a half — something I was unsure of at first.
There are a lot of great people in the Issaquah-Sammamish area who make it easy to write interesting stories. To all of you, it is hard to say goodbye.
Thank you for the last six years and please continue to support community newspapers. Don’t underestimate their value and the hard work that goes into them.
