From the Editors: Aug. 2022

YummyBuum

To all our readers and advertisers: Thanks for continuing to stoop to our level. We apologize if we've caused you any undue strain over these past 12 years. It was only ever our intention to get on your level — to see things from your points of view, from within your neighborhoods and businesses, to understand and defend and advocate.

The fact of the matter is we look up to you. We know we're "not a real newspaper" (U.S. Representative Mike Kelly said so, so it must be true) with "no circulation" and "no subscriptions," so it means a lot to us that you'd still pick us up off the sidewalk regardless.

That same place, by the way, where print journalism has been making a living since the very beginning — at ground level, within the community, approachable and accessible. And where, at least as far as the City of Erie is concerned, Congressman Kelly has seldom been seen during his 12 years in office, despite it being the largest population center in his 16th District.

We are exactly where we should be, and so are the small, local businesses who — as Kelly so condescendingly pointed out — "foolishly" advertise within these pages. We believe that what we lack in glossy print and cologne samples we more than make up for in outreach, and a connection with our readership that as Erie's only locally owned independent media outlet we are uniquely positioned (and duty-obligated) to maintain.

"Distractions" like Congressman Kelly's frivolous lawsuit threats (in response to Jim Wertz's Erie At Large opinion column, "A Congressman and a State Senator Walk Into a Bar") only serve to take our focus away from more important matters at hand.

Like giving back. Although it's something we should make a habit of throughout the year, Erie Gives Day is one of the best and most impactful places to start. The Erie Community Foundation's annual online charity drive is the marquee event for local philanthropy, raising millions upon millions of dollars for area nonprofits over the past 12 years and counting. Log onto eriegives.org between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 9 and support the causes you care most about.

We'll be there. And we'll be here for you — in your grocery and convenience stores, cafes and restaurants, public marketplaces, online at eriereader.com, and perhaps even splayed open on the nearest sidewalk (if we switch to an "unlatched briefcase in a wind tunnel" distribution model, we'll let you know) — as we continue to invest in sharing in our community's stories and in its future.