LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

Dear Editor,

This week marks the end of an era for The South Reporter and journalism throughout the state of Mississippi. We’ve only been able to witness the last 30 years of the journey but we have seen every up, down, and in-between. We’ve also gotten to hear many people from Holly Springs to the Mississippi Gulf Coast tell us what a great journalist you are.

As media garners more and more negativity every day, we have watched you stay true to what journalism is meant to be — the truth. We have seen you worry on a weekly basis about being fair to every community member that you represent through the local newspaper. While the choices weren’t always easy, we know each time you made the choice that your heart and journalism integrity told you was right.

We’ve had the joy of seeing every corner of Mississippi with you. We’ve traveled all over, what felt like the world at the time, to see the Patriots, Hawks, Cardinals, Indians, and Lions with you. We got to run around behind the “bricks” in Laurel during football games and even got to hang out in the Aberdome where the legendary Bulldogs played.

There was never a day off being the children of the “newspaper man.” We shared every deadline, trip, and last minute story with you. We understood that Mondays and Tuesdays were for the community. We also knew mom would be at every game, event, or program on those nights because you weren’t going to allow us to not have one of you there.

The South Reporter won’t be the same without the “Fielder’s Choice” each week. However, no one has earned a new opportunity more than you. We can’t wait to see what you will do in your new job to continue impacting Marshall County in a positive way.

We can’t speak for the entire county, but we can speak for our family. Thank you for all of the years of covering as many people as possible in local communities. These are the people that make Marshall County and Mississippi such a great place to live, work, and worship. Without you, many of the people that deserve coverage the most, would have never gotten their fifteen minutes of fame.

Now that you’re leaving, they might be able to hire some professional proofreaders to replace us. I guess we will have to start waiting until Wednesdays to see what is happening in the hometown paper. Of course, we will need to talk to mom about whether or not this means we will have to start paying for our subscriptions.

We can’t wait for you to take your first week-long vacation of your life. We are even more glad that we can finally call you during the day on a Monday or Tuesday.

All the love,

Emma, Andy, and Erin Burleson