This week's edition of the Airdrie City View marked the paper’s 20th anniversary, and it also marks my one-year anniversary with the publication.
Time sure flies when you’re having fun, and I can honestly say there’s never a dull moment working as a journalist.
I embarked on a career in journalism approximately one year ago after spending several years working toward a diploma in journalism and a degree in communications. I left the safety net of a corporate job for something that aligned with my passion for communicating and storytelling. And I don’t regret it.
During my time with the paper, I have grown both personally and professionally and I’ve had lots of fun getting to know the community and the stories that excite and inform people. Some of the highlights of the past year have included covering hot-button issues during the 2021 federal election, the lack of ambulance availability in Airdrie, and public health mandates that have come and gone throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
I have also thoroughly enjoyed roaming the nearby cityscape and countryside when on photo duty for both the Airdrie City View and our sister publication, the Rocky View Weekly. Some of my favourite photo ops have included documenting Canada Day festivities at the Royal Canadian Legion in Airdrie on July 1 and attending the Airdrie & District Agricultural Society’s Art of the Harvest Festival, where I got to pet a pig. That was certainly a first for me.
My time with the paper has also been given the opportunity to merge my passion for history with my skill for journalism in the development of a monthly history column entitled A View to the Past. In previous editions of the column, I brought to light the history of some of Airdrie’s most beloved landmarks, including the Nose Creek Bridge to the Elevators, the Airdrie Water Tower, and Western RV’s Western Wayne.
Since starting a position as a reporter with the Airdrie City View, I have begun to see the city I grew up in in a whole new light. I have spent the last 12 months getting to know the community I call home a bit better, and it’s been a real privilege.
During this time, I have witnessed firsthand the resilience of my fellow Airdronians who have contended with unforeseen circumstances because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these community members have found the positive out of a bad situation and created ways to bring the community together despite restrictions, both virtually and in person when permitted.
It's safe to say the community has changed a lot in the last year, and even more so in the last 20 years.
Thank you for letting me be a part of our community’s story and playing a small role in the legacy of the Airdrie City View – a history spanning two decades.
