people

ON SOUTH 14TH STREET

Donna Cronk

Donna Cronk is Neighbors and Her Magazine

editor of The CourierTimes. She is also author
of a published novel,
Sweetland of Liberty
Bed & Breakfast and is
at work on a sequel.

By DoNNA CroNK

dcronk@thecouriertimes.com

wo summers ago, I
almost left the
newspaper business.
An acquaintances
Facebook post led to
first an inquiry, then a
discussion, about a
public relations position under construction. Would I be interested? After an interview and more talks, a
date was set for me to
attend a board meeting. If the board voted
me in, I would walk
out of there with a
new job.
I told few people.
How do people do
this? How do they
explore new territory
on the sly? I felt like I
was cheating on my
love because I had a
job interview.
Still, I was certain
this was the opportunity I was awaiting.
But as the date to
accept the job neared,
doubts emerged.
Maybe, I told myself, I
could see if the The
Courier-Times publisher would let me
keep editing Her Magazine on the side. Perhaps, I reasoned, I
could submit the occasional feature story to
the paper. Who knew?
I could possibly still
write a column.
I said I wanted a
new start. In effect,
though, I was figuring
how to keep my old

Friday, October 16, 2015 | 175th Anniversary

page 46

job while starting a

new one.
Exactly 24 hours
before my appointment in another county at the meeting that
would determine my
fate, something happened: I knew I
couldnt go. As painful
as it was to let down
someone who had
invested a good bit of
time in me, and as
shocked by my call as
I knew she would be, I
withdrew my name.
I might have taken
the job if it hadnt
been, ironically, for
the goodbye column I
had already started
writing earlier that
week. I wrote about
how since age 16, all I
ever wanted to be professionally was a
newspaper reporter. I
reflected on some of
the intriguing personalities I have written
about over what was
then 24 years. I mentioned the people I
met at the C-T that
became not just
friendly, but true-blue
friends.
How do you know if
you are real friends
and not just work
buddies? Simple. Its
when you visit away
from the office, there
is so much material to
cover, you may never
even once mention the
newspaper.
I spoke, in that column that never saw

light, of the magic I

still feel at a newspaper. You are part of
creating a completely
new product every day.
Who does that?
Retired C-T News
Editor Sharon Godsey
used to call it another miracle on South
14th Street. And it is
no less than that.
Newspapers make
mistakes. They sometimes spell words
wrong or have typos
or a story jump goes
on a page other than
what is planned. And
there is no more surefire way for a piece to
get bumped for space
reasons than if you
promise someone a
run date. But boy, its
a miracle nonetheless,
to watch and play a
role in how the whole
thing comes together.
It begins with nothing but the masthead.
In goes the advertising
that pays for the whole
operation and the
reports from meetings
that reporters have
covered the night
before. The police
reports, obituaries and
fire runs are compiled,
as is the breaking
news that can take you
on unexpected assignments from a visit to
your town by a future
U.S. president to a
horror of a murder to
the joy of new jobs
coming to town.
Added is a light feaNew Castle, Ind.

Photo by Pat Guglielmi

Former newsroomies and family gathered at John Guglielmis New Castle home in July 2014 to celebrate John Hodges retirement as
sports editor. From left, Franki Zile, former reporter, now teacher; retiring sports editor John Hodge; Sandy Moore, retired reporter and
advertising rep and her husband, Mike; Sharon Godsey, retired news editor; Ron Godsey, retired composing department employee;
Brian Cronk, husband of Donna Cronk, current Neighbors and Her magazine editor; Lydia Hines, daughter of Jeremy Hines, former
sports editor and assistant editor and sports reporter; Celia Burns, occasional travel contributor and wife of David Burns, photographer; and John Guglielmi, retired photographer.

ture story about a local

person. Its compiled,
confirmed, written,
edited and sent on to
fill those white pages
that rapidly turn to
black and white to be
read all over (with
some color photos
besides).
It is an astounding
thing to see this creation take shape. It is
history being made.
There will never again
be a newspaper exactly
like the one you are
creating on any given
day. When you write
for a newspaper, you
are a part of a community and its life and
times in a unique way.
You are there when
New Castle, Ind.

everything happens. I
know; this is an oldschool feeling about a
media outlet that has
so much more competition than was even
imaginable for 200
years. I think back to
the last milestone at
this paper, the 150th
anniversary. We had
just gotten a press capable of printing processed color. We had no
email or internet.
At the C-T, we have
a saying that the newspaper is The Hotel
California. To take liberties with The Eagles
classic song, if you
have worked for a
newspaper, namely
ours, you can check

When you write for a newspaper,

you are a part of a community
and its life and times in a unique
way. You are there when
everything happens.

out any time you like,

but once youve been
here, you can never
really leave. The C-T
remains a part of
everyone who has ever
worked here.
I was here 25 years
ago when we celebrated
150 years. Im proud to
page 47

people

ITS A MIRACLE A DAY

be here now, observing

our 175th. I have no
delusion that a quarter
century from now, Ill
still be here cranking
out copy. Ill be 81!
However, if asked, I
just might have a column left in me, one for
old times sake.

175th Anniversary | Friday, October 16, 2015