BY SUSIE CURRIE — Our 10th anniversary issue is packed with news you need to know. But the biggest news on our end is the launch of www.HyattsvilleLife.com. Years in the making (or at least, in the pipeline), this longtime goal has become a reality under a sterling team of volunteers led by the incomparable Rebecca Bennett. Check it out, share your photos and news tips, or comment on our web-exclusive content. You’re sure to learn something about this town that most readers call home.
On the print side, we are happy to welcome Caroline Selle, who hit the ground running last month as our new managing editor. Caroline, a third-generation Hyattsville resident, is a recent graduate of St. Mary’s College and a wonderful addition to the HL&T. She’ll be introducing herself next month, but for now, be sure to read her piece on the latest in the debate over whether drive-throughs belong near the Prince George’s Plaza Metro station.
She is coming at a pivotal time in the paper’s history, as did I five years ago. When I accepted the managing-editor position, the paper was black-and-white and rarely seen outside of residents’ mailboxes. Now, we’ve gone full-color throughout, boosted our circulation by adding newsstands throughout the city and surrounding areas, and added a social media presence. We’re also fielding requests for subscriptions from people outside the city, former residents and those in neighboring towns alike.
Meanwhile, we’ve won awards in every national contest we’ve entered. At press time, we had just gotten word that Chris Currie’s “A Hyattsville Fish Story,” published in June 2013, earned an honorable mention in the crowded Best Feature category of the National Newspaper Awards.
It has been an honor to help guide the Hyattsville Life & Times through the last half of its first decade of life. In the coming weeks, I’ll be transitioning out of the print edition and into the website, helping load 10 years of back issues into an easy-to-read, easy-to-search online archive. As Hyattsville moves forward, it’s important to remember where we came from.
