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Still growing strong

Valley Journal sprouts, evolves through decade

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Ten years ago the Valley Journal was nothing more than a wisp of an idea tossed back and forth on a summer breeze by four local journalists sipping sweet tea on a back porch with ambitions of launching a new, better source of media for the community. By autumn, the dream had turned into reality, and the first 5,000 copies of your homegrown newspaper rolled off the presses and into the hands of Mission Valley folks.

As the paper celebrates its 10th anniversary this weekend, those who have been with the business since day one say it wouldn’t be possible without the support of the community, advertisers, and staffers who have worked to make the publication what it is today. 

“I am so thankful that we had such an amazingly dedicated group of people to start this paper,” said Summer Goddard, who owns the newspaper along with her husband, Boone. “Boone and I never could have done it on our own. It took everyone involved. They sacrificed.” 

The paper was born from the efforts of six original partners. The Goddards, Bernie Azure, Linda Sappington, Chuck Lewis and Jim Blow came together with an innovative approach to delivering news in a region where most of the news is delivered through sources owned by conglomerate corporations. Local owners of a “homegrown newspaper” would report on every community in the Mission Valley, with emphasis put on coverage of schools, government, sports and features. Priority was put on publishing large, storytelling, full-color photos. 

It was a bold idea with long odds of success. 

Sappington, now editor, remembers that she was confident the paper would succeed, but a bit nervous while the partners created the first edition around her kitchen table, fiercely trying to make deadline.

“I remember I went and got … Tums and poured them in a bowl. We were all so stressed,” Sappington said.

The stress wasn’t misplaced, according to Carmine Mowbray, who owned another Lake County newspaper for 18 years along with her husband Todd. 

“Starting a newspaper is like buying milk cows,” Mowbray said. “Once you commit it’s a daily, long-term responsibility. In the newspaper business, to find your niche in a market area is probably the biggest challenge.” 

Mowbray said the key to successfully running a newspaper is building it with top-notch staff, caring about readers and advertisers, and gaining credibility. 

At the end of the day newspaper work is fulfilling and important, she said. 

“A town’s newspaper is the heartbeat of the town,” Mowbray said. 

Boone believes filling a void in the community kept the paper alive. 

“Statistically, some people were probably right, we probably should have failed,” Boone said. “But there was something that was missing and we were filling that gap. People noticed right away. They picked it up. They liked it. People take real ownership of this newspaper.” 

Jackie and Mike Cripe of Jackie M’s in Polson were the first people to purchase an ad from the Valley Journal. Jackie said her business doesn’t put a lot of funds into advertising, but she and Mike do feel strongly about supporting the local business community. 

“We were so excited for Boone. How could we not buy an ad?” Jackie said. 

A decade after that fateful day Jackie said she is happy to see that the Valley Journal is still going strong. 

 “I think they’ve done a great job of informing people what’s going in the community, events, school things,” Jackie said. “They just help the community to know what is going on. They’ve given a lot of themselves and put their heart in the publication they do. They are very community driven.” 

Early advertisers like Jackie M’s helped get the Valley Journal into print, but their commitment wouldn’t have kept the paper going if there weren’t dedicated readers to pick it up. 

The partners stood in front of grocery stores handing out papers in the first weeks to get it into the hands of readers. Soon people were clamoring for copies. School officials called the paper to say they appreciated the copies that were dropped off for students to read, but asked that the delivery be made to the office so students couldn’t pick up the publication until school was out. Teachers had complained that students were distracted during class time because they were reading the paper instead of completing their coursework. 

Today there are more than 300 distribution points located from Polson south to Arlee. Circulation has grown to 8,400 copies. Thirteen staffers do the work the original six partners did. The paper’s print schedule has changed over the years, bouncing between a Thursday and Wednesday distribution date, but the paper has settled on a Wednesday publication date, with a Friday at 5 p.m. deadline for most submissions, except display advertising that has to be turned in earlier, by Thursday. 

“We felt we could be more competitive for our advertisers by printing on a Wednesday, instead of a Thursday,” Summer explained. 

One of the hardest things for the paper’s staff to do is turn away last minute Monday or weekend submissions as the paper is built on the first day of the work week, but it is necessary to ensure quality control. 

“We want to make sure we are providing accurate information in our stories and in our advertisements,” Summer said. “The way we double check facts and proof advertisements properly requires us to work ahead of the game to make sure things are correct.” 

Accepting things on Monday often leads to errors, Boone said. 

“If you see an error in the paper, there is a 90 percent chance that it was done on a Monday in the heat of getting everything done,” he added. 

The newspaper’s website, Facebook page, and Twitter account are all used to correct errors, post last-minute submissions, and break important timely news. 

The platform is still developing and Boone and Summer said they look forward to the virtual audience growing in the future. 

The Goddards said the paper’s staff is committed to adapting so it can meet the needs of the community, which is one of the reasons why sports coverage has changed format over time. For many years, the paper was committed to covering every school’s sporting events each week. Nearly half of the pages were dedicated to sports coverage. Readers requested more news and less sports, so the Valley Journal answered. 

In a more recent decision, reader requests for bigger type resulted in a font change. The paper is in the middle of a design overhaul and readers can expect to see more alterations in the future. 

“Customer service is really important to us,” Summer said. 

The Goddards hope to adapt the paper as it heads into its second decade, while staying committed to the core principles set forth by its founders. 

“We love what we do,” Summer said. “We love where we live and who we work for. We are here because of the original partners. It wasn’t one or two people. It was six, and the combination of those six who worked so hard. The Valley Journal would not exist without everyone’s hard work. We are so grateful for the many sacrifices that were made.” 

The Goddards invited everyone in the community to join the Valley Journal staff for its 10th anniversary celebration on Saturday, Sept. 20 at the Ronan Community Center. Free cotton candy, a photo booth and games will be on-site. Community members can support the Montana Kids Co-op by purchasing a homegrown dinner. Gluten-free pizza, salad and cupcakes are one the menu. The party starts at 2 p.m. 

 

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