Word from the Board
By Patricia Lightfoot
Goodbyes and welcomes are the focus of this second in an occasional series of columns from the volunteer board of directors of the Glebe Report Association (GRA), which is the publisher of the Glebe Report.
We would like to thank former board members Beatrice Keleher Raffoul, John MacNab and Steve Zan, whose terms came to an end in June, for their many contributions, which included taking the lead on the paper’s 50th anniversary celebrations; installing, repairing and re-installing our beautiful newspaper boxes; managing the deliveries of the paper for a lengthy period; and participating in all the financial decision-making involved in the oversight of a lively community newspaper.
Even though she is no longer on the board, Beatrice still allows us to drop 7,500 copies of the paper on her porch for pickup by our commercial distributors and area captains each month. That is a lot of newspapers, so we remain very grateful for that.
In May, we welcomed two new board members, Steve Ball and Leslie Cole, both of whom by coincidence have backgrounds in publishing. Although he is now the president of the Ottawa Gatineau Hotel Association, Steve has spent 30 years in the media industry, publishing magazines that will be familiar to Glebe Report readers, such as Ottawa Magazine, Where Magazine and Canadian Health to name a few. Leslie has worked as a journalist for newspapers, magazines and radio in the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Ontario, as well as being a writer and editor for various non-governmental organizations in Ottawa.
Leslie has lived in the Glebe since 1993, with stretches living overseas in both Denmark and Norway. She and her family have been avid readers of the Glebe Report since they arrived in Ottawa, and two of her three daughters delivered the Glebe Report when they were in public school.
As a new board member, she hopes to support the Glebe Report so it continues to be a vital source of neighbourhood news in a world of fast-disappearing local media sources.
Steve, by contrast, is a fairly new Glebe resident. He has found the community to be welcoming and appreciates the strong leadership of the Glebe Community Association, which he has also served as a board member.
Steve believes that community newspapers provide a voice to the neighbourhood they represent. Furthermore, communication among residents is the foundation of a healthy community, and the Glebe Report serves this purpose well.
If you are interested in joining the board of directors or would like more information, please email chair@glebereport.ca. A background in publishing is not essential to the role; rather, we are always interested in enlisting thoughtful individuals who want to support a great community enterprise.
Patricia Lightfoot is co-chair of the Glebe Report Association Board of Directors
