My community is family: Denise Dion signs off

You are the one who gets the phone call about the Scouts restarting (who then proudly post on social media photographs of their story in the paper).

If someone has reached the end of their tether over some issue, you're the one they reach out to for help.

Sometimes you're the one who receives abusive phone calls, particularly if you have exposed a fraudster.

It's a slice of life inside a community about which I feel truly privileged to have been able to write.

I spent many years as a journalist in the UK before moving to Australia. Covering the business and industry beats of North Sea oil and gas exploration and then the telecommunications industry including the break up of the national carrier, British Telecom, I wrote for industry magazines as well as The Financial Times, The Times and The Scotsman. It took me all over the world reporting from across Europe, the USA, Brazil, Egypt and Syria.

But I had a long held desire to write for a community newspaper, which I wasn't able to fulfill until I came to Australia.

Even in small communities there are gaps in communication which lead to frustrations, incorrect assumptions, misunderstanding and lack of knowledge.

I loved that the paper helped to explain to the community the importance of somewhere like Pearls Place and why it was needed.

I am proud to say we raised the issue of lack of radiology facilities in Bega after a Merimbula woman had to be driven over Brown Mountain with a serious medical condition, for an X-Ray.

We helped to successfully advocate for breast cancer treatments to cost less with the help of SueEllen Yates who was going through treatment at the time and campaigned for the retention of Pambula Hospital.

We highlighted the tragic case of Mick and Suzanne Reynolds' son Kieran who was brain damaged during a procedure at Bega Hospital.

During the Black Summer bushfires the local newspapers helped provide information.

I well remember scanning social media on the Sunday morning at 3am as the fires came up from the south, only to realise how many other people I knew were on there at the same time.

In the chaos of those weeks I received a text message. It read: "Thanks for all you are doing to keep our community informed. I know many appreciate your constant commitment to your reporting even when your own home is under threat."

I don't think I said thank you for those kind words Sharon; to all those many people in whose lives I have intruded, thank you for sharing your stories and trusting me to do them justice.

You can't be part of a small community for more than 15 years and not feel a sense of sadness at the loss of its newspaper.

While an increasing number of our readers access local stories online, people still want to know where and when their picture will appear in the newspaper. I'd always say they will be online, but the answer so often comes back: "Yes but will they be in the paper?"

As I told one of our senior managers at ACM after we were commended for our coverage of the more recent fires in October 2023, I do it because my community is family.

They tell me what they feel - good and bad - and we are there for each other. They will proudly tell me they have subscribed or regularly buy the paper - I just try to fulfill my part of the bargain.