For Christians around the world, Easter represents a time of renewal, and a time of remembrance of the death of Jesus and his resurrection. However you choose to celebrate Easter, whether it is in Church or in your backyard hunting for Easter eggs or both, we at Navarre Press wish you a day of renewal. Consider it perhaps a transfiguration of sorts; a shedding of whatever is old and stale and an embrace of new things, habits and ideas. We can all use that in our life, no matter your belief.
My column is a little shorter than usual because of Sunshine Week and the opportune timing of our commissioner deciding to answer a constituent’s letter to the editor by posting his answer to Facebook and not sending his reply back to the constituent. Mr. Cichy, veteran, copied Commissioner Rob Williamson on a letter to the editor that he sent to Navarre Press. He didn’t want to blindside Williamson – because – he is nice. However, Cichy is not on Facebook. He didn’t even know of Williamson’s reply until we emailed it to him. Instead of talking to the people, Commissioner Rob Williamson wants to talk to Facebook and have a one-sided conversation. And, he bans constituents with whom he doesn’t agree. The banned constituent has told us he is filing an ethics complaint against Commissioner Williamson. There may be more than one banned constituent. I find it ironic that the very day Commissioner Williamson leaves for Washington D.C., on his constituent’s dime (and many of them) for meetings on Defense Initiatives (of which his participation will show us zero dividends), he lashes out at a veteran who is just expressing his opinion.
Navarre Press frequently receives letters to the editor and we print them. It is a chance for citizens of Navarre and Santa Rosa County to speak their mind – about whatever is on their mind. Letters to the editor are also part of our mission statement – to be a voice for the voiceless. It is often a way for someone to express opinions; and the great thing about an opinion is it is neither right nor wrong. As constituents, the residents of this county are charged with making their opinions known so that their representatives can make informed decisions on behalf of the people who put them in office. As a newspaper, we are charged with holding the elected officials accountable and to also let them know we are watching. It’s not “gotcha journalism” – it’s ensuring that everyone follows the rules and that our taxpayer dollars are guarded and spent thoughtfully and wisely.
“Spotlight” winning best picture this week at the Oscars is a testament to the hard work of local investigative reporting that should be occurring everywhere. We know we are committed to the calling of investigative journalism at Navarre Press. If you see people squirming after a story it’s because we have hit a nerve. And, we saw them squirm on social media this week. We appreciate investigative journalism and feel it is our responsibility even though it involves a lot of time and effort – and we get a lot of grief. However, we are very responsible with the information we gather. We have been told on several occasions that we uncovered more than the subjects of our articles even knew themselves.
This Friday, the Pensacola Ice Flyers will be playing the Louisiana Icegators at Home. Santa will be there and you are asked to wear your ugliest Christmas sweater. Don’t forget, if you are a Navarre Press All Access subscriber, we have tickets for you! We also have tickets for this weekend to the Pensacola Little Theater for the showing of “White Christmas.” Last weekend we had tickets to the Pensacola Children’s Chorus and a Sinfonia Concert in Destin with a Broadway star. It really pays to be “All Access.”
We are introducing something new to the paper this week. We have a first-person story by our Copy Editor, Carmen Reynolds. This is in an effort to introduce our staff to our readers on subjects we think are of interest to you. People forget real people work at Navarre Press. We are human and have many of the same cares, interests and responsibilities as many of you. Your neighbors work here; our children went to or are attending the same schools; we worship together; play together; and we all care about Navarre and our community.
As Halloween approaches, Navarre Press would like to share with you some of the best local haunts and their stories. NOTE: Not all of these locations are open to the public. Trespassing on private grounds is a crime punishable by law. Furthermore, vandalism of any kind is also a crime. Destroying or defacing a cemetery is considered a felony, and conviction of such crimes can carry fines in the range of $5000 and/or five years in jail. Before visiting any of these sites, check to make sure they are open to the public. If they are not, obtain permission and notify the authorities before visiting.
Some inaccurate figures on Santa Rosa County tourist bed tax collections were corrected on the county’s website last week soon after the Navarre Press questioned them.
I am writing this letter in response to the article in Navarre Press, September 17, 2015, titled “Ducks, Turtles Out.” I would like to tell the rest of the story!
