I generally like to end a year with reflection and prediction. This week I want to highlight some of my articles from this past year, and next week I will take a stab at what we might expect in 2022.
First off, I want to thank all those who have spoken to me personally or written comments to let me know your opinions about my articles. Feedback is tremendously helpful as it lets me know what stories resonate with our readers. One way that I get feedback is from the number of reader hits that show up on the Webb Weekly website (www.webbweekly.com). In 2021, I did 43 County Hall Corner articles, 13 LION articles, and two cover stories. These totaled nearly 25,000 reads which I deeply appreciate.
Five stories stood out for me personally, which I will list in chronological order. The first was the March 31st cover story on Noah Kriger, a second-grade student at Cochran Elementary School who spearheaded an area litter cleanup on Earth Day, Saturday, April 17th, in lieu of presents for his birthday. I cannot remember when I had more fun doing an interview and being inspired at the same time as with little Noah.
The article “A Wolf in Wolf’s Language,” published in the April 7th edition, discussed the two proposed Pennsylvania Constitutional Amendments that would limit a governor’s emergency powers. I wrote how deceptive the wording was of these amendments, and apparently, it was quite popular because it had the most number of reads of any article I ever wrote, almost 3,000.
The second most hits I ever received was on Jeff Hutchins, Lycoming County’s Director of Public Safety, which I featured as a LION article in the April 28th edition. Hutch, as he is popularly known, has possibly the hardest job in the county given the vast responsibilities of the Public Safety Department. If Noah Kriger was one of the most inspiring persons I ever interviewed, Hutch would be very high on the list of most respected ones.
It was an honor to write the cover story for the July 7th edition, which featured the 75th anniversary of the Clinton Township Volunteer Fire Company. We honor vets, which they richly deserve, but first-responders are the community ground-pounders who should be honored as well. The strains on volunteer fire companies get greater and greater each year, which accounts for the fact that they are becoming a vanishing breed. This is what inspired “God Made a Volunteer Firefighter,” using Paul Harvey for my inspiration for the December 8th edition.
Those who might have missed these articles, or hundreds of others that I have written over the past few years, can access them on this paper’s website, webbweekly.com. And if you have thoughts, comments, or ideas on my features or wish to suggest a new topic, you can reach me by email at lionwebbweekly@gmail.com. Have a very Merry Christmas one and all.
