With the start of this new newspaper, this will be my third venture into owning a business since I first took a job as a busboy at the Knights of Columbus in Crystal back in the late 70s.

I previously owned an in-line skate business in Big Lake called Sports Direct and I also ventured out on my own in the late 1990s as a graphic design business called Imagine Design.

Both ventures allowed me to “get my feet wet” in business planning, managing, inventory control, sales, advertising and marketing. 

I always felt pleased about having the opportunity to run things my own way, work my own hours and be accountable for all decisions. But it was also very scary not knowing if — week-by-week — I could pay the bills and keep my dreams afloat.

Being a sole owner of a business can also be rather lonely. No one to bounce ideas off or ask if an idea was worth pursuing. No one to share your ups and downs with or keep the ship steered in the right direction.

Having business partners this time around is glorious. Now, I can focus my mind on the parts of business I know I am good at and let others do the other parts I’m not. We (shareholders) all have our own areas of expertise which to me, makes this business venture an exciting one.

Carol, Chris, Kathy and I have over 40 years of newspaper experience to throw in the mix to make this a success. Carol is a master salesperson and has a drive to help businesses prosper. Mary Nehring is our employee and she continues to do her usual amazing job tracking down leads and landing clients. Kathy has years of experience as a Realtor and is a real people person. Her skills in learning new things and adapting to change are remarkable and bode well for our new endeavor.

Chris is the money man and will be in charge of the books and finances. He has a great mind for operational procedures and works hard to implement cost-effective processes. He is a quick thinker and has an optimism that is important for business startups like us.

And then there’s me, the creative part of the business, who will write, edit, photograph, design and lay out the newspaper to send to our printer.

And maybe take out the garbage once in a while.

It’s gonna be a challenge. No doubt. But we still believe small communities like Becker, Big Lake, Clear Lake and Clearwater want and use a local newspaper and want it to be part of their lives. We still believe local news on a printed page is better than gossip on a social media site. We still believe reaching 16,000+ people via the U.S. Mail is a more cost-effective way for businesses to advertise than some of the other advertising medias.

And the best part yet, we all believe in ourselves and in our readers and their devotion and loyalty to their local newspaper. Where else are you gonna see your child or grandchild in all their glory on a football field, soccer pitch or auditorium stage? Where else you gonna 

The St. Cloud Times? Nope. 

The StarTribune? Not a chance. 

The Elk River Star News or the Monticello Times? Not likely.

It’ll all happening right here at the Patriot. And we want to take you along for the ride. Thanks for taking the time to read us.