Last January, after months of discussion and a bit of research, we sent a four-page newsletter to 3,000 homes in Falcon. We referenced it as a news brief and called it The New Falcon Herald in memory of Falcon’s former weekly newspaper, The Falcon Herald, which was inaugurated in 1890.In our first “news brief” we referred to the old newspaper as one that might have been “chock full of articles about homesteading and ranching, the goings on at the six town saloons and the pool hall, the visitors in and out of the two train stations – and a few ads citing the best deals at Falcon’s two general stores and blacksmith’s shop.”In The New Falcon Herald, we presented a tidbit of historical information and news from – what else – School District 49. A mill levy override had not passed in 2003 either, so we interviewed then superintendent, Mark Maksimowicz. (No offense, Mark, but the name Ron Wynn is easier). Our sole advertiser in our first newspaper was Frank Patton from Frankie’s Too. He thought he was opening in January or February. We all know that took longer.We started out believing the NFH would be a monthly newsletter – maybe six to eight pages long – directly mailed to select mail routes. We planned to add new mail routes as we grew. Well, we grew all right. We grew right out of the newsletter/news brief business and into the NEWSPAPER business – in ONE month.After the first NFH circulated through Falcon, we were inundated with phone calls from potential advertisers and people interested in what we were doing. All of a sudden, we were not sure what we were doing. Within about two weeks, we had to hire a graphic designer and a new printing company.Falcon was ripe for a newspaper. We were in the right place at the right time, and somehow we managed to pull off our February issue – a full-blown 12-page newspaper. In March, we went to 16 pages and by June, we were at 32 pages. Whew!Luckily, we ventured in to this business with experience in marketing and the newspaper business, but our growth has truly been about the entrepreneurial recipe for success – find a need and fill it.And with humility and respect for our readers and advertisers, we hope that we have filled a need in Falcon. We are still contemplating our next move. Do we go to a bi-monthly newspaper? Is there enough news for a weekly newspaper? But we don’t want to fix what isn’t broken.When we started out, there were no Shops at Woodmen Hills, there was no Gameland, Dollar Store, etc. And one year later, we are as amazed as you are at the growth (and we are trying to keep up with it).During the past year, we have made mistakes and angered a few people. We upset one City Council woman and probably a few county deputies. The Monkey Chronicles (compliments of one of us) has chartered a controversial course on a few occasions – one that has opened up debate and some great dialogue – and that’s the purpose of an editorial. We have managed to misspell a name or two and forget something in an ad, and we weren’t on friendly terms with D 49 when we managed to displace two editorials – one pro and one con – on the school mill levy issue (see corrections).That’s the newspaper business. You can’t be in front of the public on a regular basis and expect to please everyone all the time. However, we can assure you of one thing: The NFH is not about sensationalism, negative reporting for the sake of it or competing with other newspapers. We do not steal advertisers or stories. We believe our newspaper speaks for itself. We’ve tried to be above board with our newspaper, but don’t get that confused with some of the issues we’ve covered. A good story always shows both sides, and sometimes the truth hurts – at least one side.We’ve tried new things and eliminated what we didn’t think worked. And we are always open to ideas, and we encourage you to participate – let us know what you think and call us if you have a story idea. You are our future.We quoted Robert Noyce, the founder of Intel, in our first edition of the NFH: “Don’t be encumbered by past history; go off and do something wonderful.” We set aside those fears and doubts when we started The New Falcon Herald, and we hope we created something wonderful – for sure, we’ve had a wonderful time. We’ve enjoyed meeting and working and interacting with all of you. With that same spirit, we embark on year No. 2. And thank you so much for supporting year No. 1.Happy New Year everyone!-Michelle & MarylouThe New Falcon Herald owns all written material in this publication. We reserve the right to refuse advertisements.CORRECTIONS FROM DECEMBER:In our Falcon Limelight article on Loni Conder – Falcon resident and artist – we misspelled Conder a few times – the correct version is Conder, not Conder and Loni, not Loni. Also, we referenced her painting on the 2002/2003 front cover of the Falcon/Peyton Phone Directory as an oil painting, and it was a watercolor – the medium of choice for Loni these days.In our “Shopping Falcon for Christmas” article, we left out Richardson’s Western Supply and Trailer Sales and the Big R – our apologies!CORRECTIONS FROM NOVEMBER:In our editorial section, we accidentally ran two editorials together – both on the mill levy – one for and one against. We ran Mr. Keen’s (against) back to back with the school district’s (unsigned). Our apologies to D 49 and to Jack Keen. Because of this, we are not accepting editorials unless they are signed.A THANK YOUThanks to Darren, a Falcon resident, who helped a Falcon publisher who doesn’t have a clue about the cost of trailers. Darren: You restored my faith in the human race. Thanks!We are now offering subscriptions for those residents who are not included in our direct-mail zone. Our subscription price of $18 per year covers postage costs. Call 229-2970 or 484-0384 to order your subscription.
