Whether it is a message in 2014, 2019 or today, the messages I receive from survivors is what reporting is about and should be

 

Thank you for your work in Humboldt. It is so hard to get information and as a survivor of someone you have been covering, you were the only place to find information that allowed me and my daughter to feel safe. 

California let us down and we return to our lives of fear, but for that time he was in jail, your reporting kept us informed. I cannot believe they would allow a three strike felon to trade it for a misdemeanor, I wish they knew how many things this man has gotten away with in his life. 

Thank you for all that you do.

I miss Humboldt so much and life is so much harder when you have no family, but even thousands of miles away, that man scares me. 

Thank you again for your work, I truly appreciated being able to know what was happening and had over a year where I could sleep knowing he was behind bars where he belonged. 

This is part of an email I received today. There are those who say they believe in God and there are those who live it through their actions and their lives.

If you have followed my reporting in Humboldt from the beginning, the emails and messages I have received from the survivors over the year are the ones that matter. 

These are just two of them.

From my very first job as a journalist in Philadelphia right after college, even when I worked in traditional, mainstream media; my reporting included  news that helped gave survivors a voice. At that time, I had editors and publishers and there were weeks I had to convince them to cover those stories in meetings versus the fluff some advertiser wanted. I put in the extra time; if needed.

Now, I am my own boss. I don't have sales reps.  I don't have a steady paycheck every Friday. I still do the reporting. I am the sales rep.  I am very grateful to those who support my work in Humboldt.