Editorial by Bobby Tingle

 

A history column, written by Mike Louviere, and published in the Saturday edition of The Orange Leader, has become a weekly favorite of mine.

He has uncovered some very interesting facts and related some intriguing anecdotes over the past year. Based on an unscientific search, it appears his columns have been printed since November 2015.

Last week, he recounted an incident involving Alvin Granger whose heroic acts earned him the Texas Highway Hero of the Year award. Granger, with much fanfare from the local community, traveled to Austin to receive the award.

We got a glimpse into life in Orange in the 1950s in his column published September 3. He enlightened us on the recommended after school snack of the day, the traffic problems caused by motor scooter drivers weaving in and out of traffic and the Chinese Calf Auction that occurred in January 1956.

He concluded that the local newspaper, The Orange Leader, was just that, a reflection of the local community.

We strive to be that today. Our focus is on the local Orange area.

The Orange Leader, like a lot of news media outlets, is part of a group of newspapers. One of those newspapers in our group is very similar to us in a number of ways. We have been described as very different because Orange has a real sense of community, whereas the sister newspaper operates in an area lacking such a connection.

I must say I have experienced that sense of community since living and working here full-time.

Others in the community contribute regularly to our religion page. I count eight individuals who have been kind enough, caring enough and concerned enough to take their time to submit articles for publication. A group of local writers, the Orange County Christian Writers Guild, has made significant contributions. They claim since doing so their membership has grown. Folks in the community, having read their articles, have sought them out to join the group.

Several local artists regularly submit editorial cartoons. These cartoons are the artist’s opinion. Some are not very flattering; often these opinions are intended to poke fun at a local government entity or official.

We love to publish school news, honor rolls, church events and activities of charitable organizations. These groups contribute to a community calendar of events. I like to think of it as a community bulleting board for promoting local events.

Press releases come in regularly and are an important part of our news reporting.

Just this week a young man who recently finished boot camp and his grandmother stopped by the office with information for a contribution to the paper. We were able to honor this new marine on his success with a published photo and announcement.

These are just a few of the normal week-by-week items we are privileged to communicate about Orange.

Sometimes we are criticized because we do not report everything. I confess that is true. As I write these words, we literally have more news to report than our allowable space can contain. But that is part of it also.

Our local emphasis is on purpose. In the past, we have subscribed to news services that provide news from across the state, nation and world. We no longer do that. All our news is gathered locally. We intend to keep it that way.

Let us know about your Neighborhood Olympics, church and school events and community picnics. I promise we will do everything possible to get it in the next edition.

 

Bobby Tingle is Publisher of The Orange Leader. You can reach him at bobby.tingle@orangeleader.com.