Sharing the 'state of the newspaper'

Last year at about this time it was recommended to me by Waseca City manager Carl Sonnenberg that I speak to the city council and give a “state of the newspaper” summary.

 

Tuesday evening I shared the following message via speech to the Waseca City Council. 

Good evening council members.

 

Although I know all of you, some of you may not be familiar with my story. 

 

Tonight I’m going to share with you the history of the Waseca County Pioneer newspaper.  Our goals for the future and some of the benefits felt by the city and local community. 

 

My story, I always say it begins with my father. Without him and the choices he made in life and the impact he had on me, I would not be standing here today. 

 

In 1980, my dad was hired to be the sports editor of the Waseca weekly. For about six years he worked diligently doing award-winning work–a trend which continued as he moved up to newspapers in the Twin Cities, where he got his experience in a big city setting before returning south to the Albert Lea Tribune in the mid ‘90s where he worked as their sports editor until 2004. 

 

Being his son provided my first introduction to the newspaper world. I was born in 1997 and my dad, a single father of three, would frequently bring me along to work. This continued when he purchased the New Richland Star in 2004 and later the Ellendale Eagle in 2007.

 

You could say the newspaper ink rubbed off on me, literally and figuratively. 

 

When I was 15 years old, I started working for my dad as an editorial assistant. My first day began with tear sheets, the process of tearing out newspaper ads each week for every individual advertiser. I’ve held every job there is to hold in a newspaper business. From tear sheets to newspaper delivery driver to editor at 19 years old. 

 

However, not everything went as planned. 

 

When I was 19, Dad got sick and couldn’t do the newspaper anymore. 

 

My dad has a rare auto immune disorder he’s dealt with since I was in eighth grade. I told myself watching him get sick while I was age 15 or 16 that the next time this happens, if I’m an adult, I will take over the newspaper. I came to this decision after overhearing our production manager, Reed Waller, tell my mother that the next time my dad got sick we would either have to close the doors or find somebody else to do my dad’s job. 

 

Three years later, my dad got so sick he could no longer fulfill his duties as publisher, spending the majority of two years in the hospital. So I stepped in. After a little over a year in the roles not only of editor but also publisher, business manager, and bill payer, my dad decided to sell me the newspaper. 

 

I gave him every dollar I had as a down payment and spent the next five years purchasing the newspaper and its office building on a contract for deed. During that time, my mother and I renovated half of the building, turning it into an apartment where I now live. 

 

About six months into owning the Star Eagle, I was informed that the southern Minnesota Golden Link was going to close for good. After a weekend of thought and consideration as to how we could survive without the income from those additional ad sales, I called the publishers and asked them if they would like to see the publication continued in my hands. They agreed. 

 

The publication continues to be included in the newspaper today.

 

About four years ago, I started preparing and working towards what would become the Waseca County Pioneer. 

 

We started in November 2021 printing sports coverage of Waseca high school athletics in the Star Eagle. All the while I worked to create a team, find a storefront and build my dream.

 

By springtime, I had my players. Three new reporters and Debra Bently as news editor. 

 

It was, ironically, after a city council meeting in May of 2022 that I ran into Robert Tackett, who suggested I speak to Matt Petsinger about a building for our newspaper, which eventually became our first home. 

 

I spent the month of June 2022 selling advertising going door to door to find local support. Of the 23 business owners I talked to, 22 consented to become consistent advertisers in the newspaper. 

 

I mentioned Matthew Petsinger a moment ago and I need to express my gratitude. Without him and his support, I don't know how we would have made it through that first year. Not only financially, but mentally. The support I received from him and his family every day during that time was incredible. 

 

Without him and all of the local businesses and all of the local readers supporting us, I would not be standing here today and we would not have the newspaper we have today.

 

Over the past three years we’ve grown our subscriber base, advertising base, purchased our own building on Main Street, and become the legal newspaper of choice for all of Waseca County, the city of Waseca and Waseca public schools. 

 

Over that time the Pioneer and its writers have won more than three dozen state-wide awards from Minnesota Newspaper Association, earning first second or third place honors in general excellence, sports reporting, classified advertising, design and typography, advertising excellence, headline writing, editorial page as a whole and use of photography as a whole. Plainly, if there’s an award for our newspaper to earn, we have. 

 

Over the past year, we transitioned from me putting every newspaper together electronically to having the task taken care of by Amelia Roessler, my assistant of four years. She has taken over as editor. Deb Bently remains our news editor reading and editing every story. My dad still does sports here at an award-winning level.

 

I said I would mention the benefit we’ve had to the city and local community. 

 

For Waseca, the city has saved thousands of dollars in required legal notice printings by going through the Pioneer. 

 

For the community in general, thousands and thousands of dollars of revenue have stayed right here in Waseca County. Everyone who works for the Pioneer calls Waseca or Waseca County home. 

 

That staff includes

Deb Bently, News Editor

Amelia Roessler, Editor

Jim Lutgens, Sports Editor

Ben Revermann, Staff writer

Jon Lucca, Advertising Design 

Teresa Rosacker, Advertising Sales

Payge Rosacker, Editorial Assistant 

Contributors: Rachael Jaegar, Rachel Loverink, and Jessica Lutgens.

Columnists: Dave Zika, Al Batt and our rotating cast of local pastors and church leaders. 

Facebook photographers: Cassie Rupe and Debbie Rodriguez

And Ann Staloch for the many local, well written, professional press releases.

Finally, myself, Eli Lutgens, Publisher.

 

My role this year and going forward will continue to be the newspaper's caretaker. My dad always says we are the paper's caretaker. We are not an owner or publisher but simply someone who keeps an eye on processes and progress, stepping in to innovate positive change and avert decline. 

 

I want to ensure that our newspaper continues to grow and remains operating at an award-winning level. 

 

I look forward to walking that path with the city and local communities' support.

 

To recap, I’ve spent my entire teenage and adult life dedicated to local journalism, building and cultivating a hall of fame team here at the paper. And with your help, we will continue to grow. 

 

And with that, I will open up to you guys if you have any questions? 

 

Thank you.