We are truly thankful

Thank you. 

That doesn’t feel like enough to properly convey how grateful I am, but I’ll spend the next 675 words trying to better explain it.

It seems like a cliche for businesses to hold a customer appreciation day, week, month or what have you. But believe me, we at the Main Street Journal truly appreciate our customers. As we celebrate June as MSJ Customer Appreciation Month and this Friday, June 26, as Sundaes on Friday Customer Appreciation Day, it’s hard for us to not do a little reflection and be a bit awed by how we have been supported and embraced by the community.

When this whole experiment started March 10, 2025, we had no idea if we’d even make it through a year. For me, personally, having just been fired from a job I had worked at for 28 years, I wasn’t sure there was still enough support in Warren County for local journalism to make it a sustainable career from here on out. 

When Chad Graves and Scot MacDonald at Main Street Media provided a lifeboat and wanted to launch an online-only local news source, I was grateful for the opportunity. But I seriously had my doubts about the longevity of my new job.

The first few days were a whirlwind as we were all blown away by the initial outpouring of support that saw us sell over 600 subscriptions in the first couple of weeks. We saw every lofty goal our bosses established for us on those first few days fall months before we had hoped they might. Our subscription numbers are now at a level beyond anything we had ever even dared to mention as a goal and, thankfully, they are continuing to grow.

I kept expecting the growth of our subscriber base to hit a ceiling at some point, but I’m happy to say it hasn’t happened yet. Just to give you a bit of a peek behind the curtain, in all 16 months of our existence as the Main Street Journal, there hasn’t been a single month where we haven’t added more subscribers than we have lost. That’s a remarkable streak of growth that we realize can’t possibly last forever, but the fact that it has continued this long is a testament to the support of Warren and White counties who have embraced and propped up our mission to keep local journalism alive and well.

In fact, this month we hit an all-time peak in paid subscription numbers, boosted by a two-day period where we had a net gain of 46 paid subscribers, pretty remarkable for nearly a year and a half into this process. For all of that, we at the Main Street Journal owe you far more than free ice cream, but that’s what we have to offer Friday, June 26, from noon - 5 p.m.

So, whether you’re a subscriber, an advertiser or just someone who’s interested in finding out more about what this Main Street Journal thing is all about, we welcome you to come see us at 230 W. Colville St. for free ice cream and a thankful handshake. We’d love to meet you and field any questions you may have. And we’d really love to help you take advantage of our Customer Appreciation Month subscription special.

For the month of June only, a one-year subscription is only $60. That’s $17 cheaper than the regular price of $77 and a savings of $24 compared to a year’s worth at the monthly $7 rate. We hope you’ll find that a small price that’s worth paying to help ensure the survival of local, unbiased journalism by experienced reporters and lifelong Warren Countians.

Reporting is a full-time job for Rob Nunley, Sam Griffin and me, and your support is what makes it possible for us to devote our full energies to providing you the best coverage of everything that matters to Warren Countians that we possibly can.

So, again, thank you, and we hope to see you Friday.

Seth Wright can be reached at seth.wright@mainstreetmedia.llc.