My brief time in Ashland has officially come to a bittersweet end.
Just eight months ago I started as Ashland Source’s general assignment reporter after freshly graduating from Ohio University in May.
I was nervous to start this job: I was going to start my professional career in a new place where I knew no one.
Looking back now, I could not have landed a more perfect first job.
Ashland County folks welcomed me with open arms, ready to entrust me with their stories.
When I first heard Ashland is the world headquarters of nice people, I giggled and thought: “I’ll be the judge of that.”
No one has ever given me a reason to think otherwise. Every council meeting, ribbon-cutting, festival and stroll down Main Street, I have always been greeted with smiles and good company.
In the journalism business, readers are quick to tell you what they didn’t like about your story or what they think you did wrong. It is rare for readers to reach out to tell you they appreciated your story and to keep up the good work.
I received countless emails from Ashland County readers who wrote kind words in regard to my reporting.
And the few who did write with criticism did so respectfully, sharing other angles and aspects they wanted to see included.
Thank you, if that was you; those comments made me a better reporter by highlighting insights I did not think of.
I have learned so much in my time writing for Ashland Source, including how to report on local government, how to cover a local election cycle, understand what stories are valuable to small-town readers and so much more.
Those skills will come with me on my new venture as a reporter for Delaware Source where I will cover all things Delaware County.
Delaware Source is the fourth digital news site under the umbrella of Source Media Properties.
My team and I will build this news organization from the ground up, as past reporters did in Ashland when we established a dedicated website in 2018.
That is no easy task, but I chose to take it on because Delaware County residents deserve a local, independent news outlet just like Ashland County residents do.
If this was eight months ago, before I had the confidence and reporting experience I gained while at Ashland Source, it would have felt much more daunting.
Although my time in Ashland was brief, it will be unforgettable. One day I will tell those around me about that time I was 22, working in Ashland, where I got to:
- Take a ride in a hot air balloon.
- Go inside the Richland Correctional Facility to interview inmates about their work rehabilitating orphaned wildlife.
- Cover my first election.
- Fall in love with the local reporting.
Ashland truly is one of Ohio’s best hometowns. Thanks to everyone who showed me that.
Sincerely, Taylor Henninger
