Editor/General Manager,
The Sandy Post
During my 3.5 years as leader of this local newspaper, I dramatically improved local coverage. With a staff of 2.5 people, we covered our 450-square-mile territory better than anyone. We covered multiple stories of national interest simultaneously while keeping readers informed about City Council proceedings, School Board developments, and the happenings within the business community.
As Editor/Lead Reporter, I created award-winning content.
The Sandy Post covered the city of Sandy, Ore., plus the various unincorporated communities between Boring (yes, that’s the name of the town) and Government Camp (at the top of Mount Hood). As part of the larger Pamplin Media Group, my articles regularly were picked up by the Portland Tribune, Gresham Outlook and other sister newspapers.
The Fouad Kaady Files
I won the Best Comprehensive Coverage award from the Oregon Society of Professional Journalists for my series investigating the fatal police shooting of 27-year-old Fouad Kaady in the Sandy area in 2005.
I not only coordinated coverage for our weekly newspaper; I produced the lion’s share of it — writing 10-12 articles per week. I also wrote headlines, designed each page’s layout, and served as chief photographer. It was a massive learning experience managing so many aspects of the paper. Here are some of the beats I covered regularly, illustrated with some of the front pages I designed:
Police/Crime
During my time in Sandy, we dealt with a lot of issues regarding crime and the police as the city grew. I also had the difficult task of reporting about the misdeeds of the local cops, and faced pressure from them often.
City/County/State Government
I regularly attended local government meetings and contextualized policy decisions for readers. Above are some of my favorite front pages I designed that featured local government policies and programs.
News Features
My news features included articles about controversial new billboards, an annual year-in-review feature, a woman who was lost in the wilderness, and massive flooding in the Sandy area.
I won the Society of Professional Journalists’ “Rookie of the Year” award for best new journalist.
I uncovered the stories of local people & businesses.
Above: Feature article about two people who performed at the Spirit on the Mountain music festival. What linked them both was their near-death experiences.
Above: My commentary and recap about the Sandy Mountain Festival — the largest event of the year in our town.
Left: I often used my weekly column to write more creative pieces. Right: I started a weekly “Meet Your Neighbors” column where I’d introduce someone to the community.
Above: I wrote a column each week full of short snippets of business news and even some speculation.
Above: I wrote a 60-year retrospective feature about Sandy Baptist Church, which won me a statewide award for Best Religion Coverage.
Left: A human interest feature I wrote about a former foster kid who had been in the news for being abused and malnourished — but was adopted by a loving new family.
I increased circulation threefold in our area during my tenure.
When I first came to The Sandy Post, the newspaper had a reputation as a “fishwrapper” that mostly contained reprinted articles from the neighboring sister paper, The Gresham Outlook. Immediately upon taking charge, I worked 60-70-hour weeks to make the paper full of only local stories. I embedded myself into the Kiwanis Club, the Sandy Area Chamber of Commerce, and other community gatherings — becoming the face of the newspaper. The result of all this work? Our circulation exploded; within a year, we had doubled the subscriber base, and by the end of my tenure, we had triple the subscriber base. I also navigated the print-to-digital transition, publishing content regularly to sandypost.com.
Below: The 450-square-mile coverage area of The Sandy Post.
I was on the Sandy Area Chamber Board of Directors, and also composed its monthly newsletter.
I served on a number of committees and advisory boards, including the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Highway 26 Citizens Advisory Committee.
