OPINION
Connected to your community
HOT LUCY HASS/METROLAND
The Renfrew Mercury remains in town, but the printing of the paper has moved to Smiths Falls. The final locally-printed copies of The Mercury came off the press May 27.
Renfrew press falls silent Itʼs 10:30 p.m. Monday, May 27 and this press run is drawing to a close. The last front pages of The Renfrew Mercury printed here in town are just off the press and I grab the final copies. They feel warm. Not physically, but somewhere deep inside where the heart resides. For more than a century the presses have run in this small Valley town, printing a broad range of newspapers and other publications. So, as the massive Global press on Opeongo Road is systematically torn down this week, to rise like a phoenix at our Smiths Falls press facility, I find myself looking back, and dreaming ahead. Because I donʼt believe print is dead. Studies show newspapers are still the medium of choice for information and advertising. In this gone-in-the-flash-ofan-eye digital world, thereʼs a certain comfort in laying back and flipping through the pages of your local paper. I first stepped into The Renfrew Mercury office as a high school student in the late 1970s; a summer student grateful for the opportunity to work with the written word. Memories of those early days are vivid, especially the dramatic background music of the newspaper business four decades ago – clicking typewriters, ringing telephones and the pounding beat of the presses mere feet away from my desk.
Your time is valuable. Spend it wisely.
St. Francis Xavier Parish
LUCY HASS View from The ‘Frew College and work in other towns took me away from The Mercury, but not for long. I returned to a major building expansion that tucked the newsroom upstairs, far away from the song of the press. And that wasnʼt the only change. The click-click-click of electric typewriter keys was soon replaced by the tick-ticktick of computer keyboards. So quiet. Thereʼs something invigorating in the sound of a press starting up and gaining speed, like a locomotive gearing up and steaming into the night. Monday night, May 27, that old feeling returned as I hung out, Tim Hortons coffee in hand, and watched the beginning of the end. I watched as pressmen Blair Crowley, Scott Martin, Erik Lanoue and Sean Steele laboured around the expanse of newsprint and rollers and gears that make up a modern press. To me, our office has always felt like the centre of the printing universe. Other people came to us, not the other way around. Now itʼs someone elseʼs turn to be the focus of production. Itʼs time for the action to
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shift to Smiths Falls. The Renfrew Mercury has been in town since 1871 when a man named Albert Smallfield was drawn to a village that beamed with potential, as plans were set for rail lines to criss-cross the community. Today, all three lines are torn up and gone, and now the press is leaving. Time marches on. But The Renfrew Mercury newspaper remains here at 35 Opeongo Road, with editorial, advertising and distribution department firmly intact. The very nature of the newspaper business – everchanging and never predictable – gets into your blood. Like the smell of printerʼs ink and newsprint. This past year The Renfrew Mercury was blessed with local, provincial and national newspaper honours for general excellence. And print quality is a key component of that success. So today, all tribute is deflected to the heartbeat of our business – the parade of men in navy blue coveralls and sturdy workboots who have run our press for years. Thanks. You have left a great impression.
You’re invited to an exclusive TD Waterhouse Private Investment Advice event. A night with Kevin O’Leary
331 Plaunt Street South Renfrew, Ontario
Sunday, June 9th 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
St. Francis Xavier Parish Mass—10:30 a.m. Fresh Home Baking - Take-Out & Delivery Available (613)432-5825 Adults - $12.00 Children 12 & Under - $5.00 Children Under 5 - Free R0012095976
T N A T R O IMP NOTICE ALL CLASSIFIED & DISPLAY ADVERTISING for the RENFREW MERCURY must be submitted no later than MONDAYS AT 9:30am **With the exception of holiday Mondays, in which the deadline for all advertising will be Fridays at 9:30am**
Monday, June 17, 2013 7:30 PM to 9:30 PM
Guest Speaker Kevin will talk about his experiences on The Dragons’ Den and his personal philosophies with regards to business and his mutual fund company.
Location
The Renfrew Mercury Proudly serving the community
Algonquin Commons Theatre 1385 Woodroffe Ave.
RSVP Qualified investors with more than $500,000 invested in the markets are welcome to register by calling Jo-Anne Sinclair at 613-783-4084 or by email at joanne.sinclair@td.com TD Waterhouse Private Investment Advice is a division of TD Waterhouse Inc., a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. --Member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund. TD Waterhouse is a trade-mark of The Toronto-Dominion Bank, used under license. M04132 (0110) M04132 (0110 TD Waterhouse Private Investment Advice is a division of TD Waterhouse Inc., a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. --Member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund. TD Waterhouse is a trade-mark of The Toronto-Dominion Bank, used under license. R0012139983
M04132 (0110) M04132 (0110)
For Display Advertising, please contact: Stephanie Jamieson Dave Gallagher stephanie.jamieson@metroland.com david.gallagher@metroland.com For Classified Advertising, please contact: Christy Barker christy.barker@metroland.com
613.432.3655 R0021988687
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