The original Coalmont Courier was published as an eight page broadsheet in 1912 but only ran for about six months. Its getting to be almost 100 years since then and Coalmont has gone through many changes. Times have been good and times have been bad. Coalmont was on the brink of extinction for so many years that it must be a world record. Several generations of people have been born. Many have died and more have moved away. In short, a lot has happened and I think it is time for the next edition.
Traditionally, the rumour mill has been our local media and it works very well. You can walk across town and, before you open your mouth, someone will tell you what you were going to say! No TV, no radio, no nothing … just plain old fashioned small town telepathy. The trouble with rumours is that, true or not, you can never really pin them down. The New Coalmont Courier is an attempt at disambiguation by putting us all on the same page.
When facts are needed, I’ll do my best to get them straight. That’s the easy part though. The hard part is the point of view. I realize that the views and opinions expressed by me are mine alone, but I will try to represent the general feelings of the community if I can. Still, I am only one voice and I hope that others will come forth with contributions. Those that don’t want to write can talk to me and I will pass on their ideas. I really do want this to be a community forum. Outsiders, or friends and relatives beyond the reach of our local telepathic network, can also leave comments and access the Courier on the World Wide Web.
I doubt that we’ll ever do an eight page broadsheet but my feeling is that this little paper has the potential to be much more exciting than just another newsletter. At a time when outside pressures are mounting, it can be a way for us to define and solidify our community. ~ Ole Juul