Executive Editor Kathy Cordova at her desk at The Orinda News in the first days on the job.
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” Mistakenly attributed to Winnie the Pooh, according to Google.
Oh bother! It turns out Pooh never uttered those words.
Regardless, the made-up quote is exactly how I feel about retiring as executive editor of The Orinda News.
In a long life full of a lot of incredible jobs, this has been the best job of my life.
The last two years have been fascinating, challenging, fun, edifying and sometimes frustrating. But they have never been dull!
I have had the privilege and joy of working with so many talented, hard-working and dedicated members of The Orinda News team. When I think about how much of themselves they give to our community paper, it makes me very proud. Thank you all.
Thank you, too, to The Orinda Association (OA) and its dedicated board members who have given me their 100% support. Publishing a quality, non-profit, community newspaper would be impossible without the strong backing of The OA.
Thanks also to you, our readers – especially those of you who have written, emailed or told me in person how much you enjoy the paper and value the local news we deliver to your mailbox every month. Each one of you has brightened my outlook and reminded me why we do this.
Over the last two years, I’ve been surprised and inspired by the fascinating people we’ve featured in “Meet Your Neighbor.” I’ve interviewed an Academy Award-winning director, an Olympic gold medalist, a Miramonte student who starred in a film that premiered at Sundance, several New York Times bestselling authors, as well as local artists, musicians and community leaders. We have such a wealth of talented, generous and genuinely gracious people in Orinda, and it has been wonderful getting to know them.
I have also learned a lot about local government issues while in this role. After an indeterminate number of hours pouring through documents, viewing City Council and Planning Commission meetings and interviewing citizens and City officials, I’m not kidding when I say I could write a master’s thesis about the Housing Element in Orinda.
But more than simply gaining an understanding of issues, I witnessed firsthand the intelligence and commitment our civic leaders bring to our City. Our Mayor and City Councilmembers volunteer hundreds of hours with no compensation – all in service of Orinda. The citizen volunteers who serve on the many city commissions also deserve to be recognized for all their hard work.
The executive editor is a great job. So why am I leaving?
The cliché excuse when someone wants to get out of a sticky situation is often, “I want to spend more time with my family.” In my case, it’s true.
My husband retired the month I started this job, and now he wants to travel. My 84-year-old mother lives in Virginia and I need to be more available for her. And my daughter, who lives in London, got married last year and wants to start a family soon. I suspect the pull of a first grandchild will entice me into many trips across the pond.
But you won’t get rid of me too easily. I will remain on the board of The Orinda Association and I’ll still be writing occasional articles for The Orinda News. Look for me in a future issue, smiling and holding the newspaper in a tropical location!
Additionally, and very luckily for me and The Orinda News, we have found an incredible person to take over the reins.
Clay Kallam, your next executive editor, is a real newspaperman’s newspaperman. He has written for community newspapers, magazines and online media for decades. In addition to his stellar résumé, he has the strong recommendation of several respected community leaders. Read more about him in February – his first issue in his new position!
I want to end by reminding you that journalism is more important than ever, especially local journalism. Please continue to support local journalism by reading, engaging with and donating to our non-profit newspaper. I’m very much looking forward to the future of Orinda and reading all about it in The Orinda News.
