When my dad Ed Morlan passed away last year, my mom Jackie could have just shut down and wallowed in her grief. Losing someone you've been with and loved for nearly four decades is absolutely devastating.
But my mom and dad have always been engaged with community building in Bayfield, so instead of giving into her grief and closing down, she doubled down and got even more active and involved.
Since my dad's death, my mom has been spending hours on top of hours helping organize the Bayfield Block Parties and the Bayfield Downtown Farmers Market. Watching from afar, I've seen how much work she's put in, and the tremendous success she and the other volunteers have had in building these two, important new community events. To say I'm proud of my mom is an understatement. I'm constantly floored by my mom's dedication.
That's why I was so disheartened to see no mention of my mom or any of the individual volunteers behind these events in the brief write-up about the Bayfield Block Parties and the coming launch of the farmers market in the Pine River Times.
I'm a working journalist, so I know the limitations when it comes to space and time. But leaving out the people behind the Block Parties - the stars who shine bright in Bayfield - and overlooking an opportunity to really dig in and write a good story about perseverance, volunteerism and community organizing is a major missed opportunity.
Journalism can and should do more than simple write-ups that read like hollow press releases. I hope the Pine River Times will consider writing a real story about the community organizing efforts of the people who are working to make Bayfield an even better town than it is already.
Kinsee Morlan
San Diego, Calif.
