Coming this fall

Dear readers,

According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, about 23% of the population in our northwest Guilford County readership area is between the ages of 5 to 18. From kindergartners to high school seniors, this vibrant population segment is involved in scores of activities, from sports to music to theater, academic studies, Scouting, community service, clubs and more. And it’s not unusual for them to be involved in two or more of these activities simultaneously.

As a small, independently owned community newspaper that covers three separate, independently governed towns, giving our youthful population the attention they deserve – even just to skim the surface – can be overwhelming, and adding a staff writer dedicated to youth coverage has been financially daunting to consider.

So, I admit to shortchanging our youth and taking the stance that if I/we can’t do it well or do it comprehensively, we just won’t do it. But before I let go of the reins at PS Communications, I have some unfinished business and it’s time to tackle it. That leads me to the new publication we’re launching in September, “Youth Link.”

Before I go on, I want to be very upfront – we could easily fill up every page in Youth Link with stories and photos relating to kids who participate in organized sports. But I also want to shine a light on kids who participate in dance. And gymnastics. And who play instruments, and who sing and who are creative and who are artistic, perform in plays, volunteer and take on leadership roles in their schools and churches … and the list goes on and on.

The biggest challenge I already know we’ll have is the limitations of time and space.

So that leads me to this – I recently decided to bring on a fulltime writer whose time will mostly be dedicated to youth coverage. That was a big, bold decision for me, because frankly, we operate at a slim profit margin and I couldn’t find a professional-level writer who would work weekdays, evenings and weekends and cover a wide range of topics, take professional-level pictures, create videos, etc. etc. – and do it for free.

So why am I telling you all this?

Because in the last almost 27 years, everything we’ve provided to residents of northwest Guilford County has been at no charge – thanks to our advertisers –and to do more, I have to ask for your support.

So here goes.

First. If you benefit from the information, stories, pictures, videos we create and place online, the questions we answer about your community, calendar events we freely publish for your churches and nonprofits, the local history we document and of course, the Grins and Gripes¸ we’d appreciate you sharing that with local business owners and managers who could benefit from advertising in the Northwest Observer, Youth Link, or any of our other special-focus publications. Your recommendations can go a long way in assuring them we produce well-done publications that are widely read and valued by the residents of northwest Guilford County.

And if you own or manage a business that could benefit from increasing your visibility in our readership area, please consider advertising with us. We’re not asking for charity – we’ll do our part to keep producing quality publications and bring your business in front of over 25,000 readers who receive them either in their mailboxes, online, or in our newspaper boxes and racks – and they don’t just receive them, they read them! And by connecting you to our readers, we’ll help you grow your customer base.

Thanks to our readers for reading our publications and to our advertisers, for making it possible to keep local community journalism alive and connect community members of all ages.

Patti Stokes, president PS Communications

welcome to ... Youth Sync

A regular section in the Northwest Observer focused on our local youth and the adults who positively impact them.

Just Keep Smiling!

Call or text: 336-274-7649

Summerfield and Greensboro

Chipman

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Kandersteg International Scout Center in Switzerland. Chipman is a Brotherhood Member of the Order of the Arrow, Scouting’s national honor society, and she continues to be active in Sea Scout Ship 3 and Venturing Crew 1922.

Reynolds & Stoner ORTHODONTICS

As a Scout, Chipman was a founding member and senior patrol leader for Troop 219. For her Eagle Scout Project, she led a group of volunteers in the design and construction of a nature observation platform along the NC Mountains-to-Sea Trail.

An Oak Ridge resident, Chipman is an honors college student and fourth-generation engineering major at The University of Missouri. She is pursuing a dual major in biological and biomedical engineering and participates in medical research as a Discovery Fellow.

Scouts BSA Troop 219 for girls meets Monday evenings at Oak Ridge Presbyterian Church. For more information, visit www.troop219g.com.

At Reynolds & Stoner Orthodontics, we believe everyone should just keep smiling! We love seeing our patients gain confidence that a great smile can provide. Call or text our office to schedule a FREE consultation for braces or Invisalign with either of our doctors in our private practice. You too can Just Keep Smiling!

The Vikings open the regular season 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18, at home against Williams High of Burlington. See video at Facebook.com/ NorthwestObserver (posted Wednesday, July 26).

Fall sports practices began this week for high schools around the state, including Northwest Guilford High. The Vikings are coming off a 10-3 season in 2022 and welcoming new head coach Chris Rusiewicz (shown in photo at right). Rusiewicz, who formerly coached at both Guilford College and Greensboro College among other stops, said of joining Northwest, “I was recruiting Northwest for 10 years in Guilford County as a head coach and one of the things I always thought about Northwest was they had quality students academically. They had quality people. And I always thought they were big, strong and physical up front on both sides of the ball.”