Dear Reader,
Bob Quinn retired last week after 17 years, leaving me with his parting wisdom as the new managing editor. I’ve been a reporter for 30 years, the last ten steeped in community life, so I look forward to your letters about what goes on and how people feel about it.
One ongoingly relevant topic these days is how people have been, or plan to, engage with others locally. Violent crime has increased across the country during the pandemic, with a 29% increase in murder, but other expressions of animosity have also proliferated. In a recent podcast, sociologist Patrick Sharkey traced the trend to social isolation and its emotional consequences. But some people have found creative ways to connect, as Michael Sussman describes in his story this week about Zoom karaoke at the Cancun Inn.
How about you? What has been your mode of community engagement? What will it be in the coming year? Any suggestions or resolutions? Do let us know.
Your interested listener,
Jessica