Courier, a place to call home
By Nicole Russo
Last Updated:3:22 PM EST 4/22/09 Section: Viewpoint
When we first showed up at the Cardinal Courier as freshmen, one of the first things we were taught was to never resort to clichés. My total apologies to anyone who taught me anything about writing here, but I'm going to break that rule now.
Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay awhile, leave footprints on our heart, and we are never, never the same. When I sat down to write a goodbye to St. John Fisher College, there was no question I would focus on the Courier. Without a doubt, it's been the most significant, satisfying and rewarding part of my college experience.
I wanted to write about all the major stories we were a part of covering, everything from the change in dining services to the presidential inauguration, and how those affected campus. I wanted to write about the ridiculous adventures, like sitting in JFK waiting 12 hours for a flight home and the weekend the News section spontaneously deleted itself twice. I wanted to write about the long production weekends and the stupid stuff that happened, like the invasion of the Courier mice, and the evolution of our product from a simple newspaper into a media group that now includes the paper, a magazine and two websites.
But in trying to make some kind of coherent sense out of the last four years, the one common thread that ties it all together is the people I got to share it with.
When I walked into the Courier office, I thought I would write some sports stories and have a good time. But I didn't know I would meet people who would forever change my life. People I sat at the airport with for 12 hours, got incredibly drunk with, stayed up all night on Election Night with, laughed so hard my stomach hurt and had endless discussions about politics, religion and fonts. I met the love of my life here (and even got engaged in front of the office, which is obviously the best answer ever to 'what are you famous for').
I met people who forced me to come out of my shell and take a stand. People would challenge the way I looked at the world and at my work. And most importantly, people pushed me to not settle for any goal less than excellence. That's a lesson I will take with me wherever I go.
Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay awhile, leave footprints on our heart, and we are never, never the same. When I sat down to write a goodbye to St. John Fisher College, there was no question I would focus on the Courier. Without a doubt, it's been the most significant, satisfying and rewarding part of my college experience.
I wanted to write about all the major stories we were a part of covering, everything from the change in dining services to the presidential inauguration, and how those affected campus. I wanted to write about the ridiculous adventures, like sitting in JFK waiting 12 hours for a flight home and the weekend the News section spontaneously deleted itself twice. I wanted to write about the long production weekends and the stupid stuff that happened, like the invasion of the Courier mice, and the evolution of our product from a simple newspaper into a media group that now includes the paper, a magazine and two websites.
But in trying to make some kind of coherent sense out of the last four years, the one common thread that ties it all together is the people I got to share it with.
When I walked into the Courier office, I thought I would write some sports stories and have a good time. But I didn't know I would meet people who would forever change my life. People I sat at the airport with for 12 hours, got incredibly drunk with, stayed up all night on Election Night with, laughed so hard my stomach hurt and had endless discussions about politics, religion and fonts. I met the love of my life here (and even got engaged in front of the office, which is obviously the best answer ever to 'what are you famous for').
I met people who forced me to come out of my shell and take a stand. People would challenge the way I looked at the world and at my work. And most importantly, people pushed me to not settle for any goal less than excellence. That's a lesson I will take with me wherever I go.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Craig, class of '08
posted 4/23/09 @ 1:18 AM EST
Well written, Nicole!!! Good for you - you broke the cliche rule, but you also covered almost every angle possible to bid the Courier a proper farewell. (Continued…)
New York Movers
posted 6/04/09 @ 4:07 PM EST
Excellently written article, I'm sure that you will be missed by your crew just as much as you missed them. And it's great that you learned so much about yourself and about life. (Continued…)
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