This is the last issue for a lot of the members of The Daily Cougar staff. To paraphrase the immortal Chuck Dickens, it can be a good thing, and it can be bad.
Working at the school newspaper can, at times, be one of the most frustrating activities of college life. For everyone, this is a learning experience, from learning how to write for an audience to trying to figure out what in the world Associated Press style wants journalists to do with comma placement.
But through the mistakes, missed deadlines and late nights in the newsroom, it is very easy to get emotionally invested in all the reporters and editors who are always here.
Long days and endless hours later, one becomes bonded in ways they never considered possible. This is what makes the realization that this will be the last paper most of the editors will work on together so tough.
One of the most impressive attributes that every one of these folks has is the ability to work hard when there is almost no immediate gain to be seen; they certainly can’t be doing it for the money.
The effort they have shown to balance their whole lives around a student publication is admirable, and the sacrifices they have made just to ensure there will be another paper today is a true a testament to their ability to see things through.
But what will never show up in the newspaper are the other contributions they make to the lives of the people who surround them. These people who put The Daily Cougar on the newsstands are the same people who help you with your Spanish homework, who tell you how to use your energy packs in Mafia Wars wisely or wake you up for class when you’ve fallen asleep once more due to a late night at the office.
It is hard to see these people leave when they have all become such close friends, but we will all do our part to fill the void their absences will leave at the paper.
