Between the second week of June and the second week of October, BWNA goes into general meeting hibernation. Why? Because odd-numbered months (like July) are reserved for board meetings, and National Night Out Picnic substitutes for the August (even-numbered month) general meeting. But there’s no summer snooze for the newsletter. We keep on keepin’ on every other month—informing, educating, entertaining, and hopefully motivating residents to get involved in BWNA—perhaps beginning with attendance at the upcoming general meeting, Monday, October 10!
Of course motivation is predicated on engagement and we’re continually looking for ways to engage our readers. One successful strategy has been to encourage submission of articles from Beaumont-Wilshire residents—in effect, neighbors writing for neighbors. Articles of 300 words or less and “Letter to the Board” editorials of 150 words or less are always welcome, and a photo to accompany your article adds a nice touch. (Submit your articles and editorials to me at editor@bwna.us and photos directly to graphic designer Amy Gwilliam at amylee.gwilliam@gmail.com, noting which article the photo should accompany.)
Occasionally a resident will suggest a storyline to me and submit information to go with it. If the topic is compelling and there’s space available in the newsletter, I usually oblige. Such is the case with the heartwarming Eleanor Hunting story in this issue, based on information provided by former BWNA newsletter co-editors Diane and Baer Charlton. The article looks back on the life of Diane’s 99-year-old mother, who passed away in July. Having resided in our neighborhood for over six decades, Eleanor was a longtime BWNA contributor and the quintessential helpful neighbor.
But while residents’ articles and editorials (as well as ideas for articles) are given high priority, the number submitted varies widely from issue to issue. So for the sake of continuity and content, our newsletter counts on a small cadre of dedicated team regulars, all volunteers from the neighborhood. Yet with busy lives being what they are, even our regulars have to pass occasionally on submitting an article, or worse yet, drop from the team completely due to pressing professional and family commitments.
We find ourselves in such a pickle now, very much in need of additional reporter/writer volunteers. Please consider volunteering. It’s a creative way to serve the neighborhood and, take it from me, a very gratifying one. If the spirit moves you, don’t hesitate to contact me for details (editor@bwna.us).
Finally—with regard to reader engagement—format and feel are salient factors. Each neighborhood association that distributes newsletter hard copies to residents has its own unique approach, including weight and texture of paper, logo, font, layout, color, number of pages, reflecting a subjective balancing act between quality and cost. A couple of months ago our preferred local printer for the past several years, Natural Press, closed its doors, prompting the BWNA Board to shop around. It was finally decided to contract with AKA Direct Printing (for which the former owner of Natural Press now works) at a substantial savings to BWNA and, along with it, a new look and style to the newsletter without sacrificing quality. Thus, while the next few issues will be a work in progress in terms of form, journalistic substance will remain intact—with a little volunteer help from neighbors in the ‘hood.