LOCALadk Magazine

Rhiannon Happy spring, Editor rhiannon@localadk.com A M E S S A G E F R O M R H I A N N O N LOCALadk Living in the Adirondacks comes with a vibrant return of nature. The choir of birds performs their song from the lush green trees. The warm sunshine melts away the final ribbons of snow into the roaring brooks. The flowers peek up from the brown patches of dirt. It is a season of renewal. A season of hope. I recently came across one of my favorite Wendell Berr y poems that captures the promise of spring, titled "Shall We Do Without Hope? ": Shall we do without hope? Some days there will be none. But now to the dry and dead woods floor they come again, the first flowers of the year, the assembly of the faithful, the beautiful, wholly given to being. And in this long season of machines and mechanical will there have been small human acts of compassion, acts of care, work flowerlike in selfless loveliness. Leaving hope to the dark and to a better day, receive these beauties freely given, and give thanks. Berr y's words remind us even when hope seems bleak in the inevitable winters of our lives, compassion and care will bloom like the flowers. It is a testament to the power of community and humanity, something that radiates amongst our mountain towns. Sharing local stories celebrating moments of compassion and care, of community and humanity, has been one of our greatest joys here at LOCALadk. It is something we deep- ly hope to continue for some time. But with the arrival of spring, our publication has landed in an inevitable winter, and we are in need of hope, of care, of community. The model of LOCALadk Magazine — a free, printed pub- lication — is a rarity in a world filled with subscriptions and screens. We want it to continue, but we are in need of help in order for it to sur vive. The world is changing, so we must change as well. Our local businesses can no longer be the sole support- ers of LOCALadk. It has become clear that we also need our readers. Rather than charge subscriptions, we are asking for readers to contribute to a GoFundMe fundraiser to help support the writing, printing, storing, and delivering of our magazine. We fear that without making this shift, the long- term future of our magazine is questionable. Perhaps tr ying to keep a free, print magazine in today's world is a crazy idea, but we are crazy enough to still believe in it. We ask those who love this region, and this magazine, to help us keep it going. Here are options for how support can be offered: • Option 1: Scan our QR code below • Option 2: visit www.GoFundMe.com/f/localadk • Option 3: send a check to LOC ALadk Magazine, 339 Mill Pond Drive, Lake Placid, NY 12946. All checks can be made payable to LOC ALadk Magazine. Please note: While we're grateful for any support, LOCA- Ladk is not a nonprofit, so contributions are not tax deduct- ible. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being part of this journey. And thank you — truly — for your support. It has been an honor to bring our magazine to you, and we hope to continue celebrating the people, stories, and beauty of the Adirondacks for many years to come.

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