October 28, 2009 marked the final issue of Henry County's only weekly free newspaper, The Henry County Times. 

In a tiny block of text on the front page, publisher Mickie Jackson unceremoniously announced the closing of the paper due to the failed economy and circumstances beyond her control.  These circumstances include slumping advertising revenues and increased print costs.

Upon reading this, I was shocked, then extremely sad.  How could this happen?  Coming from a newspaper that has consistently provided (might I say celebrated) the good in the Henry County community for over seven years, this was absolutely the worst news I could imagine.  Not to mention, these are good people. 

Mickie and her small staff work long hours to put together a publication that is literally bursting at the seams with anything and everything you could possibly want to know about our community.  They cover stories that mean everything to their readers. And readers clip those stories to paste into scrapbooks filled with touchdowns and weddings, obituaries and births, yesterdays and tomorrows.  This is stuff you won't find anywhere else, either.  Put away the laptop.  It's not on the Internet.  It's in The Times. 

You might ask: Why do you care so much about this?  Don't you have more important things to worry about?    Yes, I do have other things to worry about.  But being a good citizen means more than worrying only about yourself.  I care because I am tired of seeing our community disintegrate.  I'm not comfortable losing the things I love that make our community special.  I've lived in Henry County all my life.  This is my home.  And I am willing to fight for my home.  I am not willing to sit back and watch Henry become just another place to live and work.  It's time we start supporting each other.  It's time we become a better community.  This is a wake-up call.

Our community will be affected if we lose this newspaper.  Yes, we still have the daily Henry Herald newspaper; but they can't do it all.  And they are struggling, too.

We learn more about ourselves when we learn about our neighbors.  Newspapers like The Times allow us to celebrate each other's joys, sorrows, defeats, and triumphs together.  Neighbors can know what other neighbors think about council elections, nonprofit fundraisers, the church bake sale, and  even the winning chili cook-off recipe.  This is, more or less, the pulse of our community in print.

I am challenging business leaders, organizations, and individuals to help make The Henry County Times the comeback kid by committing to a long-term advertising plan.  For example, I have been advertising in The Times monthly for several years.  I advertise on their "Church Page" and on their website.  It runs me less than $100 per month. 

I don't advertise with them to reap marketing rewards; I do it to support an institution that supports my community.  I appreciate it when they promote a fundraiser for a non-profit organization I support.  I appreciate it when they promote an event for a local civic organization I serve.  I appreciate it when they cover a story that I would have otherwise never heard about.  This isn't about dollars and cents to me.  It's simply about sense.  It's about giving back.  It's about our community.

Most sincerely,

Beau Kelley
cell: 770.957.1100
email: beau@buddykelleyproperties.com



Click the icon to join the "Let's Save The Henry County Times!" page on Facebook