The founders of Owensboro Times sat down to reflect on the start of the news agency in 2018 and what’s happened since the launch.
Jason Tanner: I’m not sure we realized how big of an endeavor launching Owensboro Times would be. It’s been a tremendous amount of work between us as well as countless others who have helped us along the way.
Christy Chaney: We couldn’t have achieved this without people who have been there since the beginning — elected officials, city and business leaders, our social media followers and all of the subscribers.
JT: And of course our team that has worked extremely hard. It’s amazing to look back at our short time and see how much we’ve accomplished. It’s humbling.
CC: I have lived in Owensboro my entire life. I did live in Lexington for one year but I came home all the time so I am not sure that really counts. So for the past 42 years, I have lived in a town that has had its ups and downs but has always felt like a big city wrapped in hometown values. These last four months have really shown me that this town is that and yet so much more.
JT: I am a lifelong resident myself and in 151 days I have had the privilege of seeing Owensboro in an entirely new light. It has been an incredible experience to be involved with a news organization that has told some of the hardest and some of the most beautiful stories our town has to offer.
CC: People pour their hearts into activities, businesses and organizations, some of which I have never heard of and now hold a special place in my heart as well. They cheer on sports teams and welcome strangers from other cities to play with them; they grieve the loss of those famous and those unknown, and they support and honor each and every accomplishment as a team. And when one falls, there are friends and friends yet to be discovered who will raise you up.
JT: In 151 days we have witnessed injustices righted and people fighting for the ones they love. We have watched the heart of it all, while stories of their failures and their successes swirl around in the social stratosphere — both condemned and celebrated — but always told with dignity and a moral compass found in very few places, but found in abundance in this town.
CC: These stories have changed my life. I hope they have changed all of you as well.
