It was a little more than 10 years ago that I first was introduced to Hartselle, AL.
In November 2000, I accepted the position as Editor and Publisher of the Hartselle Enquirer.
I accepted the position without ever having visited the city. I drove into town that first day just praying that I wouldn’t encounter anything too horrible.
I didn’t. In fact, what I encountered was a lovely little city. Charming, welcoming and just the sort of place where you would want to raise a family.
Not that mattered to me at the time, of course. I rode into town in a red convertible, a single girl ready to take on a new challenge.
Fast forward 10 years. Now, I’m a married woman who traded in her convertible for a SUV with a car seat in the back. So much has changed, including the town of Hartselle. It’s still charming and a great place to call home but it’s also growing and changing.
Change. That’s a hard word to get your mind around sometimes. But, as the old saying goes, the only thing constant is change.
Friday, Jan. 21 is my last day at the Hartselle Enquirer. As with all changes, this one has its good side and its bad side. The good side is I will be spending more time with my daughter, Sutton. For her entire 3-and-a-half years, she’s had to accommodate mom’s work at the newspaper, including the times I held her in one arm and typed a story with the other.
The bad part is I won’t be a part of a truly phenomenal group of people who work at the Enquirer. The staff at the Enquirer is more than a group of coworkers; they are a family. We’ve been through so much together – triumph and loss, birth and death, great times and big foul-ups.   Through it all, we have worked together to help each other and produce a quality newspaper week after week.
The group at the Enquirer has the best interest of the city, county and the newspaper at heart. I know the newspaper will be in good hands and I’m proud of the work we’ve accomplished in the last 10 years. I hope you will continue to support the Enquirer just like you have done for more than 75 years. I hope you will continue to support those who work here, too.
Ten years ago, shortly before I took that fateful ride up Interstate 65 to Hartselle, I received a strange delivery at my office in Shelby County. I was going through a particularly trying time and one day, a bouquet of flowers arrived on my desk. The card had no name but only a Bible verse: Jeremiah 29:11.
The verse says this: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
To this day, I don’t know who sent the flowers or the verse. This verse has stayed with me, however and I’ve thought of it often in the last several weeks. It’s been a mantra of sorts.
It’s also what I wish for each of you. I hope you prosper and have a great and happy future.
Thank you Hartselle. It’s been a heck of a ride.