Letter from the Editor

By Blake Williams

Journalism is about people. So as journalists, it is our job to inform and share the stories of the people in our communities. Because of that, when we were deciding what this issue of Scene Magazine would be about, we believed this issue should focus on covering something that could make an impact on people’s lives. The two things that stood out most were the many political issues facing our generation and COVID-19, the pandemic that changed nearly everything.

When everyone on the staff was pitching their story ideas, it became clear we wanted to report on COVID-19, but many political themes also made their way into the issue. Looking back, it almost should have been a no-brainer to report on the pandemic. It is a once-in-a-lifetime event that has affected everyone in the world in some way. From people losing their jobs to nearly everything being done online, to the increased amount of conspiracy theories and wearing masks all the time. Everyone has been affected by COVID. And for many people, the pandemic has had an effect that will last forever. If you lost a loved one to COVID, we give you our most sincere condolences.

While there were many challenges throughout the reporting process, we were able to cover a diverse range of stories and show how COVID has affected so many people. We hope our work has brought attention to issues you didn’t know about and deepened your understanding of issues you did know about.

Producing a magazine in a pandemic and doing almost all the work over Zoom wasn’t easy. We spent a lot of hours on Zoom and had a few last-minute scrambles to make sure everything was together properly. Despite the challenges, I am very proud of what we were able to accomplish.  I want to thank everyone on the staff who contributed to producing this publication and I want to give another thanks to every editor who took the extra time to put the magazine together. 

This magazine was produced near the end of the pandemic as many people are being vaccinated and case numbers are significantly dropping. It feels like a huge relief to be done putting the magazine together and an even bigger relief to nearly have this pandemic behind us. But despite the virus almost being gone, the impact and devastation it brought will remain for so many people. It is our hope this publication will serve as a reminder of the struggles as many people return to their normal lives so we can all work to make a difference.