Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Larger publication to be called “Lincoln County Record-Times”
DAVENPORT – Two newspapers serving Lincoln County readers will soon become one paper covering a larger section of the county.
The Davenport Times and Odessa Record are merging to create the Lincoln County Record-Times, Publisher Roger Harnack announced last week. It’s a merger that will become effective March 1 and first be reflected in the March 3 issue.
“Given the continued economic stresses on our communities and the lack of prospective employees to fill openings, this merger will enable us to continue to provide a voice for Lincoln County,” Harnack said.
Times Editor Drew Lawson will continue to fulfill that position, while Record Editor Terrie Schmidt-Crosby transitions to a reporting role covering the Odessa town council, school board and sports as she looks toward a long-anticipated retirement.
“I’ve been looking forward to retirement, or at the very least to spending far less time in the office for the past couple of years,” Schmidt-Crosby said. “I had hoped that someone from Odessa might step up and keep The Record going, but it was not to be.”
The result for readers will be a larger publication that covers the current bases of both present newspapers. That includes The Times’ coverage area of Davenport, Reardan, Harrington, Edwall and Sprague and The Records’ coverage area of Odessa, southwestern Lincoln County and Wilson Creek.
“This merger will be an adjustment for staff, readers and our communities alike, but I am confident it will be a positive outcome in the long run,” Lawson said. “A more connected world has been a trend for a long time, and this change reflects that.
“We hope that county readers become more connected, educated, aware and interested in each other’s communities as they learn more about their area through reading our paper.”
To help readers with the transition, Free Press Publishing will be offering a sweet deal.
“We are offering a two-year subscription special for $40 for the next month,” Harnack said.
That’s less than the current one-year rate for The Record and a discount a Times subscription. The coupon special is located at the bottom of the front page.
Current prices of The Record are higher than those of The Times.
The special is available to both existing subscribers and new customers.
Readers can also get more information by davenporttimes@centurytel.net or calling the Free Press main office in Cheney at 509-235-6184.
Those with inquiries about display advertising in the larger publication should email Kim Pearson at Kim@cheneyfreepress.com.
Legal and public notice advertising questions and classified ad inquiries should be directed to 509-235-6184.
The merger comes as a necessity of the present economy and state of the world, which Harnack quipped are “record times.”
Very few applicants have applied for open positions in Davenport or Odessa in nearly a year since the jobs became available. Free Press Publishing also has openings it hasn’t been able to fill in its other community publications in Cheney, Ritzville and Colfax.
“A countywide paper only makes sense in the current circumstances, as newspapers across the country continue to close their doors at alarming rates,” Schmidt-Crosby said. “Readers will need to be diligent about supplying news from each community in the county to the editors.”
The company continues to seek part-time office specialists to manage offices in Davenport, Ritzville and Colfax.
With Schmidt-Crosby hoping to retire as soon as possible, a reporter is also needed to work under Lawson’s direction to cover Odessa and Harrington.
“I won’t sugarcoat it; we could really use the help,” Lawson said. “I, of course, hope and believe that I would be enjoyable to work with, and promise that any reporter who takes the Odessa job will have the opportunity to serve a lot of readers that are passionate about their community newspaper and crave the current happenings of their area.”
Interested job applicants can email Harnack a resume at roger@cheneyfreepress.com.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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