When I was told the Neotribune was ending on June 4, 2018, several things came to mind.

First, I want to thank the South family for allowing me to cover local news. They kept us all informed as to what was happening at school and the city. I also want to say thank you for giving me a voice with Karen’s Korner. It allowed me to voice my opinion or share my memories for several years.

I appreciate the South family doing the right thing no matter how costly it was so everyone in this area could be informed. I know they made some enemies over the years by exposing corruption where it was found. That was a gift to citizens of Italy.

Secondly, I want to say thank you to Kelly Lewis for all her help. She never complained when I asked her to “fix” errors I made or add graphics to something. Her help was invaluable.

Lastly I want to thank all of the folks that read what I wrote. This even includes the ones that loved to tell me I was wrong or slanted or whatever. Most of the time I loved to cover my Gladiators and Lady Gladiators. I must admit that was so much more fun than covering the City of Italy.

Years ago when Mr. South approached me about writing for Neotrib, I was truly honored. I valued his opinion then and still do now. I love to write so I told him I would try. He did not know at that time he had created a monster. Yep, a monster that did not want to shut up. I can honestly say I have no regrets. I stand behind every Karen’s Korner I ever wrote. I also stand behind every article I ever wrote. I feel all the hours I spent researching were well worth the time.

I know I will miss writing for the Neotrib and reading the Neotrib. So with a tear in my eye and a smile on my face, I say goodbye to my readers. Thank you for your support all these years. Now I cannot say “the end for now” as I always did. Now I must just say “the end”.