A part of a series on my participation in the Putnam County Leadership Academy. The academy got under way last Wednesday afternoon (Sept. 16). This session was an opportunity for us to become acquainted with one other -- as well as with ourselves...

As a reporter for the Banner Graphic, I often get to talk to some of the movers and shakers in the community, as well as those leading our school systems and businesses. For about the next three months, I will get to learn more about how I can become an influencer, as well as what it takes to promote growth throughout Putnam County...

It was pretty much a last-minute decision to take the Beetle to a car show last Sunday. But when I found out that one would be held within a short distance from home, I didn't see what I had to lose. We are now into September. The ones I look forward to have been canceled, and others have been too far to justify going with COVID-19...

Well, the one on the right was not. I want to clarify what happened with the other one. By the way -- This blog post is satirical. Nonetheless, I am sure some readers will convince themselves that this reflects reality. C'est la vie...

This last Thursday morning, I got up extra early to attend an annual leadership breakfast that was hosted by the Indianapolis Association of Wabash Men (IAWM). While a part of it was to honor former Dean of Students Mike Raters as the IAWM's Man of the Year, the breakfast was based around the concept of regionalism. This was especially with regard to commerce and collaboration among different communities...

With it being Friday, I still could not think of a specific topic for this week's blog post. However, something will come up when you might least expect it. This time, it had to do with some classic cars, which have more or less been absent the last few months...

This week, we're going back in time a little. Actually, we will go back to around 1995. I recently came across a book called "The 100 Best Small Towns in America." It was sandwiched with other various books, some of which are mine from my Superman fan-boy days. This one is the second edition of a list compiled by Norman Crampton...

When COVID-19 finally manifested in Putnam County back in March, we all perhaps underestimated just how things would change when it came to just covering our beats. Prior to the first local case being confirmed, our school systems and municipalities were trying to figure out how to deal with the unknown. ...

I will remark here at the outset that I cannot hope to clear much of the air about the recent controversy with South Putnam and former Spanish teacher Brandon Kinnaird. However, after debating about whether to let it run its course and not say anything at all, I feel it is necessary now for me to respond from the news side as to my role in this...

Another Putnam County 4-H Fair is now in the books. However, it is perhaps an understatement here that this year was a decidedly unusual one for everyone involved. Without the bustle of the carnival atmosphere and American Legion Post 58's addicting Legionburgers, it may have seemed -- at first -- that the "best" parts were gone. ...

Last Tuesday, I got two different compliments regarding what I was wearing. One was about my newsboy cap, sweat-stained and rusted on top and where the bill snap is. The other was for my bolo tie, a Morgan silver dollar one I probably found somewhere in my room at the Selvia household. I think it was my dad's from back in the 1980s...

I need routines and deadlines which I and Jared can set. I'm not completely immune to procrastination, but the very nature of reporting is that things can, and will, pile up. Even with this tension, I still revel in the freedom to pursue stories and events which I think matter. I act on this freedom in wanting to be open about how I approach people and events. #SmallTownPR means that we don't see the newsroom as an ivory tower...

Much of my work as a local reporter is about just being a bystander to current events. I'm expected to not have any favoritism. I am to report things as they happen, and provide further context where it might help readers better understand why. This equally applies to controversy as it does to covering a town council or a block party...

For me, it was rather shocking to read last Sunday evening that what appeared to be a noose had been found in Bubba Wallace's garage space at Talladega Superspeedway. The only African-American driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, he is its vocal advocate of the Black Lives Matter movement. His black car with pro-BLM messages was a surprising move. It is the kind of controversial activism that the sport is not used to...

Yesterday marked two years since I joined the Banner Graphic newsroom in 2018. Eric was still editor-in-chief then, and Jared found himself taking me under his wing as the new staff writer. I was bestowed my beat, and I was rarin' to go in my new job. When I reflected on my one-year anniversary this time last year, I considered it a fresh start, a kind of personal redemption, to come back and be a reporter in my hometown...

Since the story broke on George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, Minn. about three weeks ago, I have not publicly expressed any opinions or reactions on social media about the incident, or about the protests rocking the political and social landscape...

When I heard Tuesday afternoon that there was a long line at Dairy Castle stretching into the street, it had slipped my mind that this was the local staple's second opening. Jared went out to see what the commotion was, and he was able to capture the scene above. ...

To try and put it objectively here at the outset, South Putnam High School's commencement for its graduating class last Saturday was an unprecedented one. The class of 2020 was the first class in the school's history to effectively have their graduation outside. It was also the first class to turn their tassels while soaking wet...

While I was a student at Wabash, I was pretty much a teetotaler and shunned alcohol. My prime excuse for not drinking was that it was detrimental to my health as a Type 1 diabetic. I was somewhat judgemental of my peers who did drink, though I certainly did not (and do not) condone underage drinking or any type of alcohol-related abuse...

After effectively being the only reporter in the office this week, I'm devoting some time to this week's post. I will say that this one is a little bit sobering and reality-affirming. Yesterday, I was invited by Principal Jason Chew to watch and take some photos of North Putnam High School's commencement ceremony. However, this one was decidedly different from what would've been a normal graduation prior to COVID-19...