The sole purpose of a community newspaper, to include this one, is to serve the community.

Our newspaper contains news, features, sports and advertising geared to the Western Tidewater area. It often includes news from the state and national levels, but only if information contained in those stories have an effect on the citizens living within our coverage area and/or the businesses that operate here locally.

In other words, this newspaper belongs to the people of the greater Western Tidewater area; it’s been in business for more than 110 years, keeping those who live or work here informed of what’s taking place locally.

We are the eyes and ears of the area. If you are unable to attend a City Council or School Board meeting, or are unaware of the latest news coming from our local schools, we are the messenger sharing that information.

For decades, local citizens have submitted news briefs, sports info, letters to the editor, school news, business news and the like to this newspaper. We, in turn, publish that information, because we have always operated under the mantra that if something is important enough to you to submit in order for others to be aware of community happenings and/or opinions, then it’s important for us to publish.

We also welcome ideas for general news, sports or feature stories. While we make every attempt to know what’s going on within our little corner of the world, we can’t begin to claim to know each and every detail. That’s where our readers play an important role in their newspaper by providing tips and story ideas.

To submit your tips and photographs, email editor@tidewaternews.com.

Remember, this is your newspaper, too.