The following was extracted from the latest issue:
The Bridge has been a wonderful communication tool for the churches and communities in our parish for many years, containing invaluable local information and a showcase for local events and news stories.
With the pandemic in 2019, a change in format from paper to email version was the only way the information could continue to be distributed and Liz has worked very hard in editing and circulating the email version to an ever-growing list of community members. Liz decided in April that it was time to step away from this role with effect from the end of the year, and so we are in NEED OF A NEW EDITOR.
If you are interested in this (voluntary) role, please contact Liz (details at the end of Bridge) and she will be able to tell you more about what it entails. Briefly, you need to be able to have a PC, be able to use Word or Publisher, have 15 – 20 hours a month available, have a creative eye for layout, and be able to work to a deadline. We will need to hear from you by the end of August so that a transition period can begin in September, with the new editor taking on the role fully from January 2023. Should we be unable to find a new editor, we regret to say that the December2022/ January 2023 issue will be the last edition.
Should an editor come forward, and we are able to continue, we have also been considering the viability of reinstating a hard copy version of the Bridge to be delivered to each household. The costs and logistics of producing Bridge in paper format are enormous and rely on many hours of volunteers’ time. Costs of production are rising all the time and volunteers are becoming increasingly hard to come by, so the workload for the handful left is just too onerous. After much research and discussion, it has finally been decided that, if Bridge continues, as from the February 2023 edition, Bridge will be distributed solely in an online version.
We realise that this will come as a blow to those who would prefer to have a hard copy, but we will ensure that the printing facility of the email version is straight forward so that it can easily be printed at home. For those who do not have a printer at home or access to a computer, we would urge to you to ask a friend or neighbour to print it for you.
For those who do have printers we would ask you to please consider printing out a copy for anyone you know who finds accessing technology difficult as some people find it hard to ask. Or if you already print the online version at home, perhaps you could pass it on to someone else after you have finished with it? That way we can spread the task of distributing the Bridge among the whole community. Of course, we don’t want anyone to be out of touch and so if you do not have anyone you can ask to help or print it for you, then please do get in touch. (Contact Karen Newsam on 01969 622395)
We thank you for your understanding and cooperation and hope to be producing the Bridge for many more years to come! We would also like to thank the team of volunteers who over years have helped to produce and distribute the paper version and hopefully this vital publication can continue, albeit in a different format.
PCC of Middleham with Coverdale, East Witton & Thornton Steward