It’s hard to believe that my time with the Cal Times will be coming to an end in just a few short days. My involvement traces back to the first day of classes my freshman year where I somehow found my way into their office by using a back stairwell while Natali was still under construction. After seeing posts over the summer that the Cal Times was looking for writers and photographers, I knew immediately that I wanted to be involved with this organization.

The Cal Times has provided me with numerous opportunities and taught me how to develop my writing and photography skills while also teaching me some graphic design skills.

After my freshman year I was elected as the Entertainment Editor for the paper and have held that position for the past two and a half years. There have been many ups and downs throughout my time with the paper and I would not change any moment for the world. I have absolutely loved serving as the Entertainment Editor and it is going to be a hard thing to let go of as I move on to the next phase of my life.

There are so many people to thank for all the memories and laughter. I cannot thank all of the hardworking editorial staffs that have taken on these roles during my time here at Cal U enough. The role of an editor is not an easy one to step into and can be extremely demanding, especially during a print week since deadlines always seem to creep up on you.

I would like to especially thank our current editorial staff including Danny Beeck, Colin Kirkwood, James Rudolph, Angel Funk, and Taylor Barta for being patient with my while I tried to balance my commitment with the paper and my internship this semester.

Of course, the Cal Times could not do what it does without the hard work and effort our adviser, Jeff Helsel, puts into the organization. Jeff has dealt with my attitude and sass more than probably anyone else on our staff and still continued to help and guide me through every opportunity that was presented including finally convincing me to join the CUTV staff as a news anchor. I also would have never been featured as a finalist in the SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards for my photography without the encouragement of Jeff to submit my photos.

I will always think of the media suite as an insane place where literally anything could happen but yet somehow every organization down there (the Cal Times, CUTV, WCAL) is still able to put out phenomenal student-created work. Thank you to everyone who made every stressful moment less stressful and filled the times spent in the suite with laughter and absolutely ridiculous suggestions.

To Gary, thanks for always being available for advice in various situations and for encouraging me when I really need it. You truly deserve endless amounts of front page covers from the Times and I really hope Taylor gives you it one day.

Pam, thank you for seriously just everything!

To anyone who has ever written for my section, I cannot thank you all enough! You guys are absolute lifesavers and I have no clue what I would have done without any of you. You all provide such insightful pieces on such a wide variety of topics.

To whoever replaces my role, I hope you find new things to include within the entertainment section and never be afraid to take risks on trying different things. Not everything you try is going to look great or succeed but you will never know until you test it out. No paper is going to be perfect but you are always going to learn something from your mistakes.

I will never lose the appreciation for journalism that has continuously grown over my time spent at Cal U. Good luck to everyone involved with all of the media outlets we provide the Cal U community! It really has been great and I’ll cherish these memories forever. That’s all folks.