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Hello Golden!

Ever since I was a little kid I loved to tell stories.

Ever since I was a little kid I loved to tell stories.

Whether it was through writing short stories, reading ghost stories by the campfire, or the elaborate lies I would tell to get myself out of trouble, stories were my thing.

That passion later translated to a love of writing, and I went into high school knowing that I wanted to write for a living when I grew up.

At first, my dream was to be a novelist, like my hero J.K Rowling. I quickly learned that it wasn’t for me; no matter how much thought and planning I put into them, my attention span couldn’t sustain more than the first few chapters. I would get bored too easily, or I would come up with a bigger, better idea, and move on before I could see a project all the way through.

Noticing this, my grade 10 careers teacher suggested journalism. It was the perfect combination of story telling and writing, but the shorter length lent itself well to my attention span. The constant change, covering different things and telling different stories every day, appealed to me like nothing else had.

That was back in 2011. Every year since, I’ve worked towards one goal, to tell stories as a journalist. And finally, in 2019, I can say that dream is a reality.

I’m so honoured and blessed to be in Golden. Thank you for giving me a chance to tell your stories, and live out my dream in the process. Thank you for being so kind and welcoming in my first weeks here. I constantly marvel at the kindness I have been shown, and how I have been embraced into the community.

I know that I have big shoes to fill; I hear Keri was pretty great. I promise to do my best to continue to serve you and the community as well as she did, and to do Golden justice.

Coming from a suburb just north of Toronto, moving half way across the country to work for the Star was a huge leap of faith. It’s the farthest I’ve ever lived away from home, and I didn’t know anyone when I first came here.

I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support of the wonderful people I work with, and everyone who has embraced me as one of their own.

So thanks Golden! I promise I won’t let you down.



Claire Palmer

About the Author: Claire Palmer

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