Chris KempThe Spectator. Two simple words, yet they’ve become my life for the past four years. When I think of our office – room 108 of Hibbard Hall – I think of my second home, and in many cases, my first home.
And now, after publishing nearly 200 issues, it’s hard to say goodbye to such an amazing journey. With graduation forcing me out of the office, this is my final farewell to the loyal readers of The Spectator.
Over the past four years, you have picked up copies of this newspaper to become informed on campus issues, to find out the most recent Blugold scores and what to do on the weekend, and of course, what the latest drunks did to wind up in the blotter.
In my variety of positions on staff, I was able to cover everything from the spree of meningitis cases to blood drives to Chancellor Donald Mash’s exit from the university. The satisfaction from walking across campus on a Monday or Thursday afternoon watching students find out what’s going on is indescribable.
When readers pause to look at a picture a little longer or converse with a friend about a story, we know the time we spent behind the computer until 4 a.m. was worth it – we did our job. And we also hear about it when we didn’t, from missed commas, to misspelled names to errors in fact, however we’re still grateful for the feedback.
But behind the scenes, this newspaper has helped me learn and grow in so many ways.
It’s the interviews with people – a chance when complete strangers share their most sensitive stories with you – that change you, sometimes make you hold back tears. Journalism isn’t just about getting the story and writing it with the five Ws and H. It’s about understanding people and telling their stories.
Aside from the newsprint, The Spectator has provided me with the best of friends, hard-working co-workers, the most constructive critiques of my work and a home-away-from-home, to name a few.
But that’s just me. What it all comes down to is that college is what you make of it. It can be the best four years of your life, or the worst, depending on how you go about it.
If you sit in your dorm room flipping through pictures thinking about how great high school was, you’ll be looking for transfer papers or counting down the days until graduation. But if you get out, meet people (try thefacebook.com, I hear you can meet a lot of people there) and become involved in campus activities, you’ll be wishing you were on the five-year plan instead of the four.
By finding your niche, you gain a sense of belonging to our beautiful campus and community. That belonging will stick with you, drawing you back years after you graduate.
Thanks in large part to The Spectator and all that it entails, these past four years have been an incredibly fun learning experience for me.
And the same opportunity is there for everyone on this campus through the numerous organizations and resources available. So find your place and hang on for the ride.
I’d just like to extend a heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped make my time in Eau Claire some of the best of my life. From the cashiers at the food court in Davies who know I always want sweet and sour sauce with my food to the bouncers at The Joynt who recognize me without an ID – everyone has made an impact in one way or another.
A big thank you goes out to the administration, faculty, staff and members of the Foundation. Not only did you open a lot of doors for me and provide me with some amazing opportunities, you also put up with my annoying and persistent messages and phone calls begging for interviews.
To the about 100 members of The Spectator, past and current, you have been my family and my life since I wandered in the office as a lost freshman. Thank you for challenging me and giving me room to grow. The 2 a.m. scooter rides and water fights in the halls of Hibbard didn’t hurt either.
And to you, the reader, thank you for reading our paper, from the award-winning stories, to the stories we wished we never printed. Without you, our profession would be without purpose.
As I opened my can of SpaghettiOs for dinner in the office tonight (I eat here more than I do at home), an old friend surprised me.
Out of the blue, a past Spectator staffer showed up, back in Eau Claire for a quick visit, but long enough to stop by the office.
And now as I sit in the office with many emotions hitting me – many of them running down my face – I know this place had as big of an impact on him as it did for me. In his words, he will “forever feel connected to its pages and its history.”
I know he made the best of his years at Eau Claire and The Spectator, and it brought him back.
I know I’ll be back.
Duwe is a senior print journalism major and editor in chief of The Spectator. Cheers!
