From the desk

Ashley Bollinger

“All lovely things will have an ending, all lovely things will fade and die; and youth, that’s now so bravely spending, will beg a penny by and by,” Conrad Aiken wrote in his poem “All Lovely Things.”

As I end this chapter in my life, I can see the reality and truth of Aiken’s words.

Sitting in this office has become a part of me, a defining season in my life. This is the place that I came to understand what it means to be a writer and what it will take to be a success.

Being the editor-in-chief of the Liberty Champion, or even just on staff for that matter, has been a roller coaster ride. Through stress, joy, panic and pride, I have weathered the storm over the past two years.

It is with great relief and gratitude that I pass the baton to a worthy successor.

I hope you will be as good to her as you were to me. I have thoroughly enjoyed contributing my thoughts, prayers, dreams and opinions, and wish her the best as she does the same.

For my last farewell from this old desk, goodbye my friends — until we meet again.

Tabitha Cassidy

Another year has come and gone, and as the seniors are scrambling to pass their final classes and leave Lynchburg for unknown possibilities, the rest of us are left wondering what the following school year will look like.

Will we finally get that ring by spring (even if half of us have never been in a relationship)? Or will we snag that career-making internship that takes us away from the familiarities of friends and residential classes?

The summertime gives us all a chance to ponder these thoughts and plan outfits to impress the opposite sex on the first day of class. But it also gives us time to think about the empty chairs that we will be filling and the new positions we are all taking on. Primarily for me, the chair of editor-in-chief and the new responsibilities of making sure you, the readers, are satisfied with your newspaper will be weighing heavily on my mind as I skip from state-to-state on a whirlwind of summer adventure.

So as we say goodbye to the graduating seniors and give a big farewell to an old time friend and previous editor-in-chief, Ashley Bollinger, I promise you all that the previous traditions and standards of the Liberty Champion will continue to be upheld.

My name is Tabitha Cassidy, and I am looking forward to hearing from you all.