It was with a heavy heart that we turned the key to the Seymour Telegraph office on Wednesday afternoon, December 4 for the last time.
While The Telegraph will still be published every Wednesday, the office is no more.
The building holds memories for all who have worked there, or popped in to submit a classie, share their story or promote their business.
As editor, I have countless memories of The Telegraph office on Station St.
A lot of my initial training, as a cadet, took place under that roof. There was the time the car broke down, and I was stuck on Station St on a 40°C day.
The ability to duck into the office and sit under the air-con for half an hour was a godsend.
The memory that sticks with me most was during the 2022 floods. We had our cadet journalist, Bianca Hall, and former Shepparton News deputy editor Max Stainkamph in Seymour to cover the floods.
With water beginning to enter Bianca’s apartment and Max unable to leave due to road closures, the two set up camp in the Seymour office.
I was in Benalla, ready to cover the flooding there.
Half awake on the couch, around midnight, I saw a VicEmergency alert for Station St, Seymour.
The water was rising and was expected to flood the office. It was too late to leave.
Concerned for our staff, I quickly phoned Max.
Luckily, the two, aware of the likelihood of being stuck in the office, had filled it with food, and a had even furnished themselves with a bottle of wine to enjoy, after working hours.
By the time I spoke to them, they were sat on the desks enjoying a cheese platter awaiting the water lapping at the door.
The next bit of luck was when I spoke to them three or so hours later and the water had not entered the building, and had started to recede.
Sadly, much of Seymour was not that lucky.
They then did an excellent job of getting out the door at the crack of dawn to cover the flooding.
With the office now closed, the Seymour and District Historical Society has kindly agreed to give our newspaper archive a new home, preserving a great record of the town’s history, stretching back more than 100 years.
While it’s sad the office will be closing, it simply marks the next chapter in the story of The Telegraph.
We have recently had our new advertising consultant, Zach Wright, start. He is looking forward to getting to know all our local advertisers and business owners.
Our new-ish sports journalist Alexander Dabb has been on board for a number of weeks now, and is doing a great job.
We have a new cadet journalist, Billie Davern, starting on December 11. She is looking forward to meeting the community.
Our regional advertising manager, Natasha Randall, has been spending time in Seymour, and will continue to do so, to support our local businesses.
Sadly, our long-time office manager, Dannyelle Jones, has left her role, but she will be staying in Seymour and looks forward to seeing everyone who once popped into the office when she’s out and about in town.
As a group editor for McPherson Media, looking after three mastheads, I have been based in Benalla since 2017.
However, early in the new year I will be relocating to Seymour with my wife, Kelly, and our three girls, Tia, Lilly and Poppy.
I look forward to getting to know more local people and continuing to share your stories through the pages of The Telegraph.