There are those things we do because they bring us fortune or fame, and then there are those that we do because they are the right thing and enrich the lives of others.
It has been nearly four years since I saw my first vintage copy of The NH Troubadou. It was love at first sight. Pocket-sized and brimming with poetry, vivid photos and touching portraits of neighbors and communities from Portsmouth to Pittsburg, it was a reminder of what has always made our state the best place in the world to call home: its people.
When we first decided in 2008 to re-launch this publication as a gift to the state, free of ads and free of charge, there was no shortage of people who thought perhaps we’d lost a marble or two. In an age of digital media and declining literacy, at a time when our state and our nation were badly hurting, the questions kept recurring: Will anyone read it? How will it possibly survive? Will a magazine that is, at its core, about celebrating history and tradition, trumpeting the good works of our neighbors, and inspiring others to step forward and assist their communities really resonate?
Over the last three years, you have answered these questions loud and clear. You have answered them through your poetry, photos and artistry; by inviting us into your homes and communities to witness firsthand the people and places that continue to make our New Hampshire so remarkable; and through your nominations of genuinely good folks, like the amazing Ron Locke on the opposing page, who are quietly contributing and helping others, not for recognition, but because it’s the right thing to do. In this little magazine, you have helped to give all of us something very special to hold in our hands.
This is a bittersweet moment for my wife Karin and me. Following the production of this issue, the Troubadour will be going into hibernation, as we focus the energy and efforts of our charitable foundation with the children and families across New Hampshire who are struggling and need help the most.
This is not goodbye. There are many more stories to write, poems to publish and people to champion, and it is our hope, sooner rather than later, that our economy rights itself and we are able to return to this extraordinary project. What it is, in the meantime, is thank you. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for being so giving of yourselves, for your continued kind words, for reminding all of us the true meaning of wealth.
