Moody Courier Doing Well

25. Sep, 2010 0 Comments

In spite of the setbacks, wars, urban renewal, storms, thieves, competition and businesses dropping out on us, the Moody Courier is doing well today. The paper has had to undergo many changes since Josh Billings and Squire Hundley started putting out their newspapers back in 1881. The Courier is believed to be the oldest business in town.

And last week’s paper with its beautiful full color photos was also the largest circulation, possible ever. With the help of our advertisers a copy was mailed to every mailbox customer on the four Moody Routes. Total circulation including the samples came in at 2,350. That’s amazing since the population of Moody is only 1400 according to the sign boards. The routes go into Bell, Coryell and possible other counties.

Like the phone companies, the gas company and the electric companies we’ve had to close our offices, post office boxes and rely on the phones, mail, faxes, internet, website and personal visits. And it’s working.

We also have had to expand out territory to serve the surrounding areas. The paper has always considered it served Bruceville-Eddy, But now there are three stores closed there and West Feed market will close or be sold. The highway may take other businesses that are left when it expands.

Lorena will be a growing area now that the sewer problem has been solved and they know where the highway expansion will go. Rick Sheldon is ready with a big plan on the East side of the interstate. We’re the official paper for Lorena and we only have token opposition there with a two a month free paper.

Robinson is the fastest growing area in the county and it really has a lot of room yet to grow. I’ll bet the land size is as big as Waco. The Tribune tried a weekly there and gave up. Big Blue magazine tried it for a year or so and has given up. So we’re the only one left there. But still there’s not enough steady advertising to support a paper.

Combine all this with ads we get from outsiders and our sister paper, the Waco Citizen, we’re making it. We’ve been blessed to get some advertising from Baylor and others. Hillcrest was big when it opened. ETMC and a new photo place in the CTMC helped us pay our government taxes, payroll and payments this month.

We’ve secured a $35,000 SBA ARC stimulus loan to help us over the recession. It is helping right now, but may come back to bite us in a year or two.

We’re saying all this to say we still need everyone’s business (subscribers and advertisers) in Moody to operate a reasonable good hometown newspaper. There are many businesses in Moody not supporting the newspaper, So this doesn’t let us hire a reporter. Our latest blow is the First National Bank of Moody pulled out on us because we went up on the rate plus a bookkeeping error. They still have the lowest rate of any business in Moody.

As a reader and friend of Moody and the newspaper talk to these businesses that are not supporting your newspaper. Looks like we will have more cooperation from the school since we will have a new superintendent soon and possibly some new board members.

We do have to thank Charleen Dowell and all the city council for working with us on legal notices that have to be run, as Moody continues to make changes as we do and other businesses do.

We are moving as fast as we can into the digital age. We have six people working on making an improved web site for us. www.wacocitizen which includes www.TheSuburbanCourier.

Come by and see us this weekend at the Cotton Harvest Festival. Sign up as a regular reader if you aren’t already at only $18.00. Less than $2 a month for a whole year. Put your pencil to that one: 50 weeks a year times a 44c stamp is $22.00. Our postal permit lets us send you the paper at less cost. We need your subscriptions and all your advertising to help keep us in business and take the paper and web site to the next level.

While the Waco Trib is now charging for their web site we are going to keep ours free. You won’t get the whole paper on there, but some headlines and teasers about what is in the paper.