By Robert M. Sarwark
The Porch Press was founded in 1986, after several other local newspapers converged. That means that next year, 2026, marks forty years since this newspaper was founded. (Stay tuned for more information on how we plan to celebrate that milestone with you here in Atlanta’s NPU-W.)
As we enter into our fortieth year, there is much to celebrate, as well as many challenges to stay abreast of.
For our successes, recently we reorganized as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. This means that all donations to The Porch Press News, Inc.(our new official business name) are tax deductible. So, if you’ve considered supporting us that way, there has never been a better time! Please reach out to me at the email below or see our website for more information on how to set that up.
This new status has also allowed us to apply for and receive a discount postage rate with the U.S. Postal Service, which we rely on to deliver almost 6,000 newspapers every month, for free, to our subscribers in NPU-W. We now expect to pay about $500 less per month than previously on this essential overhead cost, totaling about $5,500 per year in savings.
501(c)(3) nonprofit status also makes it much easier for us to apply for and receive grant funding from various sources. We will be pursuing as many of these opportunities as we are eligible and able.
While these improvements are substantial and will certainly help keep us afloat, unfortunately we still struggle to pay our bills every month. This is because both printing and postage rates continue to steadily rise with inflation and other externalities, such as tariffs (on Canadian newsprint paper, for example). A donation of $5.00 per month from you, dear reader, helps further offset those costs. Meanwhile, we aim to keep our advertising rates steady – as in very affordable – so that we continue to attract mostly local and independent businesses that enrich our wonderful neighborhoods.
As for other challenges, I mentioned those of a financial nature above, but one of the biggest threats to citizen-powered journalism such as The Porch Press is apathy. When we don’t hear from you as citizen-journalists, or even just as readers, we then rely exclusively on our volunteer staff of about 12 dedicated individuals to do almost everything. This is unsustainable. As an editorial team, we try our best to contribute articles on a regular basis, but what’s even better is when we receive an array of material from you, our neighbors. Again, please reach out to me at the email below if you are interested in learning more.
With that, I’ll leave you with a quote that a friend of mine once shared: “Community is the vibe you bring, not the vibe you expect.” As 2026 approaches, I invite you to bring all the support or direct service you can muster for our vibrant community. We look forward to joining you, chronicling the great things we achieve together, and sharing in the good vibes.
See you in the funny pages,
Rob
