Kevin Hensley
My 4-year anniversary over The Graham Star came and went without a single thread of recognition: no candle, no cake, not even an “attaboy.”
Oh, I thought of it, no doubt. “How on Earth … four years?,” I kept saying as I worked through the typical stress-filled Tuesday afternoon that is deadline day. It is a weekly cycle that never ends – but is always there, so the job security in that is comforting.
But there was no time for a big to-do Aug. 8: we had a newspaper to get out. Week in, week out, that’s what we do – so much so that it took me exactly one month to slow down enough and write my yearly acknowledgement column of the journey I am on.
A frequent question posed to me is, “How do you do it?” Well, you almost go into autopilot mode: keeping tabs on the frantic pace of the local news cycle (which includes sports, for all you keyboard warriors out there); making sure that I fulfill my job title to the largest degree possible (who else is going to spend 30 minutes editing an error-filled “press release before the public’s eyes see it?”); and trying to find the time in-between to both write about all the news/sports you have covered, while simultaneously attempting to have a life outside the office? (No, your grievance is not important enough to send me a private message while I’m sprawled out on the couch at 11 p.m. No, really, it’s not).
Here is a prime example: last week, we proudly released our yearly list of awards from the N.C. Press Association Editorial and Photojournalism Contest. I was thrilled to see how many the Star had collected this year: 11 is nothing to sneeze at for a publication of this size. The winners were emailed to publishers statewide in June; we are asked to keep it embargoed until after the annual convention in late-August.
I was so excited that I let the cat (well, the entire litter) out of the bag to one of my closest friends less than 12 hours before we went to press.
So imagine the shock when I tried to tell my same friend two days later about the awards – and she had to remind me halfway through I had already given her the rundown.
Like I said, it’s frantic. Sometimes you think you have it all together; other times, you deliver good news to your good friend twice in a 48-hour period.
I cannot explain why or how you keep pace: you just do it. Everyone thinks they can write – most everyone thinks they can write news: yet, very few possess that perfect balance of passion and mental tenacity to do it every single week.
Admittedly, I get to live out my dream of being in broadcasting multiple times a week, with our live-streaming efforts both on Facebook and our sports-exclusive site, grahamstarsports.com. The joke is that I went to school to talk; yet, I have ended up typing for the majority of my career. Maybe that is a blessing; perhaps this is what I was actually meant to do. Only the good Lord above knows and He sees me through it each day.
There is plenty of good in this to outweigh the bad. Compliments finally have surpassed complaints (it took a while; resistance to change and the Star’s reputation were tough to overcome when I arrived); and you cannot help but feel a sense of accomplishment when members of the community tell you they appreciate what you do for their newspaper.
At this point, I will stake a claim in this fight: it’s my paper, too. The Graham Star; Robbinsville; Graham County; all of it in totality is something I can see as a long-term plan. Often, people approach me and say it feels like I am one of Graham County’s own. My reply usually follows in a similar fashion to this: “This feels more like home than home.” Because it does. I was not born here, but I plan to draw my final breath in one of the most beautiful, loving, humble places in the world.
The cycle lately has been nothing short of overwhelming. The 7-month search for a staff writer continues; many a Tuesday night has been spent watching the same cars drive south on Tallulah at quitting time, then zoom by for their northbound commute the following morning.
No doubt they went home, ate dinner, spent quality time with loved ones and enjoyed a good night’s rest; all while I dined on the finest gourmet option from Wendy’s and pounded a Celsius (thanks for getting me hooked, spokesperson who shall remain nameless) to power through because there simply was not enough time between work and … well, work to write about work: so it has to get written sometime.
Again, it’s something very few can understand: but I love it.
Even if it takes me an extra month after an anniversary for me to stop and smell the roses.
Kevin Hensley is the publisher/editor of The Graham Star.
Since moving to Robbinsville, he has developed more gray hair than dark; had his gallbladder removed; burned through two vehicles; started using a cPap; gained and lost 30-plus pounds too many times to count; and pulled his first “all-nighter” – and through it all, felt nothing but blessed to be where God has placed him in life.