One of the unexpected joys of working at the paper has been getting to know you, our readers.

If I happen to be here on a Tuesday evening, I see cars pull up and people make a trip to the newspaper box sitting outside of our front window. Sometimes, I come out and chit-chat.

Recently, I’ve had to pop my head out of the door to tell you that the papers aren’t here yet. Unfortunately, it’s become a familiar chorus. It’s also frustrating. We know you are excited to see the weekly news. Our staff takes great pride in reporting and designing the weekly publication, and we realize the delay is annoying.

On the upside, we have had many regulars who purchase at the boxes stop in and inquire about the paper. We have been able to directly talk with many of our readers.

That part of this whole experience is truly a joy. We wish our conversations didn’t orbit around absent newspapers.

I feel like we owe you an update and explanation. I realize it can’t make up for the delay that it has caused in shipping or perhaps the extra trip into town you’ve made to pick up the paper, but I hope it can provide some clarity about the situation.

We print our newspaper at our sister paper, the Great Bend Tribune. Recently, they have had difficulty with the plates that go on the presses, which in turn print the newspaper you read.

Their primary plate processor is broken. The repair has been delayed for a multitude of reasons. Most recently, the part, which was ordered from Europe, was stuck in customs — for five days in Memphis. Yes, you read that correctly, FIVE DAYS.

Our printer has a new plate printer coming, but has run into shipping issues for that machine as well. The machine is ready to go, but the seller is having difficulty arranging freight shipping. I’m sure it’s very lovely, but sitting on the shipping dock isn’t getting our plates printed.

So that’s where we find ourselves. The Great Bend team has had to beg, borrow and probably even considered stealing to get the plates for their press.

This has been going on since early September, and our plates have often been printed in Manhattan, driven to Great Bend for printing, then driven up to Ellsworth so we can deliver to the post office and newsstands.

Last week’s plot twist was when Manhattan ran out of plates. This sent a scramble to obtain plates from another regional press. When the plates arrived in Great Bend, they were too small — by less than an inch.

Our printer and also my staff had to pivot, shuffle some pages around to ensure color was in the proper place and have the paper printed elsewhere, which resulted in delayed shipping.

We are sincerely sorry for the delay in your news product, and we are grateful for the patience and grace you’ve shown us as we wait for the new plate printer to arrive, as well as the part to repair the backup printer.

Karen Bonar is the editor/ publisher of the I-R and can be reached via email: kbonar@indyrepnews.com.