A week ago, we announced the increase in price for our singlecopy sales, as well as our subscriptions.

Like politics, money can be a touchy subject to discuss. The decision to increase the rates were the product of many conversations and research. It was not a decision I took lightly.

The reality is our costs continue to increase. This isn’t a surprise to any in our community. Prices, from the gas pump to the food bill, have gone up. The same is true for our newspaper. The cost of newsprint saw steady increases through COVID. And the postal rates continue to rise. This is a particularly sore spot for many of us in the newspaper world, because while costs to mail our paper to our subscribers continues to climb, the service and reliability of delivery isn’t what it once was. We have had several fruitful conversations with our local Ellsworth staff, and they are not the broken link. They continue to assist us in finding answers for unexpected delays.

Last week, I decided to reach out directly via email to readers with subscriptions expiring within the next six months. I wanted to give our loyal readers the option to extend their subscription before the rate increased.

The response was encouraging. Readers eagerly renewed/extended their subscriptions, often sending a note to let us know the vital role the Independent-Reporter plays in their ability to be informed about community news and events. It’s always nice to hear kind words, and we are so grateful for the encouragement.

I was, however, surprised in one area. As I emailed back and forth, explaining options, I discovered some readers do not know about the online option for our paper.

All who have a paid subscription to the I-R can also opt to have the paper delivered digitally, via email. It goes directly to your inbox on Wednesday mornings. In that email is a link to current editions, as well as our archive. There is no extra cost for this service for our print subscribers.

If this is news to you, please feel free to activate your online subscription. You may go to www.indyrepnews. com and click on “subscribe” on the righthand side of the page.

Our print subscribers are welcome to select the “register” option under “Existing print subscriber?” and create a login.

Once you do so, we will verify your subscription and you will be good to go!

Sometimes we get too familiar with our own offerings, and forget to tell our readers about the multitude of options available. This felt like the right opportunity to remind our readers about our e-edition, as well as our printed newspaper.

In closing, I want to thank our readers. You are an essential ingredient to the existence of this newspaper. For more than 150 years, the Ellsworth Reporter, then the I-R has been your source for news. We thank you for your readership and look forward to continuing the legacy of the county newspaper.

Bonar is the editor/publisher of the I-R and can be reached at kbonar@indyrepnews. com.