John Curry … never count him out!
COMMENT: John Curry needs no introduction to long time residents of Richmond. He is a familiar figure, friend and neighbour. We were glad to see this article by Devyn Barrie at StittsvilleCentral.ca and are pleased to bring it forward to you who are wondering where John may turn up next!
IN DEPTH: John Curry carries on, despite the demise of the Stittsville News
IT WAS MAY 1975 WHEN JOHN CURRY, a young newspaperman with six years of experience in journalism, made a deal.
For $6,000, he became the proud owner of the Stittsville News and embarked on a community journalism career that would span more than 40 years and counting.
It was a tough gig. The hours were long and the pay was low. The newspaper served a small community and barely broke even. But Curry wasn’t in it for the money. He wanted to do good journalism, report for the community and have fun doing it.
The paper changed hands, but he stuck around. In 2001 he sold it to Runge Newspapers. In 2005, it was sold again to Metroland Media.
All seemed well until late 2017, when Postmedia picked up the paper and immediately announced it would close in January 2018. The last edition landed on doorsteps on Jan. 11.
“It was sad because you knew that that was the last one and the last time you were able to tell stories about the community,” Curry told CBC Radio on Jan. 13. “But that’s the way it was, you had no control over it.”
