Got a hankerin’ to drive?
I love driving over the stunning Lake Champlain Bridge.
If you share the feeling, we have an unusual opportunity for you.
We’re looking for someone to drive across the lake and back once every four weeks, late at night or very early in the morning.
The Lake Champlain Bridge at Crown Point is part of the scenic drive a volunteer would experience picking up newspapers at the printer in New York once a month.
The Charlotte News is printed in Elizabethtown, N.Y., about 55 miles away via Fort Henry, N.Y. Every second Thursday, by no later than 7 in the morning, the printer delivers our papers in two batches: about 1,850 are dropped at the Shelburne post office and another 200 go to the senior center. We pay about $4,000 a year for this service — and that’s a lot of money for a small, nonprofit community newspaper. Hence this request.
There are two options for meeting the post office’s 7 a.m. deadline: picking the papers up around 5 a.m. every second Thursday or on the Wednesday evening before around 9 p.m.
We realize that this “opportunity” may appeal to only a tiny number of our readers. But, we need only two of you, taking this in turns, once every four weeks — and I would be your backup, as needed.
All 2,050 papers will fit in a mid-sized car. And we’re happy to reimburse you for the cost of gas — or electricity if you own an EV.
Last year, more than 80 individuals volunteered their time and talents to The Charlotte News. They wrote stories, sent photos, served on the board, proofread the paper and delivered copies around town.
If you’d like to join this remarkable community, and drive to Elizabethtown and back once every four weeks, please get in touch via email or phone — 802-318-7189. I would be thrilled to hear from you!