By The Signal Editorial Board
Reflecting on the 2019 Santa Clarita Fourth of July parade, one thought keeps coming back to our minds: Thank you.
First, in this moment, we thank the parade committee for honoring The Signal’s 100th anniversary. It was our distinct and unforgettable honor to have the parade celebrate our centennial year and for Owner/Publisher Richard Budman to serve as grand marshal. We’re grateful for the acknowledgment, and the opportunity.
Beyond that, on behalf of everyone who has written a news story, taken a photograph, sold an ad or in any way helped produce The Signal over the past 100 years, we thank the community for the special relationship this news organization has enjoyed since Ed Brown founded The Signal as a small-town newspaper serving a community of just 500 souls in 1919.
A great deal has changed since then, but one thing has not, and that’s the special connection between The Signal and the Santa Clarita Valley.
Newspapers in general, and community newspapers in particular, are a virtual town square where we do everything from celebrating achievements to helping the less fortunate to debating whatever the hot-button issue of the day might be.
You don’t always agree with us. Sometimes, what you read in the newspaper will make you laugh, cry, or shake your fist in rage. And that’s OK.
In 1919, and in 2019, and the years in between, those at the helm of The Signal have striven to report everything from our community’s joys to its sorrows, and in this editorial space we comment on them. We always welcome dissenting views, because that’s an important part of our job.
Each year, the Fourth of July parade is a unique and special opportunity to celebrate not only our shared sense of patriotism, but also our shared sense of community. The parade is as much a celebration of Santa Clarita as it is a celebration of Independence Day.
Thank you, to all, for allowing us to be part of the celebration, and we look forward to many more Fourth of July parades in the community we love.
