Nita Johnson: MY POINT IS...The end of an era

Nita Johnson, The Sentinel Echo, London, Ky.
·4 min read

May 9—To everything there is a season...

I recall that scripture from my childhood, and have found it to be quite accurate.

It also describes a new phase in my life.

For those who haven't already heard, my era at The Sentinel Echo is coming to a close. I am retiring on May 31 — after a total of 21 years in the newspaper business.

This is an emotional decision but one I feel is best for me at this point in my life. The years have brought my experiences, some of which I will share in the succeeding columns.

I began at the Sentinel Echo in January 1995, excited but scared to death. I began writing while in elementary school; one of my teachers sent an essay to an education magazine and it was published. My mother wrote poetry and I delved into that for awhile, but when some friends began writing short stories when I was in 7th grade at Colony Elementary, I joined in to the writing regime.

My love for writing stalled after college, but I began writing poetry in my 30s. Several were published, one even making it into an edition that is registered in the Library of Congress. Then I began submitting news items and poems to the newsletter where I was employed.

I'd always wondered if I could write "on demand" and that opportunity came when I was hired at The Sentinel Echo. I had submitted a resumé and was asked to write a sample story. With my 20th high school reunion approaching, that was my topic. I reflected back on the days of high school, noting the changes over the years. The sample story not only was published, I was offered the reporter job. Getting the opportunity to write — and to write for my hometown newspaper — was a dream come true!

My first day was reading the company information, learning how to use the equipment, and going to take a picture of a donation to the VFW. There I met Denis House, who was doing news for The Laurel News Leader. We covered many things together for the two newspapers, worked together and who has been my friend since.

In January 1998, I left to work for Willie Sawyers' newspaper, The Laurel News Leader. That stint ended when Willie negotiated a merger of The Sentinel Echo and The News Leader. Ironically, I went back to the same desk I'd vacated just 10 months prior! But it was good to be "home" again.

I left The Sentinel on Dec. 31, 2001, to explore new opportunities. I went to the YMCA child care, where I stayed for seven years. During that stint, I earned my Associate degree in Early Interdisciplinary Childhood Education, as well as the Kentucky Child Care Director certification.

As luck would have it, I was contacted in Jan. 2010 for an interview at The Sentinel. I was hired and began on my daughter's birthday, Jan. 27.

It has been a fruitful experience through the years although my lack of technology skills still remains a joke amongst my co-workers. It was personally rewarding, however, when we were being trained for a new system of writing. Oddly enough, I was the first one to "get it." My co-workers were in shock! I, of course, had to gloat over that small achievement, never letting them forget that I was the first to catch on to the new way. Of course, that was the only time that situation arose, but I never backed down on reminding them of my one technology success!

Photography was always a challenge. Aperture and ISO and all the settings for my camera were a foreign language to me. Using the manual setting was just as bad, because apparently what is in focus to me is not in focus for the camera. Thus, point-and-shoot and auto focus became my sole assurance that I would generate a usable picture. My lack of photography knowledge was also a point of ire in the Sentinel Echo newsroom.

Denis House (who was exceptional with sports photography) often told me I never had to worry about winning a photography award at Kentucky Press Association (KPA) due to my blurry photos.

So imagine my utter thrill when I won my first award in photography one year. The awards were held in Lexington that year and Denis was driving myself and two former reporters back home the next morning. I had already gloated repeatedly to Denis after the awards ceremony that I had won an award for photography. Those who know Denis can hear his response: "Yeah, Nita, I know." The ride home consisted of my periodic outbursts of: "Denis, I won an award for photography." He repeated his previous comment numerous times, to which I responded, "You know I'm never going to let you forget this!" Again, "Yeah, Nita, I know." You gotta love Denis!

That is only one of millions of memories that will remain in my heart for the remainder of my life.

Stay tuned for next week's memory...