Meet the Asheville Citizen Times press: Editorial assistant Carole Terrell
ASHEVILLE - One of the hardest things about the COVID pandemic that sent many of us scurrying to work from home was the loss of the human connection among colleagues. Even though the Citizen Times newsroom is much smaller than in decades past, there was still the thrill of the breaking news hustle, the ability to yell over to a coworker with a question, and the bonding over shared deadline panic.
But there was also the loss of that calming center, which many of us at the ACT agree, is editorial assistant Carole Terrell. Every newsroom needs someone like Carole, who can serve as a quieting influence in the midst of occasional chaos. Someone who knows where everything is and how to fix it, or who knows who to call to get it fixed.
Carole is also a Western North Carolina native and serves as a font of local mountain history and can usually recall when a certain story ran in the paper, going back decades.
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Carole is currently the longest-serving employee of the Citizen Times. She started in 1989 when she was known as Carole Cogburn and has served in many roles. She still lives in Canton, with her husband, daughter and cat, and still is the first person I call when trying to find an article in our paper archives printed long before the internet, how to work the printer and even pitch hit as a reporter when we need everyone visiting polls on Election Day.
Here is more about Carole in her own words:
Question: Where did you attend college and what did you study?
Answer: Haywood Community College, business administration.
Q: What made you want to go into journalism?
A: When ACT had Haywood County News in Waynesville, I was sent there to fill in for a while as an office assistant. The supervisor was short-staffed and asked if I would be interested in interviewing and photographing area artists for a weekly “Artist of the Week” feature and it went from there, reporting on community news in Haywood and Buncombe counties.
Q: What is a typical day like for you at the Citizen Times?
A: My days consist of compiling, editing and entering property transfers, calendars, letters to the editor and freelancer columns as well as handling calls and emails from subscribers regarding delivery issues and ordering supplies. I filled in as a reporter on Election Day.
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Q: How did things change for you during the COVID pandemic?
Q: During COVID shutdown I went from working in a room with quite a few people and hearing fire trucks and other sounds of the city drifting through the windows, to working alone in my living room and seeing co-workers via video calls. And I missed getting lunch at Twisted Crepe on Haywood Street.
A: What were some of your earlier job responsibilities?
At ACT I have worked in circulation, advertising sales, managed the obituary desk, to being editorial assistant and occasional community reporter. Outside of ACT, I work at Lowe’s Garden Center in the spring.
Q: Would you tell us a couple of memorable events that occurred during your time at the ACT?
A: When employee Joe Shaw would come by most every day and say, “Tell me something good about today.” He was always so pleasant and encouraging. The holiday dinners and cookouts in the alley. When John Boyle’s family visited the newsroom with a coffin to celebrate a milestone birthday. When the Hillcrest Marching Band came into the newsroom. When Susan Reinhardt came out of the elevator riding a unicycle.
Q: What are some of the questions most commonly asked by callers or readers?
A: “When is my letter going to be printed?”
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Q: What’s your favorite and least favorite things about working in journalism?
A: My favorite thing is the variety of the job and knowing that ACT keeps people informed and makes a difference in the community. Least favorite is sitting at a desk but we now have the option of a stand-up desk while in the office.
Q: How do you spend your time or what do you do for fun when you’re not working?
A: Beach vacations, reading, learning to speak Spanish, gardening and lawn care, creating haiku poetry – mostly about cats, hiking, walking the neighborhood for exercise while listening to techno/dance music, Jason Mraz or Italian rock band Maneskin, and this coming winter I may visit Cataloochee Ski Area to see if snow skiing really is like riding a bike. I may be wobbly but I think I can still do it.
This is the opinion of Karen Chávez, Interim Executive Editor for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Tips, comments, questions? Call 828-236-8980, email, KChavez@CitizenTimes.com or follow on Twitter @KarenChavezACT.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Meet Asheville Citizen Times news assistant Carole Terrell
