A lot has happened since we last posted an appeal for new members. As you know, one-and-a-half weeks ago a fire tore through the building that housed Mission Local, displacing 65 people and dozens of businesses. Residents are still looking for homes and business owners are trying to regroup.
We at Mission Local lost our offices as well, but one of the great things about journalism today is how mobile it is. With laptops and cameras, we’re able to keep going. Still, we will miss our old offices and neighbors very much.
A lot of people have asked what we are doing, and many have offered us temporary space. We took one of those offers – and thank you, Mission Bicycle and the data analysis startup, Wagon for making life so much easier for us! We are looking at permanent space. But our primary focus has been following up on the story and covering other news as well.
If anything has come from this awful event, we hope it’s brought home to our readers the value of having a healthy local news site. We sent reporters into the street with notebooks and cameras to track down information on the fire and its victims. We also played a key role in getting out the word about relief efforts. In fact, Zach Crockett, the young man who launched a crowd-funding effort for victims the night of the fire and told Mission Local about it, woke up to find that donations were already topping $7,000. “Then I knew it was something kind of special,” he told a SF Chronicle reporter. “Mission Local had shared it as the go-to relief site.”
We care deeply about this community. But we can continue to serve you only if you help us. We hope you will join Mission Local – at whatever level fits your budget.
In the spirit of history, I’m adding new bids for support to earlier ones. We’ll let you know which one was most effective and if you have any ideas, send them to us and we’ll try those. info@missionlocal.com
Sounds Like: It’s Time To Become A Member! 1/10/15
animation mission local from Mission Local on Vimeo.
Here’s some audiovisual excellence for your afternoon: The sounds of the Mission, set to animations by local filmmaker, designer and animator Claudia Escobar. Hmm…do you hear that? Sounds kinda like it’s time to join our membership program and support neat projects like this one!
In the spirit of history, I’m adding new bids for support to earlier ones. We’ll let you know which one was most effective and if you have any ideas, send them to us and we’ll try those. info@missionlocal.com
It’s 3:20-something. Time…
…to JOIN MISSION LOCAL. And yes, that is our crummy wall clock which we promise not to replace. Your money will go toward reporting.
In the spirit of history, I’m adding new bids for support to earlier ones. We’ll let you know which one was most effective and if you have any ideas, send them to us and we’ll try those. info@missionlocal.com
***
2015 – Start It Right
Call Your Mom, OR, JOIN MISSION LOCAL (and we’ll do it for you ).
In the spirit of history, I’m adding new bids for support to earlier ones. We’ll let you know which one was most effective and if you have any ideas, send them to us and we’ll try those. info@missionlocal.com.
***
8,002 Friends 12/26/14
If only 2,000 of our friends signed up to support Mission Local for $10 a month or $120 a year, Mission Local would be self-sustaining. So, be a friend in deed.
If you find the process clunky or frustrating, vent at info@missionlocal.com and we’ll send someone over to pick up your check.
In the spirit of history, I’m adding new bids for support to earlier ones. We’ll let you know which one was most effective and if you have any ideas, send them to us and we’ll try those. info@missionlocal.com.
***
How Does Mission Local Survive – 12/20/14
Right now Mission Local survives on grit, hope and some savings. We won’t endure forever on this but our hope is that you – the readers who return to us frequently – will become members; that businesses that benefit from a thriving local media will also step up.
When I mention our revenue model to readers, the response is often, of course, but you haven’t advertised it enough. So, we will be advertising our dependence on you in many different ways and we will keep you informed on how it is going. If you want to know more about our membership drive, you can check out the FAQs we posted earlier. And if you want to come in for a visit, e-mail us at info@missionlocal.com.
To those of you who have been early adapters on signing up – many, many thanks.