MidValleySports.Com

Tim Peterson

By Tim Peterson

There’s nothing like the hard copy of the newspaper. There’s nothing quite like opening it up and turning to the sports page and reading a game story or a box score. But in this day of the internet the newspaper has become a dinosaur.

I still read the newspaper to this day. I know its old school but I guess I am old school. Sure you can get all of the information on the web, however there’s something about seeing it in print that makes it special.

For the last 15 years I have written for a newspaper – the Mid Valley News. Since 2001 I have written game stories, features, standings and eventually this column that appeared in the Mid Valley News on a weekly basis. Yes, the stories are also on the website, Mid Valley Sports, but our readers were still able to get their local sports information in the paper by picking it up at their local restaurant, donut shop or retail store.

Joe T.’s High School football novel is available through Amazon.com
“A literary snapshot of what goes on over the course of a high school football season…an awesome read and a story that truly will transcend time.”—Jim Singiser, AD/HC Arroyo Knights Football
“Thrill, dread, anxiety, love, agony, success, and failure; basically all the emotions you feel as a football player/coach as you do in life, all wrapped up in a single book.”—Marc Paramo, HC Rosemead Panthers Football
“I read the book and really enjoyed it a great deal. I would think coaches and parents could learn a lot.”—John “Coach” Kentera, former sports talk host at Mighty 690 & Mighty 1090

For some, okay for me, the Mid Valley News was like an old friend. It was consistent. You knew that it was going to be there for you each and every week. Well this week I found out I am losing that old friend.

This Wednesday, October 26, will be the last edition of the Mid Valley News. They, we, are closing up shop, disbanding or folding if you will. It was inevitable. Financial constraints, rising costs, and the aforementioned internet all led to the paper’s demise.

The Mid Valley News has been around since 1966, proudly serving El Monte and the surrounding communities for the last 50 years.

I’ll miss the late Friday nights at the office. All of the writers would meet back at the office on Valley Boulevard after football games and we would write our stories, eat pizza and argue about how South El Monte could beat Arroyo.

I’ll miss Wednesdays when the weekly edition would be released and I would turn to the sports section to see what made it to print and what didn’t.

I’ll miss having friends and family asking me to bring them a copy of the paper.

I’ll miss walking into a local fast food place where the Mid Valley News has been delivered and seeing somebody sitting at the table next to me reading my column. I always thought that was funny.

I would like to thank my old editor Connie Keenan who gave me the opportunity to write and has since moved on to bigger and better things, and owner Clarke Moseley who was always there for a word of encouragement. And a big thank you especially to all the players, coaches, and parents who would see me at a game or event and tell me they were loyal readers of my stories and the Mid Valley News.

Now, just to clarify, if you’re an internet reader you can still log on to Mid Valley Sports for all of your sports info. But the weekly newspaper, the Mid Valley News, no longer exists.

As the great Vin Scully said recently, “Don’t be sad that it’s over but smile because it happened.”

And it happened for 50 years. So long old friend. I’m going to miss you.

That’s my principle.

Tim can be reached at tim@midvalleysports.com or on Twitter @tspeterson40.