Dear Joe

Dear Joe,

I’ve been reading your paper from the beginning, and singing your praises to all my friends.  At first nobody seemed to know what I was talking about, but with each passing issue, I can tell your readership is growing rapidly.  After your Joe of the Year promotion, surely there can’t be many in town that aren’t aware of you.  I can tell by the fact that I had to go to three locations to find the last issue.  The first two had run out already.

Regular Reader

Dear RR,

You’re right; we do seem to be picking up steam a little.  Nice comments like yours give us a big head, but emptying the trash and all the other daily chores keeps us grounded.

Joe

Dear Joe,

Thank you for your coverage of Missouri Western State University.  Last week some friends and I road-tripped to Emporia State to watch the Griffs.  During the game, the PA announcer directed everyone’s attention to the broadcast booth and identified Bob Orf as the Regular Joe of the Year.  What a nice gesture on their part.  Bob got a well deserved round of applause, but the coolest part was when the entire crowd started chanting, “Regular Joe….Regular Joe….Regular Joe”.  You could tell Mr. Orf was embarrassed, but it was great to see such a good guy get some recognition.  Thanks again for promoting MWSU, and keep up the good work.

Loyal Griff Fan

Dear Griff Fan,

We’re Griff fans ourselves.  When we sat down and set out our plans for this paper, one of them was to continually work to bridge the gap between the community and the “U”.  Our dream is that one day St. Joe will be a real college town with the stadium and field house filled to the rafters with rabid local fans such as yourself.  It’s coming.  Maybe slower than we’d like, but it’s definitely coming.

Joe

Dear Joe,

I read the piece on Stetson Hats and was a little confused. There were few dates offered in the recount of Mr. Stetson’s life. What was the point of telling a life story without specific dates?

Unsigned

Dear Whomever You Are,

Maybe you’ve missed the point of Old Joe. This is not a textbook passage. Most people think that they don’t like history simply because of the way it has always been presented to them. So, if some of the stories can stand on just a few mile marker dates then all the better because it the story that matters.

Joe