I’d like to ask for your help.
It’s been just a month since The Monitor began reporting in earnest on the effects of COVID-19 pandemic. In that short time, much of our world has changed completely: The disease has spread into Montana, including Jefferson County. Emergencies have been declared. Residents have been ordered to stay home. Schools and many non-essential businesses and agencies have closed their doors. A staggering number of people have lost work.
The Monitor has told that story. We’ve talked to key local actors who are guiding Jefferson County’s policy and told you how schools, businesses, and community groups are responding. We’ve shared tales of individuals and families who are coping with a changed world.
That’s what good newspapers do. But I’ll be honest: This is a rough moment. The COVID-19 emergency has shut down or deeply affected nearly all of our local advertisers, who account for about half the paper’s revenue.
We’ve taken down the paywall at our website, and we’re posting reports to our public Facebook page, because we believe strongly that everyone in Jefferson County should have access to information that will help them navigate this unprecedented crisis.
But that doesn’t help pay the bills of our small news organization. That’s why we’re asking you, even if you already subscribe, to make a small donation to help support our coverage of the impact of the coronavirus on our community.
Your donations will help us keep us quickly share news of this emergency as it emerges. This coverage is at the core of The Monitor’s mission to serve the future of Jefferson County. It’s why we’re here – helping citizens to understand not just what’s happening, but also how they can respond to forge a stronger community.
You can donate online at https://givebutter.com/bouldermonitor. Through our partnership with the Local Media Foundation, donations are tax deductible. And we’ll acknowledge all donors in the newspaper and on our site.
Thank you for your support of The Monitor during this critical time.
