Tobie Perkins: What 5 months in Chester has given this Herald reporter
To Chester, with love:
On a hot day last June, my cousin and I lugged all of my furniture into his old school bus. He followed me as we drove 427 miles from Gainesville, Fla., to Rock Hill.
I called my dad, who tried his best to help me as I cried. There were many times in his life, he said, that he’d felt the way I did. When he couldn’t see that for every ending there is a beginning. But there is, he said. It never fails.
I hung up the phone and turned on the radio, the Florida sun in my eyes. A song called “Youngblood” by Noah Kehan came on.
“Keep your time, keep your mind, keep humble,” Noah sang as I turned up the dial. “Start your life in the middle of the jungle.”
And so I pressed the gas pedal, swallowed my tears and off I went.
When I came to the Herald, I was the most alone I had ever been. I turned the key in my new apartment and there I was, starting my life, in the middle of the jungle. Building my foundation in a place that was totally foreign to me -- brick by brick, day by day.
I was armed with two things -- myself and a mission.
Cliff Harrington, my editor, wanted to build bridges with Chester County.
In the past, we’d had only enough staff to pop in to Chester when big news hit. “Big news,” is not often the best news. We did our best with what we had, but when a newspaper mainly covers crime and corruption, it can create a one-dimensional view of a place and the people who live there.
We showed up when things took a turn for the worst. And when the dust cleared, most of the time, we were gone.
With the support of the nonprofit Report for America, Cliff hired me, and together we made a new plan. Now, when there was “big news,” we stayed. We sought out all kinds of stories and to bring more balanced coverage to Chester.
We would write about trials and triumphs. Good days and bad. We would, like Mr. Rogers said, “find the helpers.” We wanted to make it so anyone in Chester could pick up the Herald and read something new about their community.
We’re five months into that mission. Five months that I’ve had the privilege of being your Chester County reporter.
I came here with nothing. And as Thanksgiving comes and goes, I want to thank all of you because you have given me so much.
Your leaders were some of the first people I met. Amid the coronavirus pandemic and isolating in my apartment, sometimes they were the only people I talked to all day. Chester had no reason to trust me. But one by one, they have. They welcomed me. I told them my mission, and they got on board.
We talked about problems facing the community and the people trying to solve them, the people trying to stand up for those in need. We talked about the incredible triumphs and heroes -- and even sometimes villains -- who made up an incredibly nuanced community.
I’ve walked the streets with your sheriff, watched him go up to children, crouch down and ask how he can best help their neighborhoods. I’ve gone out to roof repairs with your city council members, who used donated materials to help families in need. I heard the incredible story of La’Darious Wylie, an 11-year-old who gave his life to save his sister, as the county works to build a sidewalk to honor his memory.
I covered the heroism of Ka’Nya Givens, Chester’s first Black female firefighter. When I sat with her, she told me “giving up is not an option.” I wondered if she knew how much I needed to hear that.
I was there when the governor appointed Chester’s first Black county supervisor, Wylie Frederick. I got to write about his incredible journey of living through the Jim Crow era and now becoming Chester’s top official.
I’ve worked on investigations on the poor internet coverage in Chester and watched the response as state agencies reached out to help. I’ve worked with the superintendent and listened to his incredible passion for getting Chester’s students through the pandemic.
And I was here for the bad -- when the county supervisor was ousted on drug charges, and when more indictments fell on a suspended former sheriff.
But I also watched the county council band together plan. I watched Sheriff Max Dorsey get in front of the cameras and promise you all: “We will get through this.”
Alex Oliphant of the Chester County Council told me the other day: “Chester has a real chance now.” When I look at your leaders, I think he’s right.
You’ve all inspired me. And you’ve done more than that: you took a girl who felt alone, in the middle of the jungle, and gave me a community.
So I want to tell you all this: On the slowest of news days, I will be here. When you rise above and accomplish incredible things, I will be here. When things go wrong, I will cover that too. It is, after all, part of the job. But I can promise you I will do it all fairly.
We’re only just getting started.
Editor’s note: We recently launched our second fundraising campaign with the help of the Local Media Foundation. The dollars we raise will go directly to our newsroom to keep journalists, like Tobie, in the field telling vital stories. Want to help? It’s quick and easy at https://givebutter.com/TheRockHillHerald
If you prefer to send a check, you can do that too. Please make it out to the Local Media Foundation and in the notes field on the check, write “The Rock Hill Herald.” The check should be mailed to Local Media Foundation, P.O. Box 85015, Chicago, IL 60689-5015.
Please help us keep covering Chester County in the fullness it deserves.
This story was originally published November 28, 2020 at 12:00 AM.
