Laguna Niguel Patch Celebrates 1-Year Anniversary
It has been 365 days since launching and we are happy to say we are still going strong!
It has been one year to the day since Laguna Niguel Patch launched and invaded the homes of local residents.
A big thanks to all who continue to read us as well as those who have just recently discovered Patch.
In the past year we have had some big breaking news stories, including a major accident that took the life of resident Mara Steves, a jewelry heist at a popular shopping center, a new City Hall, a mother accused of having sexual relations with several young players on her son's hockey team.
Over the past year, we have accumulated a variety of talented bloggers, ranging from local chefs to high school students such as William Rhee, who all relish the opportunity to share their opinions. I thank them all.
Our local columnist Gracie Doran continues to provide insight into what it is like to be a young stroke survivor, while our movie critic, James Plunkett, never misses a week of sharing his views—good or bad.
Laguna Niguel Patch also has a wonderful array of dedicated writers, including Debbie Tharp, who has been a staple since day one, and Blake Driver, who continues to scour the city for news. CSI crime blotter and columnist Cheryl Knight makes sure to comb the O.C. Sheriff's files twice a week for the latest crime items.
Talented photographer Barton Mac Leod is a force to be reckoned with and someone I am proud to work with daily. I cherish him not only for his wonderful photos and endless ideas, but also his unwavering dedication.
And, of course, Laguna Niguel Patch would not continue to thrive if it weren't for the input of its many readers who provide stories, ideas, comments and so much more day in and day out.
As we move ahead, I encourage you to send your ideas, comments, concerns and anything else you wish to share to Debbie.Sklar@Patch.com.
I remain more than honored to bring the residents of this great city the news coverage they so rightly deserve.
And for that I say thanks.
Roy Rivenburg
10:08 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Happy anniversary, Debbie!
Debbie L. Sklar
11:35 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Thanks for the kind words and for remembering.
Megan Silkman
10:12 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Congrats Debbie, job well done :)
Debbie L. Sklar
11:45 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Thank you Megan!
Debbie Tharp
10:56 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
It's an honor to work with you Debbie. You are one seriously awesome editor :D
Debbie L. Sklar
1:53 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Thanks for all your hard work Debbie and for bringing readers the news fast and furious this past year.
Nisha Gutierrez-Jaime
11:25 am on Friday, November 18, 2011
Happy Birthday Laguna Niguel Patch!! Congrats to you Debbie, you've had some great stories and your dedication truly shows :)
Debbie L. Sklar
1:53 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
You are a wonderful colleague.
Barton Mac Leod
12:45 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Happy Anniversary Laguna Niguel Patch. Although I have not been with Patch since inception, I have enjoyed working with Debbie and the rest of the Crew. I try to find interesting stories matched up with my pictures. Also Debbie's photo assignments. We hope to give all our readers a good series of pictures to take in the festive season
Debbie L. Sklar
1:55 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Barton: Your hard work and outstanding photos continue to leave me speechless, which is pretty hard to do.
Julianna Crisalli
1:21 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Congratulations Debbie! You always provide quality stories to your community. Great work!!
Debbie L. Sklar
1:54 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Aww, thanks Julie, appreciate that!
Anne LeMay
2:09 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
It's been fun reading some of the interesting stories posted on the Patch. I enjoy writing my blog once in awhile...helps me get things off my chest. Even tho our town is not small, we are truly a community oriented town an the Patch helps us stay connected.
Debbie L. Sklar
6:31 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Thanks Anne! We miss your blogs.
Tracy Buck
3:17 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Local news is the best! Nice work, Deb.
Debbie L. Sklar
6:32 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
And thanks for all your great Gammy blogs and thanks to Ron to his informative real estate blogs every Sunday.
Blake Driver
6:42 pm on Friday, November 18, 2011
Happy Anniversary Laguna Niguel Patch. I has been great working for you Debbie. You have been a great mentor and its an honor to work for you. Long live Laguna Niguel Patch.
Debbie L. Sklar
4:20 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Thank you, Blake for your reporting and great story ideas.
Addie Carroll
10:24 am on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congratulations Debbie! You have done an exemplary job with our Laguna Niguel Patch! It's a pleasure to be a part of the family and wishing you continued success!~
Addie Carroll
Debbie L. Sklar
4:21 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Thank you, Addie!
Jodi Barber
10:24 am on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congratulations Debbie! It has been a pleasure working with you! Thank you for bringing me on board to allow me to express my opinions and bring awareness! I appreciate this opportunity and I hope the next year and the years after continue to be as successful as the past year for the Patch!!
Debbie L. Sklar
4:22 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Jodi: You are a remarkable woman and I thank you for your contributions.
Mary Knab
10:56 am on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Happy Anniversary! I never would have imagined that an "e" newspaper could have generated the support we received after an article in the "Patch". We have had print articles done on us in the past, but Debbie's articles on homelessness in Laguna Niguel, gave us an almost instantaneous show of local support as well as offers of assistance with our program. Debbie and Barton, thank you for continuing to shine a compassionate light on the less fortunate in our community!
Debbie L. Sklar
4:22 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Thank you, Mary. It is our pleasure to spread the word and we will continue to do so!
Ron Perrella
12:21 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congrats Dear Friend. All that is needed is a marketing campaign to boost your membership. I run into too many people who are not aware of LN Patch. You have so supportive to the 10 organizations I volunteer for and I have and will continue to send visitors your way. You took on a might task but it doesn't surprise me that you made it suceed.. Ron Perrella
Debbie L. Sklar
4:23 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Ron: Thanks for the kind words and vote of confidence. It has been a pleasure working with you all of these years.
Debra Campbell
1:41 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congrats on the One Year Anniversary! I am grateful for the opportunity to write here. I want to give a big shout out to all the other amazing writers, cool readers and to Debbie and the editorial staff…Thank You!! Peace and love, Debra Campbell.
Debbie L. Sklar
4:23 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Debra: Thank you for all your hard work and your awesome blogs! You bring something different to the site and I thank you.
Cheryl Knight
2:36 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congratulations Laguna Niguel Patch! It has been a pleasure working with you Debbie!
Barbara Doran
2:49 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Congratulations on the one year anniversay of The Laguna Niguel Patch. Thank you so much for letting Gracie share her story, and thanks to everyone for reading "Days of Grace."
Debbie L. Sklar
4:24 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Barb: We love Gracie and her stories!
Steven Bridges
4:38 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Great job, Debbie, and thank you for bringing a voice to our community and a place that all other voices can be heard. The momentum is growing: we need to take control of our community. Thank you for making this happen.
Debbie L. Sklar
5:22 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Steve: What you are doing with the speed blog is amazing and your dedication is incredible.
Chris Jotblad
7:39 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2011
Great job Debbie. Keep up the good work as we go into our 2nd year. May LN patch have a growing readership in 2012.
Debbie L. Sklar
11:16 am on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Thansk Chris! I am so happy to have you on the team. You do a great job bringing readers the latest in foreclosures and sold homes every week.
James Plunkett
8:41 am on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Congratulations, Debbie. In my opinion, the Laguna Niguel Patch is the BEST Patch. I'm really happy to be part of the team.
Debbie L. Sklar
11:17 am on Sunday, November 20, 2011
James: Your movie reviews just keep getting better and better. I know LN Patch readers enjoy them every week as much as I do.
Donna Stellhorn
12:05 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Happy Birthday Laguna Niguel Patch! I'm so honored to be part of it. Debbie, you do a fantastic job.
I see many happy, successful years to come.
Debbie L. Sklar
2:33 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Donna: So proud to have you as part of the team. I'm glad you "see" a long future for LN Patch!
Norm Bour
1:15 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
As a Laguna Niguel resident since 1986 it's been a great place to live and learn, do business and meet great people. I am proud to be sharing tidbits about local business and things that affects local business or things they should know. A strong business community is a strong foundation for a viable and fiscally strong city and every one of us and all our businesses can be part of our mutual long term success. Congrats on being a dedicated and on-top-of-it editor and making your team as cohesive and consistent as we are.
Debbie L. Sklar
2:32 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Norm: Thanks for great comments and your weekly biz blogs that are not only insightful but always timely.
Rosie Garcia
6:44 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Congratulations on your 1 year anniversary. I can't believe I just heard about The Patch....and missed almost a whole year. I've lived in LN for almost 30 years and am finally gettting real local news, after so much frustration with the other print papers. Great job & keep up the great work all of you.
Debbie L. Sklar
7:06 pm on Sunday, November 20, 2011
Rosie: On my goodness. So glad you found us, please spread the word and keep reading!
Becky at OI
10:05 am on Monday, November 21, 2011
Happy anniversary Laguna Niguel Patch! Thanks for all the local news!
Debbie L. Sklar
10:45 am on Monday, November 21, 2011
Thanks Becky! and thanks for being one of our bloggers.
Agnes McGlone Swanson
7:06 am on Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Congratulations on one year Debbie and team. We are very grateful to have an outlet like the Patch to celebrate all things Laguna Niguel! Thank you for your hard work. Agnes McGlone Swanson
Debbie L. Sklar
2:10 pm on Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Agnes: Thanks for the kind words. LN Patch is happy to be here and providing news up Laguna Niguel day in and day out.