Genuine Skagit Valley a 'mark' for all of us

Skagit County did not yet exist when the first issue of The Bellingham Bay Mail rolled of the presses in June 1873. The paper became the Puget Sound Mail after its 1878 move to La Conner.

La Conner rightly claims the crown as the place where a newspaper has been published weekly for the longest continuous time in Washington.

You might say the Weekly News is genuine. Newspapers are a Skagit County original – five years older than the county’s formation. This one proudly continues the Mail’s heritage. Now the La Conner Weekly News carries the mark of “Genuine Skagit Valley.” That badge anchors the top corner of page one and will fit squarely in the masthead of this page from now on.

The Weekly News is one of the first five businesses to join Genuine Skagit Valley. It proudly takes on the vision to “identify, capture and promote the unique value and exceptional quality of the agricultural products of the Skagit Valley region.”

The Weekly News strives to cover agriculture. This continues the tradition of the Puget Sound Mail, which in the 1970s proclaimed “Covers La Conner and its Rich Agricultural Region” as the tagline above its name on page one. This paper will now add the Skagit Valley Promise Principles:

Discover the authentic tastes, experiences and life in the Skagit Valley

Families continuing to grow and provide the best

Enjoy a breath of fresh air in our wide open spaces, mountains, rivers and sea.

Beautiful Skagit Valley ... Inspire your senses.

The Weekly News intends to fulfill some part of the promise in every issue. With every article, editorial and photo the goal is to authentically represent the life and people of the Skagit Valley.

The program’s goal is to help farms and firms add value to their products. The result will be increased customer interest – demand – and sales. That will increase Valley incomes by providing more valuable products to more people.

The Weekly News seeks to do that every week. Its aim is to pursue activities and events that are important to its readers. By reporting the news accurately and fairly and challenging readers with its editorials, the paper hopes to be invaluable in the life of the community.

And heaven knows each of us needs more fresh air in our wide open spaces. Getting out into our varied Skagit Valley and getting inspired is more than a good idea: it makes life worth living.

It is why we live here.