FROM THE NEWS DESK

It is coming up on 40 years since the Piako Post was launched by its founder, Dennis Trotter, in December 1977. Over the next couple of months we’ll bring you some of the big stories the paper covered during its first year publishing, just in a small way, paying tribute to Mr Trotter and his staff who paved the way for the rest of us to follow. It’s no easy task bringing two communities together but Mr Trotter was successful in his work to formulate a newspaper that would bring together Morrinsville and Te Aroha in the Matamata-Piako district. It’s also no easy task to set up and run a newspaper by yourself, and I’m sure Mr Trotter had a dedicated team of business people behind him to make the Piako Post the success it is today. I imagine trying to duplicate those efforts would be difficult today. Working on a paper, especially an independent publication, often requires endless hours of work, behind the scenes and in front of the community. We look forward to another 40 years publishing the Piako Post newspaper.

Lawrence Gullery Piako Post, 19 Allen St, Morrinsville, PO Box 125, Morrinsville, Phone 07 889 7099. AREA MANAGER: Jason Douthett (jason.douthett@fairfaxmedia.co.nz) 027 705 1512. NEWS DIRECTOR: Lawrence Gullery, lawrence.gullery@fairfaxmedia.co.nz, 027 839 6388. JOURNALISTS: Katrina Tanirau, katrina.tanirau@fairfaxmedia.co.nz, 849 9583, 027 201 6310 & Mike Bain, 027 216 3691, mike.bain@fairfaxmedia.co.nz DISPLAY SALES CONSULTANT: Emah Hira Matiu (emah.hiramatiu@fairfaxmedia.co.nz) 027 405 2618. SALES CO-ORDINATOR: Natalia Berben, natalia.berben@fairfaxmedia.co.nz, 0274 034 054. CLASSIFIEDS: Kathy Robertson, kathryn.robertson@fairfaxmedia.co.nz, 889 8490. DISPLAY DEADLINES: Booking and copy: Thursday prior, 4pm. CLASSIFIED: Liner: Tuesday prior, 9am. Semi-display: Monday prior, 10am. AUDITED CIRCULATION: 11,515.