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Question:
Hello, I would like to acknowledge a friend who has dedicated his time through the years cleaning-up roadside litter. I would like to put a thank you article in the newspaper. Please help with the wording. Thank you.
Answer:

Hi Suzie,
 
 
All apologies for my late reply as I was on vacation from the 23rd - 26th. That said, welcome to the Community Tool Box (CTB) and Ask an Advisor, I hope we can provide you with timely, useful, directly applicable, and accurate advice! Well, Suzie I'm not sure I'm the best person to pen such a paean primarily because I don't know this person and the contextual specifics around his contributions to your community. You know him far better than I do so the first of two pieces of advice I can give is for you to just write something from your heart; it doesn't have to be long, just heart-felt. For example if I were writing this piece I would begin by telling the community what he's done year after year after year, you know discuss his tireless efforts by citing examples of when and where he was seen collecting trash. Then I would discuss how picking up trash is such a thankless task that few people would want to undertake, but owing to his selfless character and civic-mindedness he did it without complaint. I might also note that picking up trash is just one of the ways he makes a contribution to the community and would provide examples thereof. For sure I'd want to discuss what his efforts mean to the community using quotes from other people. Writing about how he's an example and a role model for others to follow would certainly be appropriate. Last, I'd probably want to close by talking about why his work has been important to the community in the grand scheme of things. So, basically I'd write about what he's done, I'd talk about his character, and then discuss the impact he's made within the community. Again, this should come directly from your heart and the hearts of others who know his work.
 
 
That said, my second piece of advice is using the fantastic resources we have here in the CTB within chapter 41 about honoring community champions that might provide some insight into how to approach writing this piece. Begin on our home page. Click on the "Learn A Skill" button on the top left of the page. Click on the "Table of Contents" and scroll down to the section entitled "Maintaining Quality and Rewarding Accomplishments." Click on "Chapter 41. Rewarding Accomplishments" and then click on "Section 6. Honoring Community Champions." If you scroll way down towards the bottom you'll see a section entitled "How do you honor community champions?" Scroll down a bit more to "Specific Ideas." The two most relevant ideas include the very first one, "Issue a press release, detailing the person's contribution" and the fifth one, "Write or get published a newspaper article, an editorial focusing on the person 's contribution to the community, or a letter to the editor." Clicking on each one will provide you with a primer about the elements that go into a press release or newspaper article, really great stuff.
 
 
So Suzie, I think that just about covers it. Use the resources within the CTB to frame your piece, but remember, it comes from your heart. If for some reason you find our reply doesn't hit the mark, please revisit us and we'll work together to come up with a more viable solution. With that Suzie, thank you for visiting the CTB and Ask an Advisor. We wish you much success in your endeavors. Be well, take care, do good work.
 
 
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Question Date: Thu, 06/23/2016