‘Til We Meet Again

Molly Messick / StateImpact Idaho

The high adventure of reporting in Owyhee County

Today is my last at StateImpact Idaho. After better than four years spent reporting in the West, next month I’ll make good on a longtime goal. I’ll take a couple of months away from reporting for intensive Spanish study in Central America, something that will benefit my work in the future.

There are many things I’ve valued about this job. I’m grateful to have met fascinating people with stories to tell in towns and communities all over this state, from Laclede to Council to American Falls. (I’ve reported four feature stories from that one little town of 4,500 since StateImpact Idaho launched in September 2011!)

I’ve also been proud to be part of a project that seeks to explain complex policy decisions and economic trends in interesting, comprehensible and human terms. From home foreclosure in Boise to the aspirations of small towns hard-hit by the recession, to the ins and outs of refugee resettlement and the push to repeal Idaho’s business personal property tax, there has been no shortage of important and meaningful stories to tell. It has been my good fortune to work for a reporting project that allows the time and space to tell them.

Finally, I’ve been surrounded by good people. I owe many thanks to the Boise State Public Radio newsroom and staff, the excellent group of folks at the helm of StateImpact at NPR, and you, our loyal listeners and readers.