With only a few days left in 2019, there’s a lot for us at The Beachcomber to reflect on, from all the news that occurred on the island to the more than 50 editions we published.

From all of us here in our office — reporters Paul Rowley, Kate Dowling and Liz Shepherd; our creative designer, Dennis Clouse; office manager Pat Seaman; and publisher Daralyn Anderson — we hope you enjoyed reading The Beachcomber as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

Each paper is a labor of love. There’s so much that goes on inside our office in order to put out a community newspaper each week, from designing ads to laying out pages; planning stories to writing on a deadline; from taking photos to processing them; or finding community members for commentaries and sports coverage and editing their work.

And how could we forget all the good people who are not in the building who help make The Beachcomber what it is? That would include the talented page designers with our parent company, Sound Publishing, and our carriers who help get the newspapers to subscribers.

By the time the whirlwind week is over, it’s time to start thinking about the upcoming edition — the very next day.

But that was not the case for the edition you’re holding in your hands. We went to press on Friday, Dec. 20, so employees could enjoy the holidays. The good news is, we have almost a full week to plan for the first edition of the new year, to be published Jan. 2. We hope you’ll keep reading in 2020.

But before thinking too much about the new year, let’s reflect on 2019. It’s not uncommon for news outlets to wrap up coverage with a year in review article. That’s why in this edition, on pages 12 and 13, you will find two full pages devoted to what happened locally all year.

The news was in fact very yin and yang. In January, for example, the southern resident orca population saw its first successful birth of a baby in three years, while the state Department of Natural Resources signaled that nearly half of Tramp Harbor dock will eventually have to come down (it closed to the public at the end of the year, on Dec. 2).

This sort of yin/yang news pattern held true towards the end of the year, when islanders experienced the annual WinterFest — with a tree at a new location — while at the time wondering whether the Red Bike would remain open or not.

What will 2020 hold for Vashon-Maury Island? No one in the news business has a crystal ball, but whatever happens, we’ll be there to cover it.

The Beachcomber would like to thank everyone in the community, as well as those off-island, who take the time out of their busy schedules to talk to us for stories. Without you, it would be difficult to put out a newspaper every week.

That’s it for now. See you next year!