I have long felt that Pefferlaw and the communities surrounding it, such as Virginia , Udora, Port Bolster, Wilfrid, Sutton, Jackson's Point and Georgina Island, deserved their very own news vehicle. These are such vibrant and active communities that many stories and news items get buried in the bowels of newspapers serving much larger communities—or the stories don’t even make it to the editorial pages of these publications.

The idea for the Pefferlaw Post came to me one morning over coffee with my father at the Virginia Beach Restaurant. We were watching a barge with a pile driver on it load a number of steel posts for what we supposed, was a dock construction somewhere. At the same time, we watched six police officers pile into the police boat and take off for, what we supposed, were police manoeuvres somewhere. All of the time these two events were unfolding, the Georgina Island ferry was running back and forth from the island with a load full of cars and trucks travelling to and from the island.

As I watched, I wondered what was going on with the barge, the police officers and the ferry passengers. And, I marvelled at how so much was going on in such a short period of time in such a small corner of my community. I wondered what else I was missing.

Having lived in Pefferlaw all my life and been formally educated as a journalist, a vocation I have spent 25 years working in, I decided I had the tools to find out more about what was happening in my community and share that knowledge with you.

So, here it is. The Pefferlaw Post.

I have designed it to feature community-oriented stories and news items. I have even resurrected a column that used to be printed in the old Sutton Advocate for Pefferlaw residents. It was written by Mrs. Tennyson in the 1960s and contained personal tidbits of information residents and social engagements. I remember that almost every item ended with the phrase “and a good time was had by all”. And, for the Sutton residents, I have resurrected Minnie Cryderman’s social column and Mrs. Reid at Three Sisters Boutique in Sutton submits a Sutton report for every issue.

Of course for us to stay on top of everything, we will need your help. Please feel free to call me with any and all of the news you come upon. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this wonderful community news source.

In addition to the Pefferlaw Post, I also publish Lake Simcoe Fishing and Recreation News. With all of the issues circulating around Lake Simcoe and because it is such an important and significant natural feature in all of our lives, I felt it was time to tie all of the communities that exist around the lake together around issues such as the environment, conservation, fishing, recreation and remediation programs. Both of these publications have won awards in their respective markets and I appreciate these accolades. But most of all I am humbled by the positive response these newspapers have received from my readers. Their support and encouragement is an inspiration and I thank you. If you have a story idea or wish to contact me, please call (705) 437-1216 or email: karen.wolfe@sympatico.ca