The new year is quickly approaching, and now that the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season is largely behind us, it is now a time to reflect on 2022 as the year comes to an end. A look back at this year can mean many things to many different people, and all of us will reflect back upon the year in different ways.

So, I thought this would be a great opportunity to not only thank our readers and subscribers who have been so good to us, but also to take a look at this year for RNN Sports and use it as a chance to gain perspective on where we have come from, where we are now, and what the future may have in store.

Taking the liberty to speak on behalf of all of us at RNN, we are all blessed to work for a wonderful owner and founder of our company, Jason Baggett. His vision of creating a publication that focuses on small, local communities has been brilliant and well-received by so many people. He started this company a little more than seven years ago, and it is nothing but incredible to think of where it is today and how many people have been touched by his vision.

On my end, it has been a huge year for RNN as it expanded fully into Logan County by the start of a weekly print edition newspaper that focuses exclusively on Logan County and its surrounding communities. The RNN Logan County Edition has been a huge success, and I want to publicly thank our managing editor, Tammy Teague, who works tirelessly behind the scenes each week to format and process the paper for mailing to our subscribers. Tammy also manages the subscriptions to the paper and is always prompt in her responses to our subscribers’ needs. I am blessed to have the opportunity to work with her each day, and she does a tremendous job for our publication.

As sports director, I have also been blessed to work with great photojournalists and photographers that have expanded our ability to cover not only more regional communities, but Razorbacks athletics, as well. James and Selena Shelly of Lavaca, and Ronni Tate Young of Charleston have covered high school athletics and Razorbacks football and basketball for us this year by bringing you great images from the sidelines and from courtside. With their contributions, we expect to bring you even more action from the University of Arkansas in 2023.

Another big development for RNN Sports was the addition of contributing writers and photojournalists from the communities of Booneville, Magazine, and County Line.

Contributing Booneville athletics stories to RNN Sports is longtime sports writer and Booneville sports historian, Glenn Parrish. Glenn is a virtual encyclopedia of Booneville sports history, and as director of communications for the district, he has unique access to the Bearcats’ programs. He brings inside information to our readers on everything Booneville, and it has been a pleasure having him on our staff. On a personal note, I have become good friends with Glenn, and it has been great visiting and working with him this year.

Serving the Magazine community is the district’s director of public relations and social media, Jonathan Gipson. Jonathan has been a contributing writer and information source to RNN Sports on Magazine sports and school district news. I first met Jonathan on the play-by-play broadcasts of the Paris Eagles baseball season approximately a year ago. Jonathan has college athletic experience in the sports information realm, and he brings a high level of professionalism to both his on-air broadcasts, as well his print media contributions. We at RNN Sports are thankful to have him aboard!

In 2022 we also added the County Line school district to our coverage, thanks to the work of County Line High School yearbook sponsor, Celia Looney. Celia is an avid photographer and is at all of the County Line events. Her contributions to RNN Sports have brought Indians coverage to our readers, and like so many who have contributed to RNN’s success, we are deeply indebted to her for her contributions.

On a personal note, one of, if not the greatest benefit of working with RNN Sports is meeting you the readers, as well as the coaches, administrators, and fellow media colleagues who cover high school and collegiate athletics. The reach has been to local, state, and even national outlets that include Hooten’s Arkansas Football publication statewide, as well as ESPN and their coverage of Razorbacks sports. Our sports photos have been used by statewide news publications, and we have a very strong social media presence that brings our fans sports photos and coverage on Facebook and Twitter. And of course, our stories can be found on the RNN website at residentnewsnetwork.com

It is a dream-come true for me, and I owe all of it to RNN and our owner, Jason Baggett.

So, what lies ahead for RNN Sports? The honest answer is, “who knows?” If you had asked me this question a year ago, I would have never guessed how far we would progress in just one year. One of the great aspects of working for RNN is the latitude that we are given to explore, take calculated risks, and to follow our passion and instincts. And every employee and contributor for our publication possess great love for sports, writing, and promoting the communities of western Arkansas. It is a great group, and I am privileged to be a small part of this great organization.

We launched the Logan County Edition weekly newspaper approximately eight months ago, and its subscriptions total skyrocketed almost immediately. In a very short time, the Logan County Edition was equaling or surpassing other RNN publications that are in more densely populated markets. That is all because of you, our readers and subscribers, and we cannot express enough how grateful we are for our readership and your patronage. If I had a crystal ball to look into RNN’s future, I think it would show the sky being the limit as to how far this publication can go in 2023…all thanks to you!

So, on behalf of everyone at RNN, we wish you a safe, happy, and prosperous new year! Thank you for your wonderful support in 2022, and we look forward to following our passion of bringing you the only publications that focus on LOCAL news and sports in the River Valley!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!