Hello Bates County. We at the Tribune are very proud to now be members of the Bates County family and are very appreciative of the great welcome we have received in the Butler, Amsterdam and Amoret areas. We have been presenting a section in Adrian for nearly three years, so when the opportunity came up to expand south, we were eager to come meet you.
Although we have had the Bates County section for a couple months now, we have never been formally introduced which is what I wanted to do today. Many people in Cass County know the stories of when, how and why the Tribune was born, but many of our new readers may not know the story. The paper was founded in April of 2017 by Pat Thomas, the former publisher of The Drexel Star. He flagged his new paper The Harrisonville Star, with the simple philosophy of “If it is news to you, it is news to us.” He wanted a voice where the news of the community could be shared, both big deals and small details. When Pat died early in 2018, some of his friends met at the funeral home, and it was there the idea of continuing the paper originated. It was decided to rename the paper The South Cass Tribune to better reflect the larger community the paper would serve.
After only a few months of operations, we were asked to consider covering Adrian, an invitation we couldn’t refuse. Thus, a section of the paper was branded The Adrian Tribune. It is a relationship I believe both sides have benefited greatly from. We enjoy covering Adrian and our sales indicate people enjoy picking the paper up. Which brings us to the latest move which came about because of a sudden void of a newspaper in the rest of Northern Bates County. So, the newest section was created, The Bates County Tribune, which incorporates the Adrian section with the rest of the county.
Our plans are to keep the two sections of the paper together as often news which is relevant in one county is to the other as well. Plus, it gives our readers and advertisers an expanded base, which we think is a win-win for us all.
The rules of the Tribune remain pretty much the same as Pat Thomas’ original intent: we want your news. We have a staff of writers, but we can’t be everywhere all of the time. But we consider each and every one of you a potential reporter: we want to hear what’s going on. Whether it’s a new baby, an engagement, a wedding, an anniversary, a job promotion, a new business, elections at the local club, or maybe its Aunt Jenny who makes adorable doilies, it can all be news, we simply need to know. Social news like births, weddings and anniversaries can be contributed directly. News stories should be sent for us for our reporters to handle. We may not print everything submitted, but I can guarantee you we won’t print stories we don’t know about, so please let us know.
We will also cover sports at the local schools. We will print all of the sports we can find space for, but… you have to let us know. If your local team is not being covered, it is likely because we are having trouble communicating with your coach. We would like to have everyone every week, so if you don’t see your team’s coverage, check with the coach to make sure the scores are being reported.
We do want letters to the editor, and we are working on an editorial page specifically for Bates County. The current rules can be found on page 3A under our letters to the editor policy.
We have subscriptions available for $36 per year and the papers will be delivered to your house by the U.S. Postal Service. We mail out of Harrisonville every Wednesday morning, except holidays, so it is our hope you will get the paper on Thursday. But, as much of a cop out as this may sound, once it is in the mail it out of our control. We have several outlets for single paper sales throughout Northern Bates County. The list of retailers will grow. The papers are 75 cents.
We want to be a weekly part of your lives and share both the good and bad news with you. Please communicate with us, we won’t know what’s on your mind if you don’t tell us. You can email us at contact@southcasstribune.com. Our phone number is 816-793-0540. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 275, Harrisonville, MO 64701.
I can promise you we will work as hard as we can to provide you the best paper possible.
