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To some perpetually disgruntled folks, a newspaper is “that rag.” But to the larger community in its greatest hour of need, it is a cool drink of water on a hot day, a blanket of news and information, and a clarion call to rally the troops and get through a disaster of epic proportions.

Such was the case of the Tryon Daily Bulletin, its staff members, and its associates at other newspapers in its group during the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

I was reminded of how invaluable community newspapers are when I saw its accounts, both in words and photographs. I was also reminded of how challenging it is to provide accurate and timely news reports in a disaster zone and how the weight of it all can ride heavy on the hearts and minds of those newspaper people.

My career was in the newspaper profession, where, over decades as a reporter and editor, I experienced considerable death and destruction. In my first two years as a daily newspaper reporter, I covered quite a few local fatalities, but none compared to the aftermath of an F4 tornado striking Jonesboro, Arkansas, on May 15, 1968. The twister killed 34 people and left nearly 500 injured. More than 150 homes were wiped out, dozens of businesses were destroyed, and the high school was badly damaged.

Walking through the rubble afterward, seeing bodies, and hearing the stories of those fortunate souls who survived was a shock for a 20-year-old farm boy who was learning a trade while putting himself through college.

So I know what Publisher Jeff Allison and his crew at the Tryon Daily Bulletin went through in order to bring real news, not misinformation, to the community it serves.

But I also know that many folks take all that for granted. They don’t realize that since 2005, our country has lost more than one-third of its newspapers. Most of them were severely damaged by a mass exodus to the internet. Millions opted for the internet as a substitute because it was free. A single, free online classified platform, Craig’s List, drained much of newspapers’ blood flow, and people absurdly began to believe that Facebook was a source of news.

And so, many take the local newspaper for granted. They believe it is obligatory to write a story and take a picture every time someone opens a business, yet precious few commit to spending money on advertising.

We are witnessing local news deserts. There are now 208 counties in the U.S. that do not have a local news outlet.

The Tryon Daily Bulletin stands out, providing both print and digital news. The team never missed a day of coverage. Yet, not a single person took the time to write a letter to the editor and thus to the community, thanking them.

So I will say it for all of you who read, or should read, this newspaper in print and online.

Thanks, TDB, from all of us. Good job.

Larry McDermott is a local retired farmer/journalist. Reach him at hardscrabblehollow@gmail.com