Sharing the good news happening in our community

When you saw one, the other one was always close by. And 40 years later it’s still the same. Our paths crossed in high school and although we choose different paths for awhile, we’ve ended up in the same place again.

 

My best friend, Cynthia Wilson-Graham, whose more like a big sister, only because she’s few months older than me, and I always planned to start a business 20 years ago. And we did. She started Helping Hands Photography and Desktop Publishing to create memories for homebound senior citizens and their families.

 

I started a printing company specifically to help out young people in my community celebrating a life event but couldn’t afford a quality invitation or program to remember their special day, or they didn’t have business cards or a professional resume to take with them on a job interview. I named mine Reflections of U because I wanted everything I did to reflect the person I was creating it for.

 

A few years later, we purchased a printing press from a lady in Dunnellon, but we never used it. We let it sit for years and eventually we donated it to Forest High School, our alma mater. Cynthia continued to manage and build her photography business. She has also authored three books. I started working at the Ocala Star-Banner as a reporter in 1993. I covered a lot of stories during the 13 years I worked there.​

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For years we talked about starting a magazine because we wanted to tell more stories of people that looked like us. We would work on it on and off for awhile, but never got it going. In 2017 we started again. This time, we completed the paperwork required for the fictitious name. We even had shirts embroidered with the name and logo on them that we’ve still never worn. We decided to name our publication Town Talk after Town Talk Supermarket after our neighborhood grocery store because we thought it would bring back memories of a safe gathering place that brought the community together, a place of our own, just like Paradise Park, the segregated section of Silver Springs and the many local businesses on Broadway Street.

 

Town Talk Supermarket was a meeting place for more than just groceries. Everybody knew everybody. You couldn’t help but feel at home while you were there. When it closed, we lost more than just a place that sold some of the freshest meats and vegetables in town, we lost a landmark. It felt like we lost a piece of ourselves, something we would never get back again or could ever be replaced.

 

As we launch the first edition of Town Talk Magazine, although initially its starting as a newsletter, our goal is to tell those stories we always wanted to tell; connect people with available resources that can improve their lives; share information; get people more engaged in their community; and document our history to pass on to future generations.

 

Town Talk is not about us, it’s about our community. We hope to bring people together just like Town Talk Supermarket did. If you have ideas for future stories, want to share news about an event, Have comments or suggestions on what we can do better or want to support our efforts, we want to hear from you.

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Let’s Talk!

 

 

Monica

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