Editor’s Voice

Sometimes I’ll get an email or a phone call from somebody to tell me about an event or a project or some other bit of news from around town. “Did you know about this?” the person will say.

I’ll often answer, “I do now.” Because there are many times I like to pretend I know everything that’s happening around town, but I have to admit the reality is there are so many untold stories that haven’t yet gotten around to me — that is, until people tell them to me. And I want to hear them!

So here we are in the long, hazy, (sometimes) lazy days of summer, and even though kids are out of school and many people are carving out time to take a long trip with the family, I know this is a time of year when the feel-good stories can really be at their best. After all, people don’t take a vacation from being good neighbors.

I’m not talking simply about Fourth of July activities, neighborhood crab feasts or National Night Out, although those are all good activities and ones that we love highlighting every summer.

What I’m talking about are the good deeds or selfless acts that you hear about while having coffee with a friend and go, “Huh. Wow, we really are lucky to live in a community where people are…” And you can fill in the blank from there: hardworking, talented, compassionate, smart.

Those are the stories that we like to tell, and we have some good ones in this July edition. We have stories about the artists, students, businesspeople, athletes and other champions who resonate with you because you might know them personally (or are otherwise connected to them by some six degrees).

So let us know the stories that matter to you. Shoot me an email at dylan@pasadenavoice.com and tell me how you’re spending your summer, or how your kids are spending their summer. I look forward to hearing about it.

Following this issue, we take a few weeks of hiatus until our August issue comes out on August 9, but we’ll still be active online. If you haven’t liked us on Facebook yet or started to follow us on Twitter and Instagram, be sure to do so. It’s a great way to stay connected with the Voice between printed editions, and we have plenty of web-exclusive stories and photos you can look forward to seeing.

Have a great summer, everyone!