Last month, if you picked up our February issue, you probably felt the difference before you even turned the first page.
We were gifted a glossy stock by our printer, something with presence. Something that honored the completion of thirty years of stories, partnerships, late-night layout edits, community milestones, and the steady rhythm of showing up month after month. It was our quiet way of saying thank you. To our readers. To our advertisers. To the artists, organizers, musicians, chefs, nonprofit leaders, and risk-takers who trust us to help tell their stories.
Thirty years is not just a number. It represents conversations at kitchen tables, backstage interviews, ribbon cuttings, rehearsals, first openings, final bows, and the countless moments in between that define a community. We have had the privilege of documenting those moments, preserving them in ink and paper, issue after issue.
Print is still relevant. Tangible still holds weight. And sometimes, the paper itself gets to participate in the celebration. There is something grounding about holding a story in your hands, folding down a corner, passing it across a café table, or saving it on a shelf because it mattered.
Now we turn the page into spring.
Longer light. Warmer evenings. Outdoor concerts. Festival season. Patio dining. Fresh exhibits. Open studio doors. Southern Utah begins stretching again this time of year, and you can feel the shift. There’s momentum building in our parks, theaters, galleries, trailheads, and town squares.
Spring always carries the language of beginnings, new shows, new menus, new collaborations, new ideas finally stepping into public view. It’s one of my favorite times to be in this work, because this is when creativity spills outside and invites the whole community in.
As always, The Independent is here for it.
If you’re planning an event, launching a production, opening an exhibit, hosting a fundraiser, debuting a menu, or creating something the community should know about, send it our way. Press releases, early announcements, save-the-dates, story ideas. The earlier we hear from you, the better we can serve you and help amplify your work.
We remain committed to thoughtful coverage of the arts, music, culture, parks and recreation, and the people shaping life in Southern Utah. That mission doesn’t change with the seasons, but spring certainly gives it new energy.
Thank you for reading. Thank you for supporting local storytelling. And thank you for continuing to build a community worth printing on beautiful paper.
Here’s to longer days and bright ideas.
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Editor Elizabeth Gunter reflects on thirty years of The Independent, the value of print journalism, and the creative energy of spring across Southern Utah.
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Elizabeth Gunter
The Independent
Southern Utah arts
community storytelling
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St. George arts and culture
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