Forty-five. Next month, Mt. Lebanon Magazine will be 45 years old! Four and a half decades of being the only official source of news and information in Mt. Lebanon! I know these aren’t complete sentences but I am excited! You can tell by the overuse of exclamation points!!

Ten times a year, you welcome us into your homes and businesses. For those of you who were around in 1981, you’ve read hundreds of feature stories and more than 10,000 smaller news stories (an average of 30 stories a month). You’ve seen thousands of photos, nearly guaranteeing that someone you know has been featured – possibly even you. That is our goal, you know — for everyone to see themselves reflected in this magazine.

We’ve lost count of the number of journalism awards we’ve won, and while we sure love to win them, we write for you, not for contest judges. We also strive to make this magazine an excellent value for taxpayers. In fact, this year, advertising covered 93 percent of the cost of the magazine. We are frugal, squeezing every cent we can out of what we do.

To get where we are today, we are elevated by those who have broken the ground. To the first two editors of this magazine, Virginia Phillips and Susan Morgans, we thank you for setting a high standard for writing, accuracy, poetry of language and relevance.

To the dozens of Commissioners who have funded this magazine and kept our presses running uninterrupted during periodic economic downturns and even a pandemic, your vision and dedication to keeping our taxpayers informed in the many different formats they seek is a best practice in government communications. Thank you for your continued support and editorial contributions via the Commissioners Columns.

In our history, we’ve had only four publishers, all of them municipal managers: Jim Cain, Bill Baldwin, Steve Feller and Keith McGill. All of them have ensured that this publication remains nonpartisan, transparent, fair and most importantly — accurate.

To the staff of this magazine, I am in awe of your continued doggedness to seek the treasure in the story, whether you are writing about the amazing accomplishments of our residents, the technical details of storm preparation or the ins and outs of a goat rodeo. The quality of your work shines every time and our readers are better for it.

We are grateful for the advertisers in this magazine. Having your business represented here helps our readers find excellent products, services, dining and entertainment, and your support of our mission perpetuates our ability to do it.

We wish every one of you the healthiest and happiest of holiday seasons. Thank you for reading. We shall toast to the future with you!!!