From Staff Reports
It started with a parade.
On December 12th, 2015, The Apopka Voice covered its first live event in the community - the 39th Annual Apopka Christmas Parade. And now, in 2021, we are still going strong.
The Apopka Voice crossed a milestone last week when we published our 10,000th article. That's enough content to fill over 60 novels.
Since our launch, we've told the story of this growing community with pertinent, timely, objective coverage, built a Facebook page with over 7,200 followers, and have a monthly average readership of over 80,000 unique visits to our site.
Clearly, we are the most read publication in Apopka.
Six years ago, The Apopka Voice launched this news site to provide the city with a reliable news source in a format that was easy to access. In the digital world that we live in, that meant being online. We strived to bring a new approach to collecting news through original reporting, innovative storytelling, and provocative, fact-based commentary.
Informing, engaging, and inspiring our readers is the mission of The Apopka Voice. But in this day and age is that enough?
In 2021, we gave back in more ways than just reporting the news. We increased our efforts in three areas - enhancing local nonprofit organizations, extending opportunities for internship programs, and solution-based journalism that goes beyond standard news reporting.
In 2020, charitable organizations became vital to Apopka, due in part to an increased amount of people in need because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Their role in 2021 was far too important to the underserved in our community for us not to do everything possible to ensure their success. Because of their challenges, The Apopka Voice has been donating 25% of its total advertising revenues from area businesses to these non-profits.
That offer still stands...if you advertise with us, 25% of those advertising dollars will go to nonprofit organizations right here in Apopka.
Farmworkers Association of Florida
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Apopka
Please visit our Advertising page for more information and to contact us regarding your advertising needs.
It was also a difficult year for college students and young journalists throughout Central Florida. With school closings and social distancing, fewer students received practical experience in writing, reporting, and editing through internship programs typically offered by publications throughout the area. We believe these aspiring young journalists are the future of local news reporting, and that's why we started an internship program in 2021 that went well beyond the typical responsibilities interns might experience.
The Apopka Voice selected seven local interns to take a seat with us at the decision-making table and allowed them to weigh in on the stories we cover and the direction they want to see The Apopka Voice go. We gave them important stories to cover, and did they ever deliver!
Take a look at just a few of the articles these talented young interns produced:
Should the Apopka Fire Department transition to three-person fire engines?
Memorial Day 2021: Apopka honors its heroes
Three Odd Guys: Building a community one beer at a time
A trip to Fox Valley Farm and Hopyard: The hoppiest place on earth
An opportunity to serve: Apopka’s Bay Ridge Cemetery is in dire need of your help
New opponents and a coaching debut highlight Blue Darters and Mustangs 2021 football schedules
Canon: The go-to coffee shop in Apopka
The Innovation Lab at Apopka school propels students into the future
Please visit our Student Journalist Internship page for more details, deadlines, and the application.
In 2021, The Apopka Voice continued the social-action component that not only reports but also takes steps to make a difference in the community. We took on the issues such as homelessness, poverty, and we focused on the generational struggles of South Apopka in a series of articles entitled "Make South Apopka your North Star". We will continue this series, and continue nudging Apopka's leadership and residents in walking with and strengthening anyone in our community who is struggling and needs to know they are not alone.
The editors, staff, and reporters of The Apopka Voice will bring the same attention and rigor to stories about responses to problems as they do to the issues themselves. And in doing so, we believe we can elevate the public discourse, spur citizen participation, and reduce polarization.
We believe this is the journalism and public service our community needs and our readers deserve. Original, independent reporting is the fuel that powers a healthy and engaged community like Apopka. It's been the guiding vision for The Apopka Voice for 10,000 articles now, and the next 10,000 stories to come.
Thanks for reading!
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