By way of introduction...

Hello readers, I’m Lee Hughes, the newest addition to your Cheney Free Press editorial staff. Like most journalists, I’m somewhat averse to being the subject of a story. My job is to report on others, not myself. But when you’re the new guy and your managing editor assigns you a story — even your own story — you get it done.

So here we are. I’ll be brief.

First, I’m a native Washingtonian. And although I’ve lived all over Washington state and North Idaho during my life — including the greater Spokane area — my journey began on the mossy slopes of the Olympic Peninsula when old growth timber harvesting was reaching its apex. By way of a temporal marker, I graduated high school when Blondie and the Captain and Tennille shared the Billboard magazine top 10 lists.

I’ve worn many hats over the years. I spent the first couple of decades of my life working in various roles within the civil engineering field in both the public and private sectors. I served in the U.S. Marines on both active duty and the reserves. For nearly two years I shuttled the elderly and disabled around as a Paratransit driver. I’ve been a laborer, and for a time worked in a cabinet shop as a veneer technician gluing exotic wood veneers onto cabinetry and other interior elements of multimillion-dollar yachts commissioned by billionaires. More recently I worked as a licensed mortgage loan officer in the rising post-recession housing economy. And I’ve dipped my toe in the crowded sea of professional digital photography.

In 2007 I decided to change careers, and enrolled in college. My education was capped by two internships with the Washington State Senate, including a legislative internship during the 2010 legislative session. It was invaluable to watch legislators struggle to balance the needs of constituents with shrinking revenues in the post-recession economy. The experience deeply informed my later endeavors. I received a Bachelors degree in English and social science in 2010.

The Cheney Free Press is my third newspaper gig, and my first weekly. Many try journalism and move on to other things, as few get rich working as a reporter. Journalism and writing is a calling.

For me, I truly value meeting new people and telling their stories, making sense of things such as a complicated municipal budget or school bond proposal, highlighting school academic and sports standouts, knocking out breaking news stories, writing long-form pieces about unsung heroes, or digging into social, cultural and economic issues.

Although I’ll be writing about anything related to the West Plains, my primary responsibility will be to cover the Medical Lake area.

And you, dear reader, can help me help you. Tell me what you want to read about. If you know of a potentially interesting story — a person such as a local person with an unique history, a unusual situation or circumstance, an egregious misuse of public resources, a potential maleficence, or some other item that you feel your neighbors might find news worthy — let me know. I can be reached at 509-235-6184, or via email at [email protected].

I look forward to meeting you all and serving Medical Lake and the West Plains in the coming months and years.

Happy holidays!