History
Mill Town Centennial: Oral Histories Collected
A community archive project is recording the memories of longtime residents before they're lost.
Founding Columnist · Flagship Voice
Cherokee Nana
Listening is the first civic duty. Everything I've ever written started with sitting still long enough to hear someone else's version of the truth.
Cherokee Nana has written for the Journal since its earliest days, chronicling the life of the community through decades of change. Her column blends personal memory with civic observation, and her Sunday letters remain the publication's most-read feature. This biography is placeholder text prepared for the rebuild and does not reproduce any existing published material.
Recent Columns
Editorial
A Newspaper's Obligation to Its Readers
The Journal's editorial board on what it owes the community it serves.
Family Perspectives
Three Generations, One Roof: A Family Perspective
A reflection on multigenerational households and what they teach about patience.
Community Voices
Letters: What Our Neighbors Are Saying This Week
A selection of reader letters on the school budget and the new library hours.
Family Perspectives
What My Grandmother Taught Me About Listening
A columnist reflects on the civic value of simply paying attention.
Editorial
On Civility in Public Meetings
The editorial board calls for a return to basic decorum at council sessions.
Popular Columns
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Family Perspectives
Three Generations, One Roof: A Family Perspective
On Substack
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Visit SubstackFeatured Videos
Cherokee Nana Talks
Cherokee Nana on the Civic Value of Listening
The Porch Light Podcast
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Favorite Quotes
- “A family that argues at the table is a family that still trusts each other.”
- “The news is just the neighborhood, written down.”
- “Memory is a civic resource. We ought to fund it like one.”
Reading Recommendations
The Porch Light
My own collection of essays on neighborliness.
What the River Remembers
Victor's history of the county's waterways.
The Long Table
Renata's love letter to Main Street.
Timeline
1968
The Journal's earliest predecessor begins as a family mimeograph.
1991
Cherokee Nana writes her first Sunday column.
2015
The Sunday Letter newsletter launches.
2026
Northeastern Journal relaunches as a full civic platform.
Speaking
Cherokee Nana speaks regularly at civic forums, library events, and community gatherings on family, memory, and local journalism. Placeholder booking information for the rebuild.
Request a Speaking EngagementThe Sunday Letter
One weekly email from the Northeastern Journal family — civic news, generational perspectives, and Cherokee Nana's column, delivered Sunday mornings.
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