By Patrick Whitehurst
When Vail Voice Publisher Lucretia Free made the move in 2001 from San Francisco to Tucson with her family, she brought with her all the tools she needed to create a local newspaper.
Twenty years later that newspaper, The Vail Voice, is still going strong.
“In another stage of my life, I was a marketing director at a large corporate law firm in San Francisco,” Free said. “Part of my responsibilities there, along with strategic planning and market research, was ‘collateral.’ I would put together newsletters for the law firm and, in doing so, learned how to put a publication together.”
Upon arriving in the Vail area, Free noticed signs staked in the ground advertising local businesses, such as house cleaning, and began to ask locals whether the area had a news outlet designed specifically for them. But the idea of beginning a small, local newspaper seemed daunting, and Free said she was initially “frozen with fear.”
“That’s one of the things that paralyzed me initially was the thought of failure, but I know so many of us who owned small businesses face that, and I had the support of friends and family who whispered in my ear and said you’ve got this,” Free said.
The Vail Voice began in 2001 as The Southeast Side Connections in 11-inch by 17-inch newsletter format. The content provided the area with a source for information relevant to the local community. Free quickly realized she had to grow, and soon moved to a newspaper model. This meant changing the name to The Vail Voice, a move that initially made her nervous.
“I lost so much sleep over that name change, thinking people would hate the name because it’s changed from Southeast Side Connections, but they loved it,” Free said. “I feel very supported by the Community. It’s been a fabulous journey.”
While The Vail Voice’s monthly format makes breaking news difficult to cover, Free said the format does allow for a “deep dive” into the character of the community as only those who live here can offer. The Vail Voice also has a Facebook page and a website at thevailvoice.com. Breaking news, as well as news from other outlets can be found on the Facebook page, Free added. An new Instagram page has also been launched.
“We have a wonderful series that’s done by the Vail Preservation Society, about the history of our area, an area where people have lived for over 200 years, so readers understand what went on here and how it all began,” Free said. “People tell me that they hang on to it. It’s a publication that they choose to read slowly over the month, from cover to cover, because of the kind of content we publish.”
Twenty years since beginning The Vail Voice, community support continues to grow. Residents express their Voice by sharing graduation to new business announcements. The paper utilizes writers, not reporters, who share their stories and subject area expertise.
“We have this wonderful new segment of the paper called Pet Parlor. People send in pictures of their beloved pet and tell us how they’ve opened their hearts and made them an extension of their family,” Free said. “We’re very supportive of our fire department, of our sheriff and police departments, and so we publish articles they write as well.”
Free said she plans to continue to publish original articles and will work to provide information based on community input.
“I want to focus on continuing to make The Vail Voice the best publication it can be,” Free said.
