From the Editor: A letter to Leland

December 2025—This year, something remarkable happened.

Neighbors gathered closer. Schools grew stronger and brought home awards. Our children created, worked, and persevered. New businesses formed and sparked new energy. Old ones deepened their presence. And all across Leland, a quiet renaissance unfurled — a kintsugi shimmer of gold running through the cracks.

Every moment of that story — the joyful ones and the hard ones — was recorded and told by The Leland Progress.

But the truth is simple: Local journalism cannot survive on advertising alone.

And I cannot continue reporting, photographing, designing, and selling ads month after month without the community stepping in to share the load.

So beginning this month, we are moving from subscriptions to community memberships — a model rooted not in transactions, but in partnership.

This isn’t fundraising. It isn’t charity. It’s a belief that a rural town deserves a newspaper — and that we keep it going together.

Memberships start small: $3, $5, or $10 a month.

Amounts most people spend without thinking. If 150 people join at those levels, the Progress becomes truly sustainable.

Your current subscription remains valid until it expires in 2026, so nothing changes today. But if you want to stand with us, our membership tiers begin now, with official start in January.

Thank you for reading, for caring, and for helping keep our stories coming home.

— Lora Delhom
Editor, The Leland Progress