From the Editors: May 2025

Whitney Alese

Sometimes a meme can be a good thing.

I mean, don't get me wrong, a lot of the time they're inaccurate, enraging, distasteful. But sometimes, can't they just hit it square on the nose? Someone in internetland sums up a thought or feeling or political point of view so succinctly, it's like poetry.

I recently screenshotted a meme that had that quality. To credit the artist, Whitney Alese stated:

"Instead of lamenting about what we cannot do, focus on what we can: donate to/volunteer at your local food pantry or feeding organization, donate to mutual aid, learn about upcoming elections, especially local, support independent journalism, support small businesses, and support your library."

Whitney, you hit it square on the nose. This meme felt particularly relevant as I was compiling the content for our May Issue, the very one you hold in your hand right now – our summer event preview issue. For most of Erie, the turn from winter to summer is the most welcome change. The increases in sunlight and opportunities for fresh air, more outdoor activities and interaction with nature, and large-scale public social events help to throw aside lament and bolster the vibe and overall positive energy.

Instead of lamenting, we're hitting on a lot of the points that Whitney made in her brilliant meme. Within our gargantuan Summer Events Preview feature – which lists (nearly) all of the major (and some minor) events happening throughout Erie this summer – I've also listed all of the regular farmers markets, and was thrilled to see an increase in the occurrence and affordability of the Pay-What-You-Can farm stands. Happening nearly every day of the week during the harvest season and relying on donations, volunteerism, and community support, this defines the actions of both supporting feeding organizations and donating to mutual aid.

You guys. YOU NEED TO VOTE. Especially for local elections. We have an opportunity to swap out our current dumpster-fire of a county executive and replace him with someone who is professional, level-headed, and who knows how to deal with multi-million dollar budgets. Won't that change be nice? After this election, we could have a new mayoral candidate (or not). We have judges and magistrates on the ballot, and if we've learned nothing from the past few months, it should be that judges are VERY important. Please go vote in the primary on May 20. If you need any more information on the candidates, see Ben Speggen's rundown within.

Supporting small businesses is a bell we ring in every single issue. Supporting individual artists is so important as well, like Tommy Link, JC Nickles, and Erika Kuhn, all featured within. And with funding on the line for local libraries and museums, donating, supporting, and patronizing these places is more important than ever.

And Whitney, thank you so much for including support for independent journalism on your list. Regardless of my accolades herein, it would be nice to live in a country where memes aren't people's main source of information. Supporting a press that is free, local, and focused on facts helps keep out the noise and see through the spin. Your support of our small, independent paper means so much and it truly makes a community difference. So let's work to stave off the lament, let's turn towards summer, and focus on these things we, together, can do.