For 26 years, Lorne Reimer has walked into Hucul Printing to prepare the latest edition of the Friday A.M.
Every week, Reimer writes, edits and prepares 3,000 copies of the weekly coffee shop newsletter, which focuses on the people of Salmon Arm, B.C.
“I get a lot out of it, finding the stories out there. There is so much going on and people have responded to it and I am so grateful,” Reimer said.
Inside the eight-page paper, there are jokes, stories, event listings and advertisements for local businesses.
Since 1997 Reimer has written, designed and published 1,280 editions of the coffee shop paper that he drops off at locations around the city.
“And of course, coffee shops and people want something to read when they are at a restaurant. That was sort of the traditional idea of the coffee shop paper.”
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In the last 26 years, Reimer hasn’t changed the way the newsletter is printed at Hucul Printing, which has been operating for 29 years.
“It’s an older Hamada two-colour press we use. We just print it in black and white because it’s faster than digital right now for what we are doing,” said Gary Hucul, who owns the business with his brother, Bernie Hucul.
However, you can now also read the newsletter online and over the years Reimer has earned himself quite a reputation in the community.
Kari Wilkinson of Toliver Advertising and Design, a local graphic and web design company, regularly places ads for clients in the Friday A.M. and has been a long-time reader herself.
“I’ve been a reader of the Friday A.M. since the first day Lorne started publishing it,” Wilkinson said.
“Every week you want to know what Lorne is up to. It’s small and easy to read, when you are at the coffee shop you can pick it up and get the gist of what’s happening in Salmon Arm in 10 minutes or less.”
Michael Jackson, a graphic designer, has referred to the Friday A.M. for more than 20 years to learn about his community.
“Lorne is in touch with people in the community, what’s going on and it’s a very personal kind of thing,” Jackson said.
Looking to the future, Reimer has no intention of stopping anytime soon. He plans on keeping his tradition of keeping the community connected every Friday morning.
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