Though I know I could tell him in person or write him a WhatsApp message to express how much appreciation I have for him as editor-in-chief of The Recorder and as a journalist in general, I know that The Recorder is his baby and this being his last issue, he will hold on to this issue for the rest of his life and cherish it, which means my gratitude will go unforgotten.

I began writing for The Recorder in spring 2009, the first semester that I was a matriculating student at CCSU. I knew the current editor-in-chief, Michael Walsh, as well as the sports editor at the time from my side job at the Hartford Wolfpack. Having familiar faces in the newsroom when I nervously attended my first couple of meetings was very nice, and I am grateful that I had that comfort zone when beginning to write for a newspaper, something I had never done before.

The next semester proved to be too busy for me to write much, but I began to write again in spring 2010 when Walsh was the managing editor. I had become more involved on campus that semester and began to write about the Student Government Association for the paper. I truly enjoyed this position and spoke to then editor-in-chief Melissa Traynor about the possibility of becoming news editor, in which she reacted positively. Of course, I decided to take my interest in the SGA in a different direction by running for commuter senator, thereby giving up any ethical rights to write news for The Recorder.

I endured jokes and criticism from The Recorder staff for being a “traitor” (by joining SGA) at every meeting I attended after, which I of course understand and am actually amused by. Walsh, however, remained postitive and let me write lifestyle stories that did not conflict with my senate position, which I was grateful for.

There were times I was angry at Walsh, such as the time he branded me as “unethical” for making a motion on the club I am president of, since the circumstances were not all printed. Or when I enjoyed writing lifestyles pieces and inquired about becoming the lifestyles editor and Walsh said no. I realized very quickly, however, that none of these were personal insults on his part. This just goes to show how ethical Walsh is as a journalist and how seriously he takes his position. He made no exceptions when it came to The Recorder, not even for a close friend.

The Recorder has been lucky to benefit from his journalism and leadership, the SGA has benefitted greatly from his persistence in getting writers to cover meetings and I personally have grown to respect student organizations on campus and journalism in general more as a direct result of knowing Michael Walsh. Being as Walsh once put it “a big ball of conflict of interest,” I would like to thank him for staying my friend while I wrote articles for his paper and he and other staff members wrote articles about my organizations, on some occasions about me directly.

More importantly, I would like to thank him for his dedication to The Recorder. I hope his wonderful work on the paper will continue to influence more students to become involved with the paper and in our campus community. I, as well as many others, will miss seeing ‘Michael Walsh, editor-in-chief,’ in our issues of The Recorder each Wednesday.

Ashley Foy
SGA Senator
German Club President