219 S. 40th Avenue, Suite E • Hattiesburg, MS 39402 • Phone: 601.264.8181

Ronnie Buckley.......................... Publisher

Dewayne Buckman........General Manager

Buster Wolfe ................................Reporter

Kevan Lindsey ..................... Sports Editor

Amanda Dement ...... Sales Representative

Lisa Davis ................. Sales Representative

Karen Magee ......................Graphic Artist

Darlene Clark ...................... Bookkeeping

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A Division of Buckley Newspapers, Inc.

Dewayne Buckman,General Manager

As the furious shopping begins and 2019 gets ready to close, we want to thank our thousands of loyal followers who read the Impact each and every week–you are simply the best!

And we want to thank our many advertisers who make it possible for us to print and mail our publications weekly to the mailboxes of more than 102,000 homes in the Pine Belt. You have helped to make us the largest circulated community news publication in Mississippi, and still free to our readers.

We’ve made a few changes this past year as we continue to grow through innovation and imagination, and we hope you’ve enjoyed the publication’s new look and content (thanks for the nice comments). Yes, we’re the same trustworthy newspaper with the huge mailed circulation, but we’ve also embraced new technologies, including digital printing and advertising.

It’s no secret that digital has become more commonplace with smartphones and tablets, particularly where there’s reliable bandwidth. And while some daily newspaper models have suffered as a result of the digital age, others (like us) have chosen to embrace the technology, incorporate it, and make it work. No, our print product isn’t going away – not any time soon. There’s still plenty of demand for newspapers with a successful business model similar to Impact. Our readers and our new advertisers validate that regularly.

Consequently, this year, we decided to launch two new, very modern, very robust websites: Impact601.com and Sports601.com. If you’ve not visited them yet, you should, as both are chock-full of local news and sports. The new websites also feature current Pine Belt Happenings, obituaries, and so much more. There’s no more waiting for event listings or even classified ads – all of that becomes instantaneous on the web. You can purchase local sports photographs and so much more. And be sure to follow us on Facebook, which links local stories.

Another change we’ve implemented is the addition of digital advertising, both locally on our websites and with other targeted, programmatic digital advertising. What does that all mean? It means that Impact is now a full-fledged print and digital media company. And we can help custom-fit an advertising plan for your company that’s both effective and reasonably priced. Give us a call; we’ll be glad to chat with you about the possibilities.

We hope you enjoy our Hub City Holidays Christmas catalog. It isn’t a fancy magazine, nor is it thick like a catalog. It’s our first digital effort like this, but it has some terriffic Black Friday savings from local businesses, great stories and more. It’s a brand new thing – check it out!

We certainly love the Pine Belt and all who strive to help make it the beautiful community that it is. Please accept our warm wishes for a happy Thanksgiving and Christmas, and to each, we pray that you have a joyful, happy and healthy, and a prosperous new year! God bless! (John 3:16).

Wishing all a joyous holiday season!