Rob Stuart Media Futures Fund

By LAURIE STUART

My little brother died young. However, in his short 49 years of life, he got a lot accomplished. One of his big skills was coming up with a new concept and getting others interested. His Philadelphia Inquirer October 28, 2011 obituary read: "A tireless social entrepreneur, he was always working on ideas to make that city better."

In the last year of his life, he and I collaborated on the Pinchot Institute for Conservation’s Common Waters Fund, making the connection that healthy forests in the Upper Delaware are connected to clean water in Philadelphia. It was a perfect project for us. My brother and I worked on creating a mechanism to connect upstate forest owners and downriver water users. Could corporations like those making Campbell's Soup and Pepsi, who depended on the clean water of the Delaware, chip in to help upriver forest owners keep their forests as healthy as possible? Could you convince the water utilities to establish a funding mechanism for the initiative?

We saw each other a lot that last year, with productive meetings and the creation of fun informational materials, for both adults and children. Together, we were connecting and showcasing the region's interconnectedness.

So it seemed appropriate on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of his death, that we reach back to that important family connection to bolster the future of the River Reporter by informing our work with his legacy—specifically, solid accurate and solution-oriented news reporting, community engagement, youth engagement, and providing context for policy decisions on important community developments.

The Rob Stuart Media Futures Fund will:

— Support the formation and maintenance of the News Ambassador Program and Youth News Reporting Initiative;

— Foster civic engagement through creative and inclusive initiatives that assist the community in the exploration of crucial issues; and

— Support local news coverage on local issues and challenges.

His death in 2011 was highly significant to me. It inspired me to pursue my aspiration to become a Unitarian Universalist minister and to continue holding space for people of diverse ideologies to engage with one another around local challenges that enhance the quality of life for the community as a whole. I am hopeful that in the creation of this fund in his memory, his work and my nearly 50 years of work on the River Reporter will grow and sustain good works and essential news coverage in the Upper Delaware River Valley for generations to come.

“What we know with absolute clarity is that a reliable flow of information is crucial to the stability of democracy. What we don’t know for sure is whether local newspapers in the United States will have the financial staying power to continue providing their communities with trustworthy information,” — William McKenzie, Senior Editorial Advisor at the Bush Institute

Your donation to the Rob Stuart Media Futures Fund will ensure that the River Reporter has the financial staying power to provide our communities with trustworthy information, hold space for civic and civil dialogue and support the next generation of young journalists.

The Donor Advised Fund is held at the Wayne County Community Foundation, a 501c(3) dedicated to enhancing the community.