Welcome to BOS

We’ve been publishing the Best of Springfield for so long we can hardly remember when it started. I’m pretty sure it was 1982 when we first asked our readers to lead us to the best pizza and their favorite downtown eatery. At that time the concept of reader polling was fresh and fun – but counting the votes on hundreds of paper ballots was anything but. In the early days it took a dozen volunteers several days to tally the results.

Here’s how we do it. Happily we now rely on sophisticated online systems that allow thousands of votes to be cast but also safeguards that no one can stuff the ballot box. In the years since electronic voting became available, participation has grown threefold, this year hitting an all-time high with more than 6,300 individuals using that electronic ballot; around 100 diehards sent their answers in on paper. (And we were happy to count them up.) We also noticed plenty of campaigning going on among Facebook users; a record number of individuals seemed to be hoping to be named as the “best” at their trade. Congrats to all who were nominated.

Who put this issue together? Contributing writers include staffers Rachel Wells, Bruce Rushton and Fletcher Farrar, who were joined by freelance contributors Tom Irwin and Jolonda Young. The photos were shot by Joe Copley or Dave Hine, IT staffers who were joined by Nick Steinkamp, an IT alum and freelance graphic designer. Dave Hine is responsible for the editorial design and layout.

Which leads me to the balance of our small but mighty IT team who make this and every edition of IT a success: Beth Irwin, Tia Schoen, Michelle Morton and Nan Bulli each do an amazing job selling ads and keeping our customers happy. Brenda Matheis manages both our business office and our rock star delivery team who deliver IT to more than 500 newsstands every Thursday come rain, snow, sleet or tornado. (Thanks Rocky, Steve, Harvey, Randy, Kathy, Glynn and Chris). Thanks also to Danny Rosenkrantz, our hardworking intern who had his hands in this issue as well. In my book this bunch is unquestionably the Best of Springfield.

And now a word for our “sponsors.” We could not do what we do without the hundreds of business owners and managers who invest their hard-earned dollars sending marketing messages through the pages of Illinois Times each week. The last few years have been challenging for nearly every business and especially for nonprofit organizations. We’re humbled by their confidence in IT and grateful for their financial support that keeps IT delivering your news week after week. Here’s hoping the next year with be the best ever for each of you and for Illinois Times.

Enjoy.

Sharon Whalen, publisher