20 days to launch!

20 days until Lookout launches in Eugene-Springfield!

Good morning.

Only 20 days to go until the launch of Lookout Eugene-Springfield.

Thank you for the warm welcome you gave Ashli Blow, our Environment & Public Health Correspondent, and Mike McInally, our Contributing Editor, after last week’s newsletter. Your support means a lot to them and to all of us building this newsroom for you.

As we count down to April 10, help us spread the word. The more people we reach, the stronger this community will be from day one. Tell your friends and neighbors (and/or those you think should be better informed) about Lookout by sharing this newsletter link.

Thanks so much.

Founding memberships available

Let’s be clear. You all are founding Lookout Eugene-Springfield as much as all of us at the burgeoning Lookout office at 8th and Willamette. It is both your financial, and, dare we say, spiritual support that enables us to launch on April 10. As we meet more and more of you as you begin to visit our office or at community group gatherings, we feel the mounting energy.

Over the last two weeks, your support has only grown. Almost 200 of you have joined us already as Founding Members, and we are readying the office for launch parties later in April to greet you.

And, let’s be even clearer: We’re glad to set up multiple launch parties, as more of you join us. Founding Membership gets the big prize here: Full access to all the news and information we’ll publish each week. And it funds what Lane County needs: more journalists to cover the place. (And we of course will throw in a few perks.)

Please join us now.

Two new Civic Partners

Lookout Eugene-Springfield is thrilled to welcome two incredible organizations to our Civic Partner Program: The Eugene Symphony and Ophelia’s Place. These groups have long made a real difference in Lane County, and we are proud to help amplify their impact. The Eugene Symphony provides world-class orchestral performances to over 25,000 music-lovers, families, and students. Ophelia’s Place is dedicated to empowering girls through support, education, and leadership opportunities, helping them build confidence and resilience. As Civic Partners, they gain expanded visibility, marketing support, and the ability to partner on media sponsorships, all to help them reach even more people. Together, we aim to build a more connected, inspired, and engaged community.

The Civic Partner Program is about more than media exposure. It is about working together to lift up the many nonprofits that shape our region. We are already in conversations with more organizations eager to join this movement. If your nonprofit is looking to expand its reach and deepen its impact, we would love to talk. Let’s connect and explore how we can work together to create something meaningful. Reach out to Amanda Coers, Lookout’s Community & Student Engagement Manager, at amanda@lookoutlocal.com.

The community we choose

Read more about Amanda’s reflections on finding belonging, building community, and why she chose Eugene for her family. In this column, she shares how Lookout’s Civic Partner Program is helping strengthen connections between local nonprofits and the people they serve.

Thanks for helping us get the word out

We appreciate how much the awareness of Lookout is growing. That’s in strong part because of the many organizations that have told their members about us in their newsletters. We are deeply grateful to:

• #InstaBallet
• Square One Villages
• The Eugene Ballet
• Creative Queer Collective
• ShelterCare
• The Eugene Symphony
• HIV Alliance
• BEST
• Community Supported Shelters
• Lane Arts Council
• WREN
  

Thank you all.

These organizations do vital work in arts, housing, health, and advocacy, making Eugene and Springfield a better place for all. We encourage you to check them out and learn more about their missions and the impact they have on our community. 

Ballet ticket giveaway winner

Congratulations to A.S., winner of two tickets to A Midsummer Night’s Dream performed by the Eugene Ballet. This giveaway was a random drawing from our email subscriber list. The Eugene Ballet is one of our Civic Partner organizations and generously offered these tickets to support our readers. Enjoy the show!

Welcoming new Marketing Partners

We are pleased to welcome two new Marketing Partners to Lookout this week: Travel Lane County and Capella Market. We look forward to working with these community-focused organizations on advertising and marketing solutions that promote their growth. 

We are actively building relationships across Lane County, with a unique Marketing Partnerships platform built to promote local businesses. Interested in learning more? Please contact our advertising sales manager, Morgana Dundon.  

We’re building this together

There are two ways to quickly grow the amount of local journalism we can create. You can become a Founding Member and you can donate specifically to get us off the ground. This online donation page makes it quick and easy to support either our launch and/or our evolving Lookout in the Classroom program – and receive a receipt for a tax deduction. So far, 177 of you have offered your support here, contributing $45,000. Please check out and browse through the wonderful comments on the right-hand column.

As we recognize our current donors, we invite you to help us reach our year-end funding goal. Donations of any size can be made online, and for contributions of $5,000 or more, please contact us or The Lenfest Institute, owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer, by reaching out to Charles Jun at charles@lenfestinstitute.org.

For now,

Ken Doctor, Founder

Dann Miller, Executive Editor

Amanda Coers, Community & Student Engagement Manager

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