Saying Goodbye…But Not Really

Announcing one’s departure from his/her place of employment is never an easy thing — and something I haven’t done in nearly 10 years — but the experience has proven to be quite the ego boost.

My colleagues, many of whom have been with me for my entire time at ICD Publications, have been wonderful and gracious offering me well-wishes and some expressing shock when hearing the news. But all were happy and a few even asked if they could go with me. The same can be said of many of my close relationships in the furniture and retail world that I have written about since 2001. Friends calling and writing not to ask why I was leaving, but wanting to know where I was headed and how we could stay in touch.

The change in career has also forced me to shut WestIslipTribune.com, an endeavor near and dear to my heart. At the suggestion of someone I now consider a good friend, I started the website in 2007 to cover the news and events of West Islip, NY; my hometown. Ironically, it was The Tribune that led to the opportunity now in front of me with AOL’s Patch.

And my friends and readers of The Tribune have also been very supportive. The day after announcing WestIslipTribune.com would soon be going dark, my e-mail inbox was flooded with congratulatory notes from many I know and many I never met. They thanked me for providing news of the community and wished me well with AOL.

So as I begin my final week in my long tenure at ICD, I do so feeling the love from so many. I thank everyone for their good wishes, and looking forward to the challenge of maintaining and perhaps even enhancing the relationships I have with so many wonderful people.