Mary Kelli Palka: Jacksonville needs the Times-Union. And the Times-Union needs our support.

I'm now saying goodbye, which I've done before — though not quite like this. After years covering local government and education, I left in 2012. But the time wasn't right: I was asked to come back as investigative editor. I did, quickly finding I wasn't done with the profession I've been hooked on since college.

We covered nonprofits, education, the military, local businesses, high school sports, golf, Jaguars and other professional teams. We wrote heart-breaking stories about people killed on our streets to gun violence, on roads unsafe for pedestrians or due to illness and disease. I’m also grateful to those who helped me get to this moment. The college professor who sent me on scavenger hunts for public records. The editors along the way, who put up with this wordy reporter. The publisher who chose me to lead my hometown newspaper and taught me so much about the business side of the industry.

They have been asked to do all of this often under some difficult circumstances, including during changes in ownership, community protests, hurricanes and the pandemic. And they delivered. • The reporters who look for story ideas in neighborhoods throughout our community and who battled with public officials to gain access to information owned by the taxpayers. They’ve been called names, had doors slammed in their faces, been hung up on more times than they could count. But they keep going.

Most journalists I know are some of the hardest workers out there. They must be reminded to take breaks, put down their phones and prioritize themselves and their families. They’re smart and thoughtful. They go above and beyond to find the truth, seek more records and find more sources. They agonize over getting every detail right. And they’re funny, often incredibly funny. While newsrooms can be stressful places, they’re also places filled with laughter and camaraderie.

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