Scott Morris: Retired Herald editor, reporter deserves thanks

Published 1:30 am Saturday, November 20, 2021

By Scott Morris / Herald Forum

Congratulations to Eric Stevick, who served this community with such grace and dedication as a reporter and editor for The Herald (“Letter from the editor: Good-bye and many thanks,” The Herald, Oct. 17).

I am writing this by hand, because that’s how letters were sent in when Eric’s journalism career started. I am proud to say I worked with Eric for a few of his 40-some years. The thing that always impressed me about Eric is I never heard one person say anything bad about him. Ever. And that is especially hard to do for a reporter, because the nature of the job puts you in the middle of everybody’s conflicts.

Most of us burned out because of this sooner or later. We should all be grateful for the rare gems such as Eric, because he never lost his enthusiasm for a great story, well told. “To the very end,” he wrote, “I looked forward to work each day and would glance around the newsroom at my colleagues and be filled with hope.”

I hope people in Snohomish County don’t take for granted how lucky we have been. Eric’s retirement feels like the end of an era, the same feeling when Julie Muhlstein retired recently. I was always in awe of these folks who made careers out of such a difficult job, including others such as Scott North, Dan Bates and Jim Haley. They all missed many family dinners and events, all in service to our community.

We owe them all our thanks. And Eric, you’ve inspired me to hope I can move forward “enthused and strangely energized.”

Scott Morris, a former Herald reporter, lives in Darrington.