Courier to become nonprofit corporation

As of January 1, 2024, the Left Hand Valley Courier will be owned and published by a Colorado nonprofit corporation.

In an effort to continue to bring local news to residents and businesses of the Niwot-Gunbarrel area, the owners of Lefthand Valley Publishing, LLC, publisher of the Left Hand Valley Courier newspaper for over 26 years, have made plans to transfer the newspaper to a newly formed nonprofit corporation known as Left Hand Valley Courier.

The new format will allow the Courier to seek public support from readers who realize the importance of local news, and to apply for grants from organizations dedicated to preserving local journalism. Public support will be vital to the Courier’s ability to continue to educate residents about local issues affecting the community, promote community and cultural events, highlight the accomplishments of local students, and celebrate the history, including the Native American history, of the area.

Two of the founders of Lefthand Valley Publishing, LLC, Karen Copperberg of Niwot and Mary Wolbach Lopert of Gunbarrel, will serve on the board of directors of the non-profit. Both retired from the newspaper in 2022 after 25 years of writing, editing, and taking photos for the Courier. They will be joined on the board of directors by Niwot native Jessica (Tennant) Walker, who returned to Niwot after obtaining her medical degree. Walker, a physician in Longmont who resides in Niwot, has covered Niwot Youth Sports events for the newspaper as a volunteer writer.

Day-to-day operation of the newspaper will not change. Vicki Maurer, another founder, will continue to serve as Business Manager of the newspaper, as well as Secretary and Treasurer of the non-profit corporation. Bruce Warren, also a founder, will continue to serve as Managing Editor of the newspaper and President of the non-profit corporation.

Elise Marylander, who recently became Editor of the newspaper, will serve as Vice-President of the nonprofit corporation and continue her role as Editor.

The Left Hand Valley Courier newspaper will continue to be published weekly online, with a print edition distributed to 6,000 homes and businesses every four weeks. Advertising will continue to be an important source of revenue. Additional funding will continue to come from on-line subscriptions, which the newspaper initiated during the pandemic when advertising revenue dropped dramatically. But public support through donations and grants will enable the Courier to consider expansion of the print editions, and add new features and coverage of the Niwot-Gunbarrel area.

The Courier’s goal is to raise at least $100,000 over the next year from public support, which would allow the Courier to meet increasing printing costs, hire additional staff members, and add features to the newspaper that are currently unfunded.

Left Hand Valley Courier, a non-profit corporation, has applied for recognition by the Internal Revenue Service as a charitable, educational organization. Upon approval, donations to Left Hand Valley Courier would be tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

The Courier was founded by seven members of the Niwot-Gunbarrel community in 1997 because important news of the area was not adequately covered by the daily newspapers in Boulder County. Since then the face of journalism has changed in Colorado, and across the nation, with many areas now considered “news deserts” where no journalistic coverage of local news exists.

Please consider subscribing to the Courier at https://www.lhvc.com/subscribe.