One of the most interesting things about community newspapers is the role they play in the events of the Valley. The newspaper is the witness of events for people who weren’t there and the teacher who explains (or tries to) the larger impact of an event for everyone who could be affected by it.

It’s also the chronicle of a place. Even in this digital age, when information is as available on Facebook as it is at traditional media outlets, I hear from people who feel that a story hasn’t been published if it hasn’t been published in the physical paper.

What’s funny about that is we get a lot of our news directly from readers. This week’s story about the SnoValley Little League Player of the Week was submitted by a reader. So was the story about the Carnation Hopelink office’s new director; and all those dean’s list reports you see at the end of a semester, they come from the schools, but only because the students or parents asked the schools to send us that news.

The most interesting element of the relationship between newspaper and reader, though, has to be the cause-and-effect of covering controversial issues. Say there’s a public meeting planned on everybody’s favorite topic, flooding. We publicize the meeting, we go to the meeting. There are 20 or fewer people there. We report on the meeting, and we start getting letters to the editor about the issue. There are 50 people and more at the next meeting. Did the newspaper do that, or did the people who attended that first meeting, then talked to friends do that?

It doesn’t matter. What matters is that the interaction is happening. As much as I appreciate people’s faith in the newspaper to create change, I’m pretty sure the part the newspaper plays in any change is much smaller than the part of the people who want it to happen.

Next week, there will be a prime opportunity for people who envision change — the start of King County’s town hall meetings on Community Service Areas and grant funding available to them. The first is 7 to 9 p.m., Monday, April 11 at Chief Kanim Middle School. Come to to learn about positive changes being made, and where to find funding to make some yourself.