Entering my tenth year as a volunteer news blogger in Fishers, I will admit openly that writing bad news stories takes its toll on a journalist.  Few of us will admit that, but it does.  When you are in the middle of reporting it may not be obvious, but once there is time for rest and reflection, the bad news sinks-in. That’s when reporters feel the emotions of very bad news.

I have been thinking about that very subject as we enter the one-year anniversary of covering the novel coronavirus.  For about a year, there has been little good news to report about COVID.  It has upended the lives of most people in Fishers and around the world.  Every time it appeared things were getting better, cases and deaths would once again spike.  It was scary seeing hospital patient populations swell to the point that you began to wonder if people with non-COVID health emergencies could be handled by an overburdened health care system.

I write this on March 7, 2021 when the news is once again looking up.  Things appear to be getting better.  I truly, truly want to believe we have turned a corner.

The availability of hospital beds in the area of Fishers has improved the past few weeks.  The Fishers Health Department has lowered the local risk level to Level 3, or orange, down from the highest (Level 4) we have been under for several months.  The numbers locally are improving.

The vaccine news is also good.  We have the two-dose Pfizer and Moderna vaccines that are being administered.  The new Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine is ramping up production and being offered to teachers and school staff, paving the way for more in-person learning.

The experts I read and have talked with indicate all three vaccines may have minor differences, but they all have one thing in common – they keep you out of the hospital and do not threaten your life.  Once vaccinated, your chances of entering the hospital with COVID are about zero.  We can all celebrate that fact.

The announcement from President Joe Biden that there will be enough doses available to vaccinate all American adults by the end of May is nothing short of amazing, as long as that goal can be achieved.

So, it is with a great deal of joy that I can write this piece to celebrate the gains we have achieved in the past year.

At the risk of being a downer, I must remind everyone that this pandemic is not yet over.  In a recent podcast with Fishers Public Health Director Monica Heltz, she admits that health experts have no consensus as to why COVID numbers are improving.  It is too early for vaccinations to be the reason.  It could be that many of us have contracted COVID asymptomatically and never knew we had it, Heltz told me.  Those people have antibodies with immunity that could last a long as 90 days.  That could be one reason for the better numbers.

On the day that I write this, Indiana has reported 11 new deaths due to COVID.  Those are 11 families grieving the loss of a loved one only because of this pandemic.  Never forget that people continue to die, here and around the world.  New strains of the virus are worrisome signs that must be monitored.

But even with that, I feel very fortunate.  A man in his late 60s contracting coronavirus is in a medical danger zone.  I contracted COVID in late October last year (still a mystery as to how) and had what the medical experts describe as “mild symptoms.”  Well, compared to entering a hospital and dying, yes, my symptoms were mild but they were tough.

I had announced plans to end this news blog and continue blogging about live theater, movies and music.  To put it bluntly, writing about local news is hard work.  I had made the announcement as COVID was spreading.

The pandemic was such that I felt a responsibility to continue reporting on Fishers since the local media had lots of other work to do in a health crisis.  Then I contracted COVID.

When the virus has sucked all the energy out of your body, you have nothing else to do but think and reflect.  After days of contemplation, I made the decision to continue blogging about Fishers.  The changes in the news business have resulted in less local news nearly everywhere in America.  The least I can do is report on the community where I have resided for 30 years.

Reporting on good news is what I prefer.  And Fishers does have some good news.  We are seeing a massive development in the downtown area that should be largely completed later this year.  I have been led to believe there will be more economic development announcements in the coming months.  There is apparently a lot of interest in the now-vacant Fry’s building.

Here is yet another piece of good news.  Pending approval from city health officials, outdoor activities will be coming back!  The passage below is from an update the Parks Department will be giving the Arts Commission at the March 9th meeting:

Fishers Parks is planning a full summer of events, pending approval from the Fishers Health Department. Highlights include:

• Fishers Farmers’ Market: The in-person Fishers Farmers’ Market will return to the NPD AMP in May with socially distancing practices in place to keep residents and customers safe. Online ordering with home delivery will continue to be offered as well. New this year, Biz Kids booths will be incorporated into the market each week so that Fishers’ youngest entrepreneurs to have a presence throughout the entire summer.
• Summer Concerts at the AMP: Fishers Parks is currently booking talent for both free and ticketed shows this summer at the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater. These concerts will be held following the same model as last summer, with socially distant seating, limited attendance, multiple sets, and other safety measures in place. Free Tuesday night family shows will be held in June and July, while free Friday night shows targeted to an adult audience will be in July and August. Several ticketed shows will also be held throughout the summer. Fishers Parks will also host their Wednesday lunchtime concerts on Central Green from June through August.
• Spark!Fishers: The Spark!Fishers festival will return in 2021 with a week-long event from August 24-28. Vendor and artisan applications are now open.

Will we have a more normal 2021 summer in Fishers?  The city is at least planning that way.

I am no health expert, I just read the experts and hope to learn from them.  The consensus is this – we still need to wear masks, socially distance, wash our hands and follow the other guidance in order to move to a more normal summer.  It is up to us, we are told, to allow the vaccine and our own behavior to bring us back to a form of normalcy.

Once again, it is largely up to us.  Frankly, I would much rather be reporting good news