05/17/2026
I received a message today from an account I donât know or recognize. No mutual friends, no real information I could see about who sent it â honestly, it almost looked like it was made just to send this message.
The message said they were âextremely disappointedâ in me for not being at today's events and that âwe pay your salary.â
Iâll be honest â my bank account must have missed that deposit. đ
But seriously, I want to clear something up because so may not understand.
I am not employed by the school. I donât receive a salary from the district, the teams, or the families. I show up to events when Iâm available, when Iâm asked, or when arrangements have been made for STL Media to be there. Yes all those days where I'm at an event is because I want to be there and many days I don't make a dime. I cover events where my kids are there or I want to be there.
I love covering local athletes. I love being part of these moments. Iâve spent countless hours on sidelines, in gyms, at tracks, and on fields because I genuinely care about these kids and these programs.
But I donât owe anyone coverage of every event unless Iâve been asked or hired to be there.
The hardest part isnât even the misunderstanding â itâs that someone felt comfortable sending a message like this to a person who is simply trying to support the community.
A simple âHey, will you be covering this meet?â would have gone a long way.
Iâll always do my best to be where I can, when I can. But please remember thereâs a person on the other side of the camera too.