Meet the newbie

It’s another beautiful day in the South Valley and a great day here at this newspaper.
As you can see, Lifestyles has moved back to its original position on the front of the B section and, thanks to the move, we now have much more space to fill. That means we can bring back many of the features we haven’t had room for in the past few months, including an expanded calendar and Scrapbook for announcing the special occasions in your life. It also allows us to introduce some new features we’ll reveal over the next few weeks, such as a section for community photos submitted by readers, a health and fitness column and features that explore  the culinary culture in the South Valley.
By the way, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kristi Parker Johnson and I’m the new features and digital editor here. I joined the newsroom two months ago after my husband and I moved to California from Texas. We relocated for my husband’s employment, leaving most of our children, grandchildren, family and friends behind in the Lone Star State. But we love it here and have never looked back. (Except for the time one of my little granddaughters asked me during a FaceTime visit, with a very sad look on her face, why I had to move away. That was tough, but I got over it. Thank goodness for planes, trains and automobiles, which make traveling easy for grandmas.)
I’m very excited to be working in the South Valley where I can put my 20 years of journalism experience to good use. I’ve worked as a reporter and editor for weekly and daily newspaper and magazine groups, and I even started my own community newspaper in the Texas Hill Country in 1998. That was an exciting and exhausting adventure that lasted three years but aged me at least 10, or so it seemed. But that’s just the newspaper business, and I love it.
Long story short, I have a true passion for community news and look forward to learning more about Gilroy, Morgan Hill and San Martin and the wonderful people who make this area so vibrant.
Speaking of people, I firmly believe that everybody has a story to tell. So if you know someone who has led an interesting life, who won an award, had dinner with Elvis or aspires to be a TV chef, send them my way along with any other suggestions you may have to make Lifestyles an even better reflection of our communities.
Kristi Parker Johnson is the features and digital editor. Email her at fe******@ne********.com.