From a professional sense, 2024 was a weird one for me — but not in a bad way.
It was the first time throughout my tenure that I felt comfortable in my role as a journalist. Day-to-day tasks get easier with time. That phone call you were anxious to make when you first started is no longer challenging; it’s just what you do. Those deadlines that are overwhelming? Yeah, they still can be, but you’ve done so many already that you’re confident you can hit them, even under a time crunch.
I feel like this past year, I’ve grown so much, both in my writing and networking ability, but in the moment, it doesn’t always feel that way. There are still questions of “Oh, I have so much to do” or “I should’ve done this or that better,” but when you zoom out months later, you realize that you did a good job. That’s the way this year felt to me.
I think you can put too much pressure on yourself, but that’s the nature of the beast.
Anyway, I was also grateful that I was able to win two Greater Cincinnati Society of Professional Journalists awards. I can’t thank the LINK editorial team: Lacy, Meghan, Maggy, Evan, Haley and Nathan enough for pushing me to be better every day, even though it can feel overwhelming at the moment.
With all that out of the way, here are my five favorite stories from 2024:
NKY’s independent pharmacies on verge of extinction
Personally, this was my favorite story I worked on this year. Pharmacy Benefit Managers, or PBMs, have come under fire the past few years for business practices that independent pharmacists view as either corrupt or blatantly shady.
I interviewed Craig Seither, the former owner of Fort Thomas Drug Center, and Katie Litmer, the former owner of Ludlow Pharmacy, to explore why they felt PBMs were harming independent pharmacies in Northern Kentucky. It should be noted that both aforementioned pharmacies closed in 2023 after decades in business. Seither and Litmer cited exorbitant PBM fees as a reason why their pharmacies were no longer viable businesses.
Throughout our conversations, it became increasingly clear that these pharmacy closures not only removed historic small businesses from their communities but also the primary beneficiaries of these closures were corporate mega-pharmacies such as Walgreens. Upon closure, the pharmacies’ prescriptions were transferred to neighboring Walgreens. Furthermore, Fort Thomas and Ludlow no longer have any pharmacies within their city limits, something that remains to this day.
Hit Seekers’ success ushers in new generation of sports card collectors
I was lucky enough to profile Hit Seekers, a trading card shop and exchange based in Fort Mitchell, earlier this year. The business is one of the fastest-growing small businesses in the Greater Cincinnati area, according to data from the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce’s State of the Region report.
Greg Rouse, one of the co-founders behind Braxton Brewing Company, started the Hit Seekers Facebook group for local collectors during the pandemic. It rapidly expanded due to the surge in popularity of sports trading cards.
Today, Hit Seekers is the preeminent sports trading card shop in Northern Kentucky. Their growth landed them a sponsorship deal from the Cincinnati Reds, allowing Hit Seekers to open a kiosk in Great American Ballpark.
In addition, Hit Seekers is prominent in the online ‘pack opening’ community. In essence, their employees will open packs of cards on livestreams and then viewers can bid on and buy these cards. It’s just another wrinkle to the success story of Hit Seekers, one of the most unique businesses in the region.
Balancing Act: Navigating the impact of legalized sports betting in Kentucky
Is legalized sports betting a good or bad thing? That’s something Kentucky citizens and legislators are wrestling with right now and will continue to wrestle with well into the future.
This article explores the positives and negatives of sports betting in the state. While local industries such as tourism are expected to benefit from sports betting, gambling addiction experts are sounding the alarm. Michael Stone, director of the Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling, told me that calls to the hotline have tripled since legal sports gambling went live. All the while, brick-and-mortar sportsbooks are raking in money.
It will be interesting to follow these trends throughout 2025. Something I want to look into is how sports betting has negatively affected people already, a topic I think is going to explode in national media in 2025.
What would Amendment 2 actually do?
Perhaps the most polarizing political story of the year, Amendment 2, also titled the Allow State Funding for Non-Public Education Amendment, mobilized folks like never before. Across the state, people were either starkly opposed or ideologically in favor of the proposed amendment to the state constitution.
My article explored the legislative mechanics of Amendment 2, detailing what it would actually do if enacted. I then talked to advocates on both sides of the issue to learn the perceived positives and negatives of the legislation.
In the end, Amendment 2 unanimously failed. I was happy to be able to provide context to one of the most hot-button political issues in Kentucky over the past few years. It was a towering — and stressful assignment — but one I was happy to take on.
First of its kind moving walkway being developed in Hebron
Brothers John and Matine Yuksel are doing big things out at CVG. They’re fulfilling their father Edip’s lifelong dream of developing a modular accelerating walkway.
In September, I visited their startup’s headquarters in Hebron to tour their facilities and witness a demonstration of their prototype walkway. Quite frankly, I was blown away. I was even able to take a ride on the prototype.
The duo founded Beltways during the pandemic, eventually moving operations to Hebron in 2022. Their startup landed features in prominent publications like Business Insider and Forbes.
What was refreshing about John and Matine was their focus on bringing their Dad’s business to life. When writing the story, I wanted the narrative to focus on that rather than solely on the startup.
On a personal note, it was interesting to talk to them about their experiences in Silicon Valley and San Francisco. I don’t know many people who have lived in those places, so it was cool to ask them questions about how life was out there.
