In a year full of change, the Sky-Hi News saw its fair share of shake-ups, with a renovated office, a new owner and a few staff updates.

At the end of November, the former parent company of the Sky-Hi News, Swift Communications, announced they would be selling their Colorado, California, Utah and Nevada papers to Ogden Newspapers, a family-owned company based in West Virginia.

​​Ogden Newspapers was founded in 1890 by H.C Ogden and is currently run by the fifth-generation of the family. In his announcement, Robert Nutting, CEO of Ogden Newspapers and The Nutting Company, reiterated his family’s commitment to the industry and the critical role of community newspapers.

The deal is scheduled to close today, and with the acquisition Ogden Newspapers will publish 54 daily newspapers and a number of weekly newspapers and magazines in 18 states.

When it comes to newsroom staff, Sky-Hi News’ leading editor Eli Pace took a job editing the Steamboat Pilot and Today in December. The newspaper continues to look for someone to fill his shoes in the role.

Advertising Account Manager Kat Ginn received a promotion to a regional position, Digital Media Specialist, and shifted her focus to helping businesses near and far grow in the ever-changing digital space.

Starting in the new year, Michelle Marks will take over as the local advertising account manager, working closely with Ginn and Sky-Hi News Publisher Emma Trainor. Marks comes from Hawaii where her family owned a small business and looks forward to working with local businesses in Grand.

Even the Sky-Hi News building looks a little different thanks to a new salon in the front and a forced renovation of the newsroom following a pipe burst in July.

Despite all of the change though, Sky-Hi News remains committed to reporting all things Grand County.

This year, the Colorado Press Association awarded Sky-Hi 19 individual awards in the 2020 Better News Media Contest, enough to earn Grand County’s community newspaper a clean sweep of all four general excellence designations in its class.

That high quality, community-centric coverage is what readers can still expect headed into 2022.