I can’t watch television news any more...although I am glued to it. Between Covid-19 and civil unrest, the bombardment of seemingly contradictory stories on an hour-by-hour basis is not only mind-numbing but also confusing. There is no doubt our lives will be changed by these trying times, and so we are going to make some tweaks to our editorial direction, our features and even our team. 

As we went to print on our last issue, our editor Carrie Edelstein informed me of her plans to change her work focus and asked if she could invest more energy on our blog. She has made a great impact on the magazine and cultivated many friendships with architects, designers, the arts, not-for-profits, writers and photographers. For that we are grateful. We think our print issue is more welcome than ever as people are spending more time at home, and we are expanding our digital edition, added back our eblast, and increased the frequency of our social media content. I am jumping in as an interim writer and editor until things get back to normal. I’m excited by this opportunity to get closer to the words which fill our pages and I hope you like my input. If not, please let me know. 

If you enjoy reading our magazine, please tell our advertisers that you appreciate their support and most importantly please support them. Without them, this is not possible. While there will be fewer competing magazines after this pandemic passes, there also may be fewer advertisers. So we need to support each other in every way possible. 

Following up on last issue’s publisher’s letter and the hope that this pandemic leads to a modern renaissance, we are going to focus more on the arts, creativity and innovation each issue. It has always been my passion, and while we have covered the arts a lot, there is much more we can do. So we are going to do it. Our social pages are different for now as most fundraising events and galas have been cancelled, postponed or being done virtually. We’ll continue to focus on not-for-profits and community events so they get the attention they need, and hopefully you will support them as you have in the past. Life without the arts and live events is clearly less exciting. And we are adding a regular feature called Worth Funding which will look at the start-up community in St. Louis and the many promising companies who are bringing great ideas and investors together to spark the next new economy to help and bolster the ones being challenged at this strange time in history. 

As I sit writing this letter at Cortex, I am surrounded by very few people. While Cortex has re-opened, it appears most people are staying home and remaining cautious. Maybe it is the result of photos over Memorial Day weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks of no one socially distancing and the wiser men and women of Cortex leading by example to remain safe. I hope this is the case. Over the weekend, I learned of more restaurateurs declaring bankruptcy, and seeing the impact on the Central West End and many of my other favorite neighborhoods in St. Louis is devastating. 

I hope the next publisher’s letter I write puts most of the devastation behind us, and lots of promising news ahead. If only to see our relatives more often and be able to hug them, stop by our friends’ table at a restaurant or attend a wedding or event without donning masks and gloves. For now, I will do whatever is needed to stay safe and make sure there is no risk of us transmitting or contracting the virus. We’ll do whatever we can to spread good will and share the stories of people who will make a difference in this new normal. And we’ll use this time to deepen relationships with our families, friends, clients and community. We’re in this together. 

To paraphrase the words to a song from the musical Wicked, “I don’t know if we have been changed for the better, but we have been changed for good.” 

Stay safe and strong! 

Craig Kaminer 

craig@slmag.net