The NH Community News Fund deserves your help
By Shamecca Brown-Granite State News Collaborative
The Granite State News Collaborative’s NH Community News Fund campaign says “you have a superpower.” And you activate it when you support local news.
Your support keeps the Granite State News Collaborative alive – real reporters, real stories, real news that actually matters in our communities.
When they think of a superpower, most folks will think of something flashy, something heroic, something almost impossible. But being part of real news – news that’s honest, unfiltered, human – that’s where I learned that superpowers don’t always come with capes. Sometimes, they come with a pen, a keyboard and a purpose.
What makes the Granite State News Collaborative so special is simple: They care about what’s really happening to real people. Not the watered-down stories. Not the performative stuff. The truth. And truth is powerful. Truth is its own kind of hero.
Being part of what the Collaborative does feels like stepping on to a team of quiet superheroes – editors, reporters, storytellers – people who don’t just chase headlines, but chase humanity. And at the heart of that team is Melanie Plenda, one of the strongest, sharpest, most compassionate editors out there. She’s one of the people who makes this whole machine run. She doesn’t just edit stories; she shapes voices, lifts writers and makes sure what we put out into the world is something worth reading.
And that brings me to my superpower.
I didn’t find it in a classroom or a conference or a workshop. I found it the moment I stopped doubting myself and let my fingers write what my brain, and my heart, were trying to say. I found it the moment I realized that being left-handed wasn’t just a fact – it was a flex. My words curve differently. My flow hits differently. I write from a place that’s raw, honest and unafraid.
My superpower is storytelling without apology. Telling the stories that people hold inside. Telling the stories people ignore. Telling the stories we all go through but are scared to say out loud.
When I write, I’m writing for the folks who feel unseen, unheard or misunderstood. I’m writing for the people fighting battles nobody knows about. I’m writing for the ones who don’t always get platforms, who don’t get interviews, who don’t get headlines.
Because if there’s one thing we all need right now, it’s news that doesn’t just inform us, it connects us.
That’s why supporting the Granite State News Collaborative matters. When you donate, you’re not just giving money. You’re giving power. You’re giving voice. You’re giving oxygen to stories that deserve to breathe.
You can support local journalism and activate your superpower by donating to the Granite State News Collaborative’s NH Community News Fund, where your gift can help increase reporting capacity, support innovative journalism projects and strengthen local engagement.
Right now, many donations are part of NewsMatch, a campaign where your gift can be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $1,000, meaning your impact could be twice as big.
Real news saves time, surfaces solutions, holds power accountable and preserves the civic fabric that keeps our communities connected. Your support today ensures that New Hampshire continues to have access to trustworthy, impactful local news that reflects all of us. That’s a superpower worth having, and worth giving.
Shamecca Brown is a New Hampshire-based columnist who is family-oriented and passionate about serving underserved communities. These articles are being shared by partners in the Granite State News Collaborative. For more information, visitcollaborativenh.org.