Hello, White Lake Mirror readers!
Two months ago, the Oceana Echo celebrated the incredible milestone of gifting this community 2 million copies of our free newspaper, and since then we have given away close to 150,000 more. For over three years now, the Oceana Echo and, for almost three years, the Mirror have faithfully come to your doorstep every Friday.
Last week in the Echo, we announced a slight tweak to the way we're delivering our papers going forward that we're running here too, just in case you missed it. The most important thing for you to know is that our paper is still free! We are not charging for our content, and we don't plan to.
The short version of the change we are making is that if you have been receiving the paper so far, all you have to do is reach out to us directly with your name and address to tell us you want to keep getting it. That's it! There is no catch, there is no cost, and your information will not be used for any other purpose besides facilitating delivery of your paper. Readers can sign up by calling our office at 231-301-8149 or by visiting the following link: tinyurl.com/kh9c7rrw.
And by the way - Whitehall addresses can now receive the paper for free too! We know many readers in Whitehall have wanted to receive our paper - some so much that they paid for a subscription - and now we are adding Whitehall as a postal route that can receive the Echo and Mirror for free. Just follow the same process outlined above!
We are making this change because of twin cost increases we've recently faced. To date, we have been paying for Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) delivery on all the postal routes in Oceana County and in Montague. In June, our printer raised their costs for the first time since the Echo's launch, and this week the United States Postal Service increased mailing rates. In tandem, these changes have added several hundred dollars per week to our costs, which already were several thousands per week - costs that in recent weeks had unfortunately not been met with increased donations. Therefore, we feel this is the best thing we can do to reduce costs while not compromising the quality you've come to expect from us.
Those who do not want free news in their mailbox each Friday can simply do nothing, and once we fully migrate to our new system with the Sept. 4 issue, your deliveries will cease. Of course, we've already heard from hundreds of readers who have signed up, and we anticipate many, many more of you will choose to keep getting our paper!
For those of you who choose to sign up, very little will change. Your newspaper will still come to you on Fridays, but now with your address printed on it.
This new model does have perks! It opens the door for P.O. box holders and businesses, who didn't receive copies under the EDDM system, to sign up and receive the paper just like a household does.
If you live outside of Oceana County, Montague and Whitehall and would like to receive the paper, then you are still asked to subscribe for $6.25 per month. International delivery rates are also available.
We do kindly ask that those who request the paper please consider donating (see page 7 of the Mirror for details on how to do so). Through our Lead this Legacy campaign, which we launched in 2024, we have been able to raise enough to cover 3 ½ months of expenses. For us to break even each year, we would only need 20% of the homes that currently receive the paper to donate $100 each year, along with the income from our advertisers and public notices from local municipalities. Every dollar that comes in to our paper goes right back into this community and helps us to deliver quality, local news to your door.
Starting in August, we will systematically begin to reduce the number of EDDM routes we deliver to, but as long as readers have signed up to continue to receive the Echo and Mirror, then there will be no break in your service. The Sept. 4 issue will be the first one delivered fully under the new system, giving our readers time to make this switch over this summer.
We anticipate that our advertisers and municipalities will still reach thousands of homes each week, far more than any other print newspaper in Oceana County and the White Lake area. Also, we have not raised our advertising rates since August 2025, and by switching to this new model, we don’t anticipate needing to any time soon.
We hear so many wonderful compliments all the time about how much the Echo and Mirror mean to this area, and our phone is already ringing off the hook with sign-ups and will continue to do so. We are excited for that! We will also have the sign-up link posted on our Facebook page and our website for your convenience.
