Thank You Pinecrest For Making Patch Part Of Your Busy Life

MIAMI, FL — Election Day marks the second anniversary of Patch’s arrival in Pinecrest. As editor, I have had the privilege of meeting many of you who weave the daily fabric that makes up the breathtaking tapestry of South Florida.

Like many of you, I call the Miami area home from somewhere else. I am grateful for the opportunity to live and work in one of the most beautiful places on earth with our endless summer, turquoise waters and an electricity that isn’t found anywhere else — from Ocean Drive to Brickell, Crandon Park, Little Havana, Miracle Mile and Bayside.

I’m proud to call myself a Miamian every day — but particularly on the days when it snows up north. My pride of being from South Florida never gets old and I hope it never will.

But even paradise has its thorns — too much traffic trying to get to the same places on roads that weren’t built to handle it, people who take our money but don’t deliver, politicians who care more about getting re-elected than making our lives better. Some of us work long hours yet struggle to pay our rent. Many of us can’t even begin to imagine how we could afford to own our own home, yet we wouldn’t dream of living anywhere else.

I want Patch’s coverage of the Miami area to always have a fresh eye as we too are shaped by the events around us. We reacted with you at the death of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and rode out Hurricane Irma with you and your neighbors. More recently, we wiped away tears while wondering how an emotionally disturbed teen could purchase an assault rifle and use it to inflict so much pain on our South Florida community. In recent weeks, we explored the relationship between bullying and school shooters in part as our attempt to make sense of such a senseless tragedy.

But we’ve also covered stories that are pure Patchiness — a barefoot snake hunter, the first day of the season at Joe’s Stone Crab, a celebrity-studded ship launch, South Florida mermaid school, New Year’s Eve with Pitbull and the nun who warmed our hearts as she wielded her chainsaw in the face of adversity. We tried to understand why some people didn’t share David Beckham’s vision for a soccer stadium while others can’t wait to rediscover the game that shaped their youth.

We at Patch want to continue to be part of your world. We want you to invite us to cover your events and are grateful when you take time to like our articles on Facebook and Twitter or add your events to our online calendar. We thank you every time you post directly on Patch yet long for the day when many more people will discover our value as a community forum.

We are grateful for everyone who has signed up for our free daily newsletter and news alerts because we understand what an honor it is to share a small part of your busy life. Some 325 new users in the Miami area alone have signed up in recent months along with 544 Facebook followers. We've welcomed more than 60,000 visitors to our Miami area Patches. But we don’t ever want to take you, or Miami for granted. We also know you won't let that happen.

Please reach out to me personally and let me know how we can cover more of the things that are important to you and your family.

Warmest regards,

Paul Scicchitano