Questions from subscribers

And answers from the Journal

by Melanie Jongsma, Publisher

LANSING, Ill. (October 23, 2022) – Last week I posted an article about random notes subscribers have submitted when they completed our standard subscription form. Some of those notes are actually questions, or at least they give us an opportunity to provide information. I thought it might be helpful to post those comments publicly along with our responses.

Regarding obituaries

All of the obituaries that I’m seeing for the past two weeks or more are from South Holland, Dyer, etc., but no Lansing. I live in San Diego, CA, but I used to live in Lansing and would like to view obits from Lansing.

Journal response: You make a good point, and we agree that it would make sense for Lansing obituaries to be published in Lansing’s newspaper. However, ultimately that decision is up to the family of the deceased as guided by the funeral home they are working with. The Lansing Journal has a special agreement with Smits Funeral Homes, and we automatically publish all obituaries provided by their South Holland and Schererville locations. Smits simply includes that as part of the package they offer families. Schroeder-Lauer Funeral Home, located in Lansing, chooses to let each of their funeral directors ask each family which newspapers they would like the obituary to be published in. If a family chooses The Lansing Journal, Schroeder-Lauer lets us know, and then we publish it.

We believe that obituaries are important community news, and we are grateful for the arrangement we have with Smits, which is convenient for them and us, as well as helpful to families. Occasionally families contact us directly about publishing an obituary, and we are happy to help. We charge only $50 for a full obituary and photo. More information is available on our Obituaries page.

Regarding subscriptions

I need to cancel my subscription for financial reasons.

Journal response: We want local news to be accessible to everyone, so we don’t actually charge readers to receive our Daily News email, and we don’t put our website behind a paywall. Reader support makes it possible for us to report, publish, and deliver local news every day — so thank you for supporting us while you were able to. If you need to take a break from contributing, we understand. But please don’t stop receiving and reading the news; it’s too important to stay informed and connected.

We all go through different seasons of life at different times. Part of being a community is helping each other when are able to, and accepting help from others when we need to. Readers who are able to contribute to this newspaper — for themselves or for someone who can’t give right now — can click the button to choose a giving level that fits their budget:

Regarding information

I would love a link to ask for information. There are road construction signs going up, and I would love to know what is getting fixed, and how long will it take?

Journal response: We do have a Contact page that allows people to submit story ideas, and we try to answer those as promptly and accurately as possible. Your particular question about road construction in Lansing would probably best be answered by the Village Administration. They maintain the master schedule of roadwork, and they update the information as needed when there are supply chain issues or weather delays. The Village of Lansing website (villageoflansing.org) lists the hours of the Lansing Municipal Center as 7 a.m.–5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The main phone number is 708-895-7200.

Regarding the paper version of the Journal

I never get the paper version delivered to my home. Are you still delivering the paper?

Journal response: Because of the costs involved with publishing and delivering a print edition, and because of the limited number of print and delivery vendors available post-pandemic, The Lansing Journal is now in print only occasionally. Going to press also involves a lengthy timeline, which makes it difficult to include breaking news in print. For those reasons our current strategy is to reserve print issues for “special occasions.”

The most notable example is the election information we publish in print during our local election years — we gather information about all the candidates in all the races, along with details about early voting and Election Day poll locations. That information is more user-friendly in print. People like to be able to spread out the paper on a table and compare candidate bios side-by-side, jot notes in the margins, and bring the info with them to the polls. We also published a special Summer In Lansing print issue this year, and we were able to include the Fox Pointe concert schedule, a detailed guide to bike paths in Lansing, articles about new businesses, and summer specials from local advertisers — all information that was relevant throughout the summer.

For now we focus most of our efforts on providing local news online every day and encouraging people to subscribe via email to stay informed and connected.

We appreciate hearing from our readers and subscribers. The most direct way to reach us with questions, comments, or ideas is to email [email protected]. Those emails are received by Managing Editor Josh Bootsma as well as myself, and one of us typically responds the same day.