The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1981, Blaðsíða 7

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
5
EDITORIAL
OUR ORPHAN — A LABOUR OF LOVE
This little publication has no home, no
quarters, no office nor any office staff. Yes,
our beloved journal is, indeed, an orphan.
However, it is cherished by many, and sev-
eral of these volunteer to dress and feed it
with prose, poetry and related articles in the
form of stories, essays, etc., which relate to
weaving our Icelandic heritage into the
Canadian fabric. Several of these interested
volunteers are chosen as members of ‘ ‘The
Magazine Board’ ’.
The members of the “Board” share in
keeping this orphan billetted and see to it
that the material between its covers is suit-
able and accurate also that the contents vary
enough to satisfy the diverse tastes of its
subscribers.
The four issues published each year,
“Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter,”
are in the making in every day of the year.
The “Board” solicits articles, chooses what
seems relevant, decides on the order and
placement of articles being used and pub-
lished in the current issue. The “Board” is
responsible for seeing that the necessary
material reaches the printers.
When the galley proofs are ready the
members of the “Board” volunteer to
proof-read them and correct any errors. This
leads on to page-proof reading. When the
issue is printed and bound, the “Board”
members address, package and sort the
magazine into the various subscribers’
areas. The magazines are then loaded onto a
truck and taken to the post office. The
“Board” members now get busy with the
material to be used in the next issue.
In no way can the “Board” find time to
work towards increasing the circulation.
This task should be in the hands of a separate
volunteer “Board” and known as the “Cir-
culation Board”.
I have been a member of the magazine
“Board” for twenty-six years and I am
leaving the “Board” this spring. I have
enjoyed working with the dedicated mem-
bers who give so much time to the maga-
zine.
Occasionally the “Board” receives let-
ters from subscribers who suggest “this or
that” about increasing the circulation of the
magazine. One particularly makes me
chuckle every instance it crosses my mind.
The writer had visions of the “Board”
being housed in a large building, with
offices for “Board” members who are paid
salaries and are loaded with equipment. The
situation of course is the direct opposite.
Everything the “Board” members do is
gratis. All members of the “Board” pay for
his or her magazine. This shows how in-
terested they are in keeping this “orphan”
alive.
During my twenty-six years on the
“Board” I drove my automobile over three
thousand miles on magazine errands, read
over three thousand feet of galley proofs and
page proofs and loved every moment of it!
Please! Don’t let this lovely Orphan down!
G. B. Arilius Isfeld, B.A., B.Ed.
LUNDAR MEAT & GROCERY
A Full Line of Groceries
NOTED FOR ITS GOOD ME A T
K. VIGFUSSON JR. & FAMILY
Lundar, Man. ROC 1Y0
Ph. 762-5261 Ph. 762-5368
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