This is the last edition of the Invermere Valley Echo to be published.

After over 60 years serving the communities of the Upper Columbia Valley, a decision has been reached between Aberdeen Publishing, owner of The ColumbiaValley Pioneer, and Black Press, owner of the Valley Echo, to merge the newspapers. During the last four and a half years, the two companies have worked together, sharing staff and office space to reduce costs, to ensure that our communities had comprehensive news and events coverage.

That commitment remains even as the two weekly publications are merged into one. It is also important to note that with the merger no jobs will be lost.

There will be Echo content that will now be printed regularly in The Pioneer, most notably our coverage of local council and school board meetings. The Pioneer will also be posting more breaking news stories online and we will be more active on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. We will also be introducing a new Pioneer website, hopefully before the end of July.

I would like to thank our Echo subscribers who have supported us over the years and invite you to pick up the Pioneer weekly or visit us online. Please contact our office regarding your current subscription.

We live in an incredible community and we look forward to sharing its successes with our readers.