Impact snapshot from a Press Forward grantee newsroom

Drew Himmelstein, head of solutions journalism and community engagement; Aaron Britt, publisher, Midcoast Villager

Who: Drew Himmelstein, head of solutions journalism and community engagement; Aaron Britt, publisher, Midcoast Villager (also husband and wife)

Where: Camden, Maine

What: The Midcoast Villager is a weekly newspaper covering Knox and Waldo counties in Maine. They call themselves a “new newspaper with an old soul,” having launched in 2024 as a result of a merger of four newspapers in the area, three of which were more than 100 years old. The newspaper’s owner, Reade Brower, also owns The Villager Cafe, which is located below the newspaper’s offices and serves as a meeting place for staff and community to engage. The paper includes in-depth solutions-based journalism, profiles of community members, arts and culture coverage, and opinions and columns. It also was recently profiled by the New York Times (“the Villager reads — and looks — better than a lot of fading city papers”). The Villager also recently won numerous awards from the Maine Press Association, including Best Weekly Newspaper.

Why: The Villager’s mission is to build community through reliable information, storytelling and convening, covering many rural areas in the midcoast area of Maine. The goal is to provide “everything you need to know to live, work, play and vote.” As Britt said, “We’re the paper of record for Knox and Waldo County; we serve 80,000 people who live in those two counties.”

Cafes and newspapers go together well at The Villager Cafe (Photo courtesy of Midcoast Villager)

How: The Villager Cafe, opened in April 2025, is a separate business from the newspaper (with the same owner), but offers many ways for the paper to generate revenue (selling papers at the cafe; selling sponsorships to events) and increase engagement:

• Every week, “Fresh Brewed News” includes a person from the newsroom sitting in the cafe and putting out a sign to answer questions and discuss stories in the paper. “Events are central to what we’re doing,” Himmelstein said. “It’s great to do reader surveys, it’s great to hear anecdotes, but it’s something else altogether to be sitting down holding the paper with your readers.”
• The cafe also is used by the community for their own independent events such as a mothers group, an author talk, musical performance or women’s business networking group. 

People from across the country came to Camden to work with writer Lyz Lenz, connect, and share their work during the Villager’s first Writer’s Retreat (Photo by John Blodgett, Midcoast Villager)

• The Villager produced a writer’s retreat in Camden, with participants paying $2,600 for the weekend, including guided hikes, yoga and writing workshops. The Villager also produced a live storytelling event at the Camden Opera House focused on cancer. A local sponsor bought a package including the event, ads in the paper and online, and a cancer support group at the cafe. 
• While reporting on technology in classrooms and cell phone bans in schools, the Villager convened a group of parents and children to have conversation and pizza and discuss the topic. It’s a pilot for larger discussions to come with even more community members. “There’s a sort of constant presence, an ambient presence of the paper in the community that’s increased and improved by having a space like this,” Britt said.

Quotable: “Press Forward has given us stability with a two-year runway, and allowed us to invest in more coverage of rural areas by paying freelancers and staff salaries. It has given us the time to keep going and make plans for the future.” —Drew Himmelstein