Elizabeth Larson and I are both alumni of California State University, Chico. Though I met her only a few months ago, I appreciate her integrity, ambition and the love for journalism that we share.

In a time of publications that have seen two centuries or more in print buckling with the weight of the economy, we may serve as the proverbial musicians on the Titanic – doing exactly what we love until we die.

That’s OK – we are in good company.

Henry David Thoreau, author of “Walden,” spent his life dedicated to environmentalism and writing, so far ahead of his time that the majority of his life he was considered crazy.

Dannie M. Martin, a Lompoc penitentiary convict, loved writing almost as much as crime. He wrote columns for the San Francisco Chronicle from prison and later published a book titled “Committing Journalism: The Prison Writings of Red Hog,” with editor Peter Y. Sussman.

Journalism is a career field chock full of excitement, condemnation, criticism and glory.

Those who are passionate about it are ethical, balanced and embrace the unknown. There is a constant need to understand others in order to translate a story to a large population of people with varying backgrounds, opinions and beliefs.

Elizabeth might be compared to Margaret Fuller, born in 1810. She was the first American woman correspondent to cover foreign war. She joined the New York Tribune as the first woman on the newspaper’s staff. Elizabeth confidently created a worthy and accurate news Web site for Lake County.

She’s also somewhat like Anna Quindlen, born in 1951, the voice of the baby boomers as a writer for the New York Times. Her words encompassed a generation’s concerns about social, political, and personal issues. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992.

There’s a category for Elizabeth and me; we are word nerds.

We both love the book “Eats, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation.” It’s perfect for people like us.

Being in Elizabeth’s company reminds me of conversations and debates with other word nerds from my past.

We both admire Benjamin Franklin and Mark Twain’s contributions to journalism as well.

Not only do we love journalism and all that accompanies the career, we also love Lake County.

During the period that I was displaced Elizabeth gave me a voice with the Lake County News. I cannot begin to express my humble gratitude and respect I have for her and her passion for journalism.

While I am returning to the Lake County Record-Bee as the news editor, I look forward to the healthy competition the Lake County News will provide.

Mandy Feder returns to the Lake County Record-Bee on Wednesday. Lake County News has been proud to feature her work, wishes her much success and values her presence in the field of journalism.

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