Christine discovers Navy life is always on the go

One week ago, government reporter Christine Kuklica turned off her computer and closed the lid to her Mac for one final time.

After moving to Fallon to be close to the love of her life, a Navy pilot and instructor, they eventually married and called this area home until Dustin received new orders. The orders came, and now the couple is preparing for a move to the East Coast and in the spring, another move to Southern California.

In the 25 months Christine has been at the Lahontan Valley News, she developed into a polished writer who began to tackle a wide array of topics other than stories on city council, county commission and school board meetings.

I knew she had progressed when I met with Superintendent Sandra Sheldon and her administrative staff in August. I had mentioned Christine would be leaving us in a month or two but the nice, positive comments coming from Sheldon and her administrative council were warming. They appreciated her hard work and her willingness to report on board meetings and activities occurring at the schools. She also covered Common Core and budgets.

Christine also learned how both the county and city worked, and individuals such as Mayor Ken Tedford and County Comptroller Alan Kalt were so very patient in explaining technical information. For a journalist who grew up in Virginia, she learned much about the Bureau of Land Management and the West.

As the months ticked away, her writing became more solid, more insightful. She is particularly proud of a story she wrote on Garrett Kalt, who visited Cuba with his university. She also reported on the untimely death of a young girl by weighing the public’s right to know.

In the Nevada Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest, she, along with five others, earned a first-place award for Community Service and a second for news reporting. This week, she placed third in a national news writing contest for her story on the young Fallon girl’s death. In two years she blossomed into a very good journalist with her national recognition. Think of us this winter in the Florida sun!

Steve Ranson is the editor of the LVN.