It's Been Real, San Bruno

When I first started at Patch in May 2010, I had no idea what was going to happen here.

All I knew was that I wanted to make a difference and help create a trusted local news source just for the San Bruno community.

Because I didn't grow up here (I grew up on the other side of the Bay in Hayward), a lot of people asked why I chose San Bruno. It was because of several reasons: the diverse population, the active school community and the companies like YouTube. I thought that would give us plenty to talk about (it's not quite that simple, I soon learned).

Little did I know that almost a week after my site launched, the PG&E pipeline explosion would devastate the Crestmoor neighborhood and change the city forever.

Since then, San Bruno Patch has evolved, adapted and, I hope, grown on each and every person who calls San Bruno home.

I haven't always gotten everything right. But I tried to be fair. Most of all, I always tried to show that I cared.

Today is officially my last day working as the editor of this site. I've decided to move on after getting a job as the communications specialist for Oakland Community Organizations (OCO) and several nonprofit organizations affiliated with PICO (People Improving Communities through Organizing) throughout the Bay Area. In that role, I'll be handling all of their internal and external communications, social media and web operations, and I'm excited about this next chapter in my career.

I'm glad I had the chance to meet and work with so many great people here in San Bruno. Although some folks were skeptical at first, I've always felt embraced as part of the community.

Now that I'm moving on, my hope is that the site continues to serve as a platform where people can have conversations, work out community issues, celebrate the good things that happen in San Bruno and wake up the sleeping giants that have existed here for years.

This is Martin Ricard, logging off.