To the Marshfield Community,

A little over three months ago when I launched MarshfieldToday.com, I never could have envisioned the success that it has achieved in such a short amount of time. Of course, I wanted (and still want) very big things for this project. After months of work, combing through each detail of MarshfieldToday.com, I had a conflicted feeling that it would become either be wildly popular or perhaps, misunderstood?

Despite all of the what-ifs, our May 1 launch came around, and the initial response was even bigger than I could have ever imagined.

When I first conceived the idea of MarshfieldToday.com, I was ultimately looking to fulfill a niche that had surprisingly been left open in town. As a local promoter for many of the small businesses, restaurants and nonprofits I realized I needed one central hub to feed weekly. Marshfield needed a year-round destination for locals.

With the multiple niche groups and various iterations of the Community Forums on Facebook, standing beside most businesses and major events in town claiming their own respective websites, I knew there had to be a way I could link them all together to create a powerful engine. I aimed to create a streamlined, accessible, and positive space for all things Marshfield, and if the response we have gotten thus far indicates anything, it’s that you all wanted this too.

After linking all of my directories, I tapped into a childhood memory of mine. A recollection of running for the newspaper each Thursday afternoon. I would skip through everything and look for the entertainment section which held all of the upcoming events for the week, from movies to live music and other fun activities. I knew this aspect needed to be included on MarshfieldToday.com

Now more than ever, as we remain closer to home, I want to spark the love of town and the excitement of having a comprehensive list of everything going on in and around Marshfield in the weeks ahead. That is my vision and my inspiration for MarshfieldToday.

If you are unfamiliar with the site, we have a multitude of directories. To us, success is introducing the long-time Marshfield Hills resident to the Brant Rock Market Butcher and the Green Harborite to the Dispatch in Humarock. So, we have sections for backyard treasures, lifestyle and family, and restaurant listings. We’ve also got sections for local services, pet services, events, live music, and fundraisers.

From the start, MarshfieldToday.com has been a grassroots, Marshfield-first organization with a very small team of contributors. Visit About Us

We as a team are here to work with you, the community. MarshfieldToday.com is a space for everybody; if you have an upcoming event, fundraiser, or announcement, we are happy to host this information for free. If you are a new small business or one that has been established in town for years, we have a variety of sponsorship and advertisement opportunities we will be unrolling soon. Along with some exciting partnerships!

MarshfieldToday is meant to be an ecosystem fueled by the community--a safe space where everybody has access to a real platform, to have a voice on this online media source where you are welcomed and encouraged to form partnerships with vertical markets.

Our Behind the Line and Feel Goods features have proven to be a great way for locals with a vision to be highlighted. If you’ve been following us, you’ll know that we’ve seen all kinds of goodness coming from all kinds of people over the past few months, from free masks in an altered Pod’s Pod to the conception and launch of the Marshfield Community Fund, to neighborhood money drives for the food pantry, to crazy donuts and line dancing. Every person in town has a unique story, and to be able to highlight some really special individuals has been a major part of Marshfield Today. And people pay attention--the momentum makes a difference. Diana Scolponetti, who works at the Ferry Hill Community Center and held a mask-donation program says of her experience, “The article helped us to get new volunteers, donors and helped to raise awareness about our campaign to save and preserve Ferry Hill Camp and Center as a community resource.”

It doesn’t stop there; this platform has allowed us to bring awareness to a variety of causes in town that really make a difference in people’s lives in the community.

Julie Johnson, the treasurer of the food pantry, who we spoke to back in May in regards to the meal pick-ups for school children at the Boys and Girls Club, saw a “huge influx of families utilizing the food pantry” in the months following the publication of the article. In addition to the 60+ new families using the food pantry from May-July, Julie also mentions that the fundraising competitions among neighborhoods in town, a project spearheaded by Patty Ahern and her daughter Ellie and featured on the site back in May, resulted in a bunch of people from those neighborhoods not only contributing through the competition but now through monthly or weekly donations. (Despite the influx a few months ago, the food pantry has seen a decrease in new families recently, so here’s your reminder that this resource is there!)

These features have been incredibly well-received in our community and beyond. Stories originally published on MarshfieldToday.com have since found their way to local web zines, blogs, newspapers, and Boston news outlets. This kind of recognition is huge for anybody, especially a brand new media source like us.

Now it’s your turn. As the site continues to grow, we want to continue to hold a space for everyone in town. So, I present some challenges for you--I challenge the Marshfield Animal Shelter to submit a pet of the week/month. I challenge realtors in town to send us a listing of the week. I challenge local non-profits to send in information about your next fundraiser. Restaurants, I challenge you to email our team and give us dates for your upcoming live music. Committee leads at school, I challenge you to submit your press releases. Anything any of you have for us--help us help you!

So again, thank you. I am humbled and eternally grateful for the response to the site. If you haven’t yet, consider giving us a like on Facebook, following us on Instagram, contacting us for advertisements or event listings. It’s been an exciting three months. We look forward to the future as MarshfieldToday continues to grow, and in the meantime, have a good one!

Karrie Greene, Editor in Chief

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