You may know that Village Green is founded and run by Carolyn Maynard-Parisi and Mary Mann, two local journalists who covered the towns for years — whether for Patch, Matters Magazine, Baristanet or The New York Times Local — before launching Village Green in 2014.
If you’re a regular reader, you’ve also noticed a number of other bylines. Village Green relies on a core group of freelancers to keep us on top of all the events and happenings continually springing up in our two, incredibly newsy towns.
While there is some bartering going on, Village Green does pay its freelancers. The rates are modest but we believe that the future of local journalism isn’t reliant on UGC (user generated content). Professional writers and photographers are needed to chase down the facts and tell the story.
(You can help us to continue to deliver well-researched and independently reported news in Maplewood and South Orange. Sign up for a subscription to our daily newsletter here.)
Meet the freelancers:
Liz Alterman
Liz Alterman is writer who has covered a variety of subjects, from personal finance topics for CNBC.com to career advice for The Muse. Her hobbies include reading, baking, and failed attempts at gardening. As an avid supporter of local journalism, she is thrilled to reunite with her former Patch colleagues and contribute to The Village Green. She tries to keep a sense of humor about everything from parenting to unemployment. Follow her career adventures at On the Balls of Our A$$ets.
Landis Carey (photography by Erica Moffitt | Naki Studios)
Landis Carey is a former Maplewood resident currently living in South Orange with her husband and two children. She is a self-proclaimed house person who loves the ins and outs of old homes. To her, they are puzzles to solve. Landis is a Real Estate Agent with Coldwell Banker in Maplewood.
Georgette Gilmore
Georgette Gilmore is a freelance writer and editor. She also blogs about family travel at Playground. She was Editor-in-Chief of Barista Kids, a local parenting site for five years. She lives in Montclair with her husband and two very adorable daughters – The Gilmore Girls.
Monta Harris
Monta Harris is a college student who graduated from Saint Benedict’s Preparatory in 2014. He is very passionate about photography because it helps him express who he is as a person. See more of his photography at montaharrisphotography.com.
Alli Joseph Leonard
Alli Joseph Leonard is a reporter, producer, writer, published author and personal historian. Ali is founder and president of family story-saving company Seventh Generation Stories (www.7genstories.com). As a journalist, Alli has covered presidential primaries, the Oscars and many other national and international events. She is a McCormick Tribune Foundation Fellow, a Poynter Institute Fellow, and sits on the board of the Radio and Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) representing Native American Journalists. Alli is active in advocating for minority journalists’ entrepreneurship and career development, and is co-director of the Ford Foundation-sponsored start-up support program NewU.
Anna Savittieri
Anna Savittieri is a recent graduate and aspiring storyteller. Her most recent projects include An(Other) Land Survey, a project site on Chinese politics and society, and The Tipping Point, a short film on the American tipped wage.
Claire Gianni Sinclair
Claire Gianni Sinclair is a “native” Maplewoodian. She is a mom, teacher, photographer, “independent sales consultant” for Chloe and Isabel jewelry and Jamberry nails, blogger and volunteer who dabbles in all sorts of goodwill activities. Claire doesn’t know how to sit still so you will often find her out and about town involved in some sort of activity.
Joy Yagid has had a camera in her hands since she was eight years old, but decided to choose a career in video production instead of photography. After years in corporate video, she was laid off in 2007. To Joy, it was the Universe’s way of saying, “Go, do what you love.” So she decided to live her unlived life and be a photographer. Eight years in and she’s quite enjoying it.
Marcia Worth-Baker
Marcia Worth-Baker has written beautifully for publications as varied as Matters Magazine and The New York Times. Along with fellow former Patch colleagues Laura Griffin, Marilyn Joyce Lehren and Teresa Akersten, Marcia helped formulate the idea for Village Green in Carolyn’s living room in February 2014. Although Marcia continued teaching as her full-time profession, she contributed to Village Green covering topics from education to local history and the arts. Marcia was also a sounding bound, a sympathetic ear and a part of the heart and soul of Village Green. We lost Marcia suddenly in September but will carry her forward in all that we do.
