Recently I’ve written about our continuing efforts to enhance and improve the Web sites for The Marysville Globe and Arlington Times. Daily updates, video reports, photo slideshows and commenting are just some of additions we’ve made to the Web sites.

But, we’re not only working hard to improve our Web sites, we are also working to improve the print editions of The Arlington Times and The Marysville Globe.

As part of that on-going effort, we are currently in the process of recruiting members of the community who would like to contribute regular columns to The Globe and The Times. Our goal is to build a cadre of local columnists who will share their expertise and opinions with the community to entertain, enlighten and inform them.

The first type of columnists we’re looking for are those who would like to contribute columns to the Arts and Leisure section of The Globe and The Times. Do you have a discerning palate and a taste for writing restaurant reviews? Are you a movie buff who would like to preview/review movies playing at the local theaters? Prefer DVDs — how about writing a column on recent releases or upcoming releases? Are you a techie who keeps up on the latest gadgets who would like to share your expertise? These are just some of the topics we’re hoping to find columnists to cover on a regular basis (every four to six weeks). If you have an idea for a column I haven’t mentioned, we’d love to hear it.

We’re also looking for local businessmen and businesswomen who would like to contribute regular columns. We’re not looking for the columns sent out by corporate headquarters or columns intended to promote a particular business, rather we’re looking for columns written by local people about local issues. For example, a local real estate agent could write a column about the local real estate market, programs available to local buyers or programs available to local homeowners facing foreclosure.

We’re also looking for columnists who would like to contribute to the Opinion pages where they could discuss relevant, local issues. If you’re involved in the community, a member of a service organization, member of a local nonprofit or just a concerned resident, we’d love to have your input. Elected officials such as city council members or school board members could use the column to discuss issues and policies they are addressing. If you’ve been to a city council or school board meeting recently, you’ve seen just how sparsely attended they are. A regular column would be a great way for council and board members to communicate with the people they represent.

The Arlington Times and Marysville Globe are community newspapers and we believe community members should have a strong voice in the papers.

These are just a few ideas we had for local, community columnists. If you have a different topic you’d like to write about or if you would like more information about becoming a guest columnist, please call me at 360-659-1300 or email me at sfrank@marysvilleglobe.com.