I never thought that I was going to get involved with the school paper, or with journalism in general. I had always been a “people person,” but when I was applying to colleges, I had no idea what I wanted to do. Journalism was just something that got dropped off at my house every Sunday morning or that I saw when turning on the television at night. Getting involved with journalism or the school paper was never on my radar until I entered the journalism major. All I wanted to learn was how to write social media statuses and nothing else. I didn’t expect to find a family as well.

I don’t think of myself as a strong writer, which is why most of my work for the Massachusetts Daily Collegian was mainly behind-the-scenes. I spent most of my time waking up early and posting the day’s stories onto Facebook and Twitter—quite a contrast to the rest of the staff’s hours in the basement of the Campus Center. But even though I wasn’t spending hours upon hours in the office, my work still allowed me to be a part of the Collegian family.

I remember my first big event that I covered for the Collegian—the Super Bowl 2016 riots in Southwest Residential Area. I wasn’t even prepared to cover the event and ended up running from my apartment down to Southwest after the New England Patriots somehow beat the Atlanta Falcons. I felt an incredible rush as I kept taking each photo and sending out each tweet. I never wanted it to end—this reporting high that I was experiencing. I now finally understood why every reporter does what they do; it’s for that high. From that moment on, there hasn’t been a dull moment at the Collegian. From covering the vast number of concerts held on campus to helping plan the alumni event and reconnecting former alumni, there wasn’t a moment to rest.

The Collegian has taught me so many valuable skills that I never would have learned otherwise, ranging from using hand warmers to restart your phone during a cold day and at the occasional riot, to always having an external battery pack and always double checking a Twitter handle before posting. It’s a place where jokes are on a constant stream, oftentimes never ending. But as soon as breaking news hits, almost every single person becomes focused on getting out the best content that they can produce.

The Collegian isn’t just a group of students putting together a paper four nights a week. It’s a family that fights, complains and whines while also getting work done. But while most seniors leave their groups and their communities and eventually fade away, I know that the Collegian won’t. It’s an everlasting community that no matter how many years pass, will always be there.

I am so glad to be a part of a group where people are involved not just because they want to earn money or to put something on their resume. The passion in the windowless basement outweighs the look of the office tenfold. So, thank you Collegian, for inspiring the love of journalism in me and letting me be a part of such a wonderful community that I will never forget.

Rebecca Wiesman was a social media assistant and be can reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @RNWiesman.