This week we are launching Holding Our Community Together, our campaign to raise awareness about the impact made by your local newspaper every week.

After the last 18 months have disrupted everyday life in ways few of us could have imagined, we remain proud about the positive difference our brand has made during the pandemic and successive lockdowns.

Just as we have done for generations, we have reported on life in our area through the bad times and the good. With people reading our website and following our title and its staff on social media, we are reaching more people than ever before.

Nobody understands our community like your trusted local newspaper, so we wanted to shout about the difference we make.

We take pride in the reach, audience engagement and editorial coverage we deliver and the impact we make each week in the area we serve.

During the pandemic, we regularly reported on the many issues facing the county, and particularly the area’s tourism industry, as lockdown had a devastating effect.

True to the spirit of Pembrokeshire, though, communities were up for the fight and, despite the unprecedented adversity, rallied round to create voluntary groups such as Tenby Together and Saundersfoot Connect, who kept spirits up and were always on hand to help those in need.

We were only too happy to publicise their activities and the sight of the little Tuk Tuk vehicles delivering food parcels and medical supplies (as well as the elderly for Covid vaccinations) became a regular feature in our columns.

There was even a ‘Rainbow Fairy’ in Narberth, who helped put smiles on people’s faces by adorning windows of shops and houses with colourful rainbows in support of the NHS heroes, who were regularly thanked as crowds turned out in our towns and villages for the Thursday night claps.

Indeed, having published news in this area since 1853, we can confidently say nobody understands our community, its strengths and challenges, like us.

As well as holding deep local knowledge, we occupy an unrivalled position celebrating the achievements of our people and holding to account those in authority when questions need to be raised for the public interest.

We can point to the unique ways we have led the public response to important local issues.

For example, the controversial re-purposing of Penally Camp to accommodate asylum seekers. We were the first to break the news that this contentious issue was happening, and it certainly became a hot potato, with protests and arguments for and against the move filling our columns for many weeks. In fact, the row about the costs incurred still rumble on.

But we are not here just to report on the problems we have faced. Our brand is built on reporting stories about local people (and animals), whether it is the everyday milestones in their lives or their extraordinary achievements.

For example, the good news stories we have enjoyed sharing with you recently include the continuing saga of Wally the Walrus, who we initially featured back in March when he first popped up on Tenby lifeboat slipway.

Since then he has become quite a celebrity, with his subsequent wanderings to Cornwall, the Scilly Isles, France, Spain and Ireland gaining national and worldwide media coverage.

With the lovable Arctic visitor having captured the hearts of wildlife lovers locally and worldwide, we have continued to follow the progress of his incredible journey (with many stories to tell along the way) and even this week we are pleased to reveal that he appears to be on the last leg of his journey home, having recently been sighted in Iceland.

We certainly hope so - good luck Wally!

The world has changed and continues to change, with many strange events happening, yet we are proud of the unique place we have held and still hold in local life.

We are grateful for your continued support and look forward to sharing all the important news for our community, both in your trusted weekly newspaper or on our website, as we rebuild from the shock of the pandemic.

Most of all, we will value the unique place we hold in the community, reporting on local life as a trusted voice for you. Thank you for supporting us as we carry on, holding our community together.