The Collegian recently published a tribute to Hillsdale resident Aimee England, who died last week. England was a dedicated advocate of Hillsdale, even creating her own news site on Facebook, Hillsdale Community News, in which she published statuses and pictures of local and college events. She rarely missed a city council meeting and ran for office numerous times. We know England would have had a lot to say about Tuesday’s election results.
The Collegian was fortunate enough to talk to England just days before her death for a long-overdue profile on the town “oracle,” as friend Jeff King so fondly described her. England was actually one of the Collegian’s harshest critics. She was never afraid to post responses to our City News pieces, usually commenting on a student’s ignorance of Hillsdale culture. When we published a satirical cartoon depicting the humorous food options available at the County Fair, England reposted the cartoon to her page and started a debate.
Critics are a part of every paper, and they keep us in touch with our audience. England challenged us to take a closer look at our content and tone. She read our work and took it seriously. We appreciate that, whether we always agreed with her comments or not.
Hillsdale needs advocates like England. Her passion for a town that took her in as a young 18-year-old is admirable. She worked to bring free Internet to a part of downtown and fought to keep Monroe Street a two-way road to ease traffic. England will be missed, and we at the Collegian hope others will carry on her devotion to Hillsdale.
