Know any good stories?

It’s the type of question that rarely fails to get an answer.

Know any interesting people?

Now that’s a good question …

And it’s exactly the question we were asking on Saturday, as members of Team Messenger headed to tailgate terrace before the Troy University football game.

Clipboards in hand, folks like Deedie Carter and Holli Keaton prowled the grounds, asking friends and strangers alike, “Do you know anyone interesting?”

Actually, it was part of our kickoff for Profile 2009.

That’s right, Profile 2009 … the edition which will publish in February.

But, as always, we’re hard at work months ahead of that magical day.

This year, our theme is a simple one, courtesy Jaine Treadwell: “Pike County: It’s the People.”

It’s an inspired concept, when you think about.

People are really the cornerstone of our community. People are at the heart of our success, in industry; in education; in the cultural arts; in government; in all that we do, really.

Without our people, we would be nothing.

Take, for instance, the friendly guards at the Pike County Courthouse, who greet hundreds of us every day. The kindergarten teachers who patiently and lovingly welcome our children to school, even as their parents worry anxiously outside. Or what about the faithful Christian who teaches a Sunday School class for 50 years, simply because she believes it’s her way to serve.

Wouldn’t it be interesting to know about little more about these people?

As journalists, we get the chance to meet all kinds of people, most of whom graciously open their homes and their lives to tell us their stories. I’ve met vice presidents (yes, of the United States); a retired chauffer who spent his career driving for the chairman of General Motors; a simple farmer whose passion for unique yard art let him to create a bowling ball garden in his front and back yards; and there are dozens more.

Hidden stories are all around us, if we take the time to look and listen.

That’s just what we plan to do in our Profile 2009 edition.

We’re asking you – our friends, neighbors and loyal readers – to tell us who you would like to read about in our Profile 2009 edition. No lengthy nominations are needed … just a quick email with a name, a contact number and a sentence or two explaining why you think he or she would make an interesting story. It’s that simple.

We’ll do the rest …

Stacy G. Graning is publisher of The Messenger. She can be reached via email at stacy.graning@troymessenger.com.