When the time came to apply for positions for On the Danforth, I admit that I didn’t jump at the opportunity to be Editor-in-Chief. While there was a large part of me that wanted to take the reins of this project, there was another part that was hesitant. On the one hand, the opportunity to lead a team in the production of a magazine issue sounded like an amazing learning experience, one that had my mind filled with ideas and the excitement to execute them. On the other hand, I was also aware that such a position would require a level of responsibility and leadership that I’d never performed before. Was it better for me to take the risk and do something that would certainly push me out of my comfort zone? Or should I play it safe and apply for a role that feels more secure—more comfortable?

Well, we all know how I answered that.

Over the course of putting together this issue of On the Danforth things have been challenging, I won’t lie. This was the first year that the magazine would be going fully online—that meant that in a lot of ways we would be starting from scratch. This added a special pressure to the work. A pressure which I felt for the first time when I sat down to come up with the theme.

The problem was that I had to find a way to communicate an editorial theme without the aid of print media. At that point, no one had a clear idea of how much the website could be altered, so it was my job to come up with something that would represent the 24/25 issue without visuals to aid it. To answer that dilemma I realized that the prose of each piece would really be what sets it apart from other issues. Thus, “Dear Danforth” was born.

It seemed ironic that an editorial theme that focused on personal, intimate reflections, would be what defined the first digital issue of On the Danforth, when one considers how the digital world is often synonymous with individualism. However, it is also true that with the advent of the internet, the so-called “problem of separation” ceased to exist. I wanted to tap into that positive aspect of digital communication—that is, the ability for people to ignore the challenges of distance to touch the hearts of others.

But even if my intentions were there, creating an issue for an entirely new platform still seemed like a recipe for disaster. And it could have well been, had it not been for the amazing team that I had by my side.

From section editors to copy editors, each and every member of the editorial team played such an integral role in tackling the bumps and setbacks that came with working on the first ever fully digital issue of On the Danforth. The flexibility and passion shown by the editorial team has been truly remarkable to witness, and I am eternally grateful to have such an amazing team by my side.

I want to specifically thank my managing editor, Sam, for helping me lead the team and roll with the punches (many of which included my sporadic, last- minute panic messages), and my section editors, Alicia, Michelle, Lily and senior copy editor, Leah, for being such a solid group of people to rely upon. I am sincerely thankful that you lent your time and expertise to the creation of “Dear Danforth”, for if you didn’t, there would be no issue to talk of today.

I would also like to thank Zoë, the Creative Director, and the entire digital team, for taking the editorial vision of the magazine and realizing it on the website. A message is nothing if it can’t be conveyed to others, and you guys stepped up to the challenge in a brilliant way.

In the end, although things have been challenging, I can say with full confidence that I’ve never once regretted taking up this role. With every problem solved and minor crisis averted, the confidence I have towards myself and my abilities has only grown. There is no price I can put to encapsulate the value of that. All of us came into this with the knowledge that what we were doing was going to be tough—but it is exactly that ability to bear the brunt of a challenge and still remain standing despite it all, which defines who we are and the work we will leave behind.

And what a story it has told.

Natalie Sofia