Your community. Your news. Your page.

We formed 10 committees in the newsroom this year, each with a different mission. One of those is the Community Committee, headed by Metro Editor Marc Masferrer. Their mission: how to improve our community coverage and reporting on events, happenings, clubs, neighborhoods -– news we sometimes call “hyperlocal.”

They brainstormed, and drafted this mission statement: “The driving philosophy, or theme, of the pages, is that this is where readers and residents can go to tell their stories, see their photographs and share what is happening in their lives, in their neighborhoods.”

Today, we launched the committee’s first brainchild -- a daily community page in the Herald:

“YOUR COMMUNITY. YOUR NEWS.”

The page’s content represents only a smidgeon of the committee’s ideas:

• Why I Live Here: a 300-word essay, written by one of your neighbors, about his or her neighborhood.
• Community centerpiece photographs. The more faces, the better!
• Best bets for what to do today -– where else? In Manatee County.
• Today in Manatee’s History (We have a couple wonderful local historians who might help provide this content, but let us know if you’re interested).
• The Photo Puzzler: Where is this in Manatee?

Check it out on Page 6B, the back cover of the Business section, or online at Bradenton.com/community.

Hats off to Marc’s committee: reporters Grace Agostin, Ryan Boyd, Richard Dymond, Brian Neill, Tiffany St. Martin and universal desk editor Aaron Van Oosterhout.

Let us know what you think. Better yet, send your community photos and ideas to communities@bradenton.com.

Joan