UPDATE: decorahnews.com has new owners

decorahnews.com was purchased today (Friday) by Wisconsin residents Lon and Sarah Haenel. Lon Haenel is an experienced local news media professional. He began his career in local news in 1997 at the Janesville Gazette in Wisconsin. In 2015 - 2019 Haenel worked for Gatehouse Media in their northern Illinois markets of Rockford and Freeport and in central Ohio at The Columbus Dispatch. In 2019 Haenel founded the newspaper consumer marketing firm Local News ROI. He also serves as Vice President of Newspaper Subscription Services- a firm that specializes in subscription marketing for the newspaper industry. Sarah (Quamme) Haenel is a 1994 graduate of Luther College. Sarah is a sales and marketing professional and is very active in their businesses. "We are humbled to have been chosen to carry on the superb tradition of local news in Decorah," said Lon Haenel. "These are exciting times and trying times," Haenel said. "Every community deserves a great local news source," he said. "We are looking forward to immersing ourselves in all things Decorah and continuing the great news, information, and advertising tradition of decorahnews.com." "Truly we look forward to getting out and meeting residents, readers, advertisers, stakeholders, and leaders of Decorah and Winneshiek County. In the coming weeks, we will be intent on listening to ideas and thoughts on reaching even more readers with decorahnews.com. We are focused on delivering great journalism to help enrich the lives of those who call Decorah home," Haenel said. Former decorahnews.com owner Paul Scott says he will stay on staff at decorahnews.com for a couple of months to help with the transition. Scott founded decorahnews.com on April 15th, 2001, and owned and operated the website for the past 23 years. "When I started decorahnews.com, it was for the people of Northeast Iowa to quickly find out about everything happening here in Decorah." The concept caught on: during 2022, readers visited the news website over three million times. "decorahnews.com is where Decorah residents turn first to get their local news," Scott said. Scott says he plans to stay in Decorah and continue to be involved in community activities. He also plans to spoil his grandkids and drink lots of coffee. Lon Haenel may be reached at (608) 289-4070.