IT SEEMS ALMOST MIRACULOUS that a former journalism student turned marketing consultant and a freelance typesetter/copy editor could successfully produce a magazine on a subject no one else was covering and keep it going for two decades. One of the pleasures of looking back over that much time and effort is that you can acknowledge from arm’s length both the hits and the misses, knowing the fact that the magazine survived means there probably were more of the former than the latter.

There aren’t enough pages available in this issue to thank the hundreds of people and businesses that over the years have supported and in some way helped sustain The Valley Table. A small group of advisors, including Steven Kolpan and John Novi, helped define our mission early on, and the current Restaurant Week Advisory Board (profiled in this issue) continues to help keep us on track. The magazine, the organization and certainly Restaurant Week all are better because of their counsel.

The raison d’être of this magazine is to encourage as many people as possible to eat local as often as possible. The message struck a chord in many people—it turned out to be the right message at the right time. While some consumers and restaurants were making the effort back in 1998, the idea was not imbedded in the public consciousness like it is today. For helping get the word out, we thank the dozens of writers, photographers, artists and philosophers—amateur and pro—who wanted to be a part of the effort. They are the ones whose knowledge and creativity made the message so compelling and popular. Thanks go to all—from Nava Atlas to Nick Zungoli—and to our employees, past and present, for their dedication.

There’s a segment of the population in the Hudson Valley that believes in this magazine, and that’s a good thing, because without their support we would not exist. They are the business owners who, by advertising in these pages, let it be known that they support its purpose and principles. We thank them all openly right here—you can, too, by supporting them, whether you’re shopping for honey at a farmers’ market, looking for a perfect spot for lunch or booking a wedding reception for 200 guests.

The Hudson Valley has changed over the past 20 years, both subtly and profoundly. So has this magazine. The editorial in issue 5 (1999), for example, begins, “I’m just a tad superstitious.” The one in issue 82 (2018) begins, “I’m not superstitious.” We’ll keep you posted about further developments.

Janet Crawshaw, Publisher

Jerry Novesky, Editor