Happy 2013 - and things to come

Happy 2013 and thank you for being a part of the RidleyParkOnline
community - the site on the Internet for all things Ridley Park.

2012 was the year when the world did not end and the Internet became
interested in social networks like Facebook and hyper-local networks like
RPOL. RPOL saw continuous membership growth in 2012 that in turn made
Ridley Park PA distinguishable across the Internet. On every search engine,
RPOL became the source for information for our small suburban community
on the outskirts of Philadelphia.

Throughout 2012 an average of 48 brand new visitors every day came to
RPOL and on the average each new visitor looked at close to 200 pages
during their visit; now that's some incredible exposure that everyone in
Ridley Park can be proud about. 747 new photos were submitted to RPOL
in 2012 and our members have made our Ridley Park photo library bulge
at 3164 photos. 2012 also saw members submit 29 videos about Ridley
Park and we currently have 83 Ridley Park community events for 2013.

One of the great truths about our small community is that Ridley Park
has a powerhouse of annual events and activities we can look forward to
in 2013; the Easter Egg Hunt, Opening Day of our local Athletic Club,
The Lake cleanup, 4th of July Fireworks at The Lake, the Victorian
Fair, a weekly downtown farmers markets all summer long, an October
pumpkin patch, our very own town festival, a personal visit by Santa,
and performances by Pennsylvania's oldest continuous running theater,
the Barnstormers - what a year.

Another great truth is that Ridley Park is a town of politics, politicians,
and unsettling partisanship. When political blogs saw their rise in the
late 1990s, they were mostly associated with individuals working outside
the political and media establishment, whereas nowadays, the most
important and influential bloggers turns out to be the mainstream politicians
themselves. The same thing is true of the unfolding political writings on RPOL.
America, along with Ridley Park are learning that online political discussion
and opinion are the modern fabric of American freedom and democracy.
RPOL is proud to be our community's politically neutral platform where citizens
from all political parities are free to discuss Ridley Park.

The wish list for RPOL for 2013 is short and simple; that driver's drive at 25
mph in Ridley Park, that courteous driving becomes the new Parker norm;
that the "Ridley Roll" comes to an end at stop signs, and that our members
continue to contribute and continue to send me their suggestions for improvements.

Happy New Year to you and thank you for being a part of our community.

Howard McCoy, editor