Jul 17, 2013 2 min read

The year was 1977.

Minimum wage was $2.30 an hour, gasoline averaged 64 cents a gallon, and a postage stamp cost 13 cents. Jimmy Carter pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders, Elvis Presley was found dead in his Memphis home, and Star Wars made its debut in theaters.

It’s also the year that Christie Campbell came to work in the news offices of the Observer-Reporter.

Now, after more than 35 years of documenting the goings-on in Washington and Greene counties through both words and images, Christie has retired.

In fact, by the time you read this, she will be sipping Mai Tais on some exotic beach while reading the O-R online.

OK, so I’m exaggerating about the exotic beach, but the part about Christie retiring and reading the O-R is true.

Also true: Christie’s infectious laugh and easygoing manner will be missed by the people she met on her beat and especially by her newsroom colleagues – even the unnamed editor (not me) who was the target of an especially well-crafted practical joke involving a delivery of dead flowers to the newsroom on the occasion of her 40th birthday. It was only after months passed that Christie finally revealed that she was the prankster, long after the editor placed blame on her poor husband.

A regular contributor to Living in Washington County magazine for the better part of the last five years, Christie also taught readers a thing or two about gardening. Her last column appears in this edition.

I was born without a green thumb, but thanks to Christie, I now know how to grow plants from seeds, deal with tomato blight, create a terrarium and rebloom a poinsettia.

Not to mention execute a good practical joke.

Not that I plan to do any of those things in the near future.

Maybe in retirement.

Good luck, Christie.