Issue 72: Celebrating Six Years of Local Stories
Story by Kelsey Wagner | Editor-In-Chief
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Editor’s Note: They say that opportunity is a door you must be willing to walk through. In the case of Ponca City Monthly, opportunity walked through my door. I am thrilled for the 6th Birthday of Ponca City Monthly to remind our readers how it all began. I hope you enjoy reading it, as much as we have enjoyed living it.
August 2017
MyMediaMatters Marketing Agency was founded one week after I was given notice of being laid off from a local company. I continued working at that company until my separation date of November 2017. I then took the giant leap to full-time business ownership.
November 2017
Determined to chart my own course, I worked and grew MyMediaMatters for the entirety of 2018 from my home office, slowly building my clientele and establishing my business. At that time,
I designed websites and did graphic design work.
October 2018
After a very successful first year, I realized I was overwhelmed and needed help, so I hired my first employee who helped me exponentially grow our company over the next year, and by April 2019, we knew that we needed an office.
January 2019
I had heard that The Ponca City News owned an extensive portfolio of
domain names and emails, so seeing an opportunity to expand my business, I walked into Tom Muchmore’s office in January 2019 and asked if he would ever consider selling them. Tom looked at me and said he had just sold The Ponca City News a few days before that and that I should talk with the new owner who was in the next office. I was anxious to add email hosting to my list of offerings to my website clients, so we struck a deal, and I became the new owner of PoncaCity.net’s portfolio domain and email clients. As it happened, through my purchase of the emails, I met many local Ponca City citizens who utilized the PoncaCity.net email service, including Robyn Ryan, who at this time was still working at The Ponca City News. Robyn wished me well with the email service. Robyn and I knew of each other because her father, Fred Boettcher, had been a business mentor to me. I found out from a Facebook post that Robyn Ryan officially retired from The Ponca City News in June of 2019.
May 2019
My first employee and I moved into our first teeny tiny 10-ft by 12-ft office in City Central in May of 2019.
October 2019
In October, we hired an office manager. My team and I continued to work on websites and graphic design, but I was looking ahead at this point at how else I could diversify our business.
The Birth of Ponca City Monthly
MyMediaMatters’s first office was in the Link on the first floor of City Central. The Link has a large common area with couches, and it was often used as a meeting location, so we were used to having lots of random visitors. One day in late October, such a meeting took place between PCDA and an Oklahoma tech company. The tech company was working on a project for PCDA. The CEO of the tech company was very familiar with Ponca City and had some ideas on a different project. A staffer from PCDA brought him into the MyMediaMatters office and introduced him to our staff. He explained that his firm, in addition to technology, also produced a hyperlocal magazine and had for a decade. Still, he had always felt that a publication similar to his could do very well in a town like Ponca City.
I sat there, absorbing what he was saying. I was mesmerized by his story and moved that he would take the time to share it with me. As CEO of my own tech company, he asked me if I would ever consider starting a magazine in Ponca City. At that point, I had to just laugh and say, no, I hadn’t, but that I was known for “jumping in headfirst” with crazy ideas and that I would seriously consider it.
I took a few weeks to consider the idea. I talked with several trusted friends, but what I couldn’t help noticing was the feeling in my gut. I had felt it before. The feeling deep, deep down that I knew without knowing that this was something I was supposed to do. I’ve always trusted my gut, and it’s never led me astray.
So, in December of 2019, I decided to start a magazine.
January 2020
I began putting a team together. I sought out monthly columnists who I felt could deliver quality content each month. Rachel Stewart, Paul Muehlberg, and Kat Long were the first people I asked to contribute. Their faith in a magazine that didn’t exist yet still moves me. I decided that the inaugural issue would debut on April 1.
Initially, I did not plan on hiring an Advertising Director, but decided that I would likely need someone at least part-time to ensure a successful magazine launch.
In early January, a chance meeting would change the fate of my life and the magazine forever. Robyn Ryan, wearing workout clothes and in a bit of a hurry, stopped in my office to have her email password changed. Password changes were a common occurrence and didn’t take long. She sat and chatted with me about life while I changed her password.
The feeling in my gut suddenly hit me again. Here was Robyn, someone I knew of but didn’t know well, and something was compelling me to talk to her about the magazine.
“Listen, Robyn, I am working on a project, and I may need someone to sell advertising. I know you are retired, but do you know anyone who might be interested in some part-time work?”
Robyn skeptically looked at me and said she didn’t know anyone that would be a good fit.
At this point, I had told almost no one about the magazine and was hoping to keep it safely under wraps for a while longer, so I was hesitant to disclose the full project with her; however, the gut feeling hit me again.
“Well, would you ever consider selling ads again?” I proceeded to share my vision of the magazine with her, and I watched as she began to understand the full extent of this opportunity.
Robyn and I talked for a long time that day. She told me how much she loved her advertisers during her time at the News. She loved graphic design, and she loved Ponca City, but she just wasn’t sure if she wanted to go back to work full time. I told her I understood but also explained that it would be a fully remote, flexible position. She could work when she wanted, where she wanted, and as much as she wanted. She said she had never had that offered to her before, but she needed time to consider it. Robyn was going on a beach vacation with her family in mid-February and told me she would decide after her vacation.
Robyn recalls the encounter like this, “I remember coming to the MyMediaMatters office for help with my email. After a lot of catching up, Kelsey shared with me that she was going to start a magazine. I remember thinking it was a really great idea, but also realizing that I had only been retired (for the second attempt) for six months and wondered if I really wanted to go back to work. The last thing Kelsey said when I walked out the door was, “I’m going to call you in about a month.” Kelsey had to know she piqued my interest because I don’t have a very good poker face. For a month, I told myself, “The magazine is going to be a hit, and you will regret not being a part of it.” Kelsey called in a month, and the rest is history.”
February 2020
In early February, news had begun buzzing about a new virus in China, one I had never heard of, called COVID-19. I had a previously scheduled trip to Louisville, KY, the same week Robyn was on vacation. While I was in Louisville, the buzz about the virus was gaining a scary amount of momentum. The isolated cases confirmed in the US in January were quickly spreading, and I wondered what it could mean for the future of our magazine.
Robyn returned from her trip, and I called to ask her what she had decided. Robyn, thankfully, agreed to join our team at Ponca City Monthly! I was thrilled. There was so much work to be done, and her decision only reaffirmed my dedication to the launch.
Robyn hit the ground running. We printed up two “mock” covers, and Robyn began her first month of ad sales while I worked on creating content. Robyn says of that first month, selling ads for a magazine that didn’t exist yet felt like she was selling “her reputation and air.” Robyn said she had a few old friends who might be interested in coming on board.
Robyn introduced me to Carey Head, who enthusiastically joined as a staff writer. Patrick Jordan, another long-time friend of Robyn’s, joined and creates custom crosswords for PCM every month and also does copyediting. Beverly Bryant, another friend and associate of Robyn, joined to do copy editing, and later Sherry Cable, also introduced by Robyn Ryan, became our magazine story editor.
We visited local stores and got permission to put our large magazine racks in their places of business, including Walmart, the RecPlex, El Patio, Homeland, Ponca City Discount Foods, and many other smaller locations.
March 2020
By March, we had finalized our first list of advertisers and stories and were beginning to layout the first magazine. I wanted the first issue’s cover to be iconic, so I asked Mayor Homer Nicholson to grace the cover. The mayor has overseen twenty years of growth in Ponca City. He has been present at all the major milestones, the groundbreakings, the ribbon cuttings, the award ceremonies, and he is always there saying the same thing, “It’s Another Great Day in Ponca City.” That’s what I wanted for our first magazine issue because I felt it truly was a historic moment for our town.
March 16, 2020
On Friday, March 13, life was still semi-normal, but by Monday, March 16, the entire world had completely shut down. Our office closed, and everyone in our office was instructed to work entirely remotely. Luckily, Robyn had already completed her in-person visits in February.
March 23, 2020
One week into the worldwide shutdown, and I was beginning to doubt our April 1st magazine launch date. The world was trapped in their houses, no one was leaving, and here I was excitedly launching a local magazine? It felt like the complete opposite of what I should be focused on, but we were too far in to change plans now. I kept wondering how people would even get magazines if they weren’t going to stores? I was worried our magazine was doomed to failure before it even began.
March 27, 2020
The first issue of Ponca City Monthly officially dropped on March 27, 2020. Because of the pandemic, everyone was staying home, so we decided to do home deliveries of the magazine. All my staffers and I delivered to addresses all over Ponca City. Transmission of the virus was still questionable, so we delivered wearing masks and plastic gloves, dropping magazines on doorsteps without directly interacting with anyone. One week into April, and we still had a lot of magazines left to hand out. One afternoon I loaded up a wagon, and along with my two children walked my entire neighborhood, placing one magazine on the step of each house. I had launched a magazine in the middle of a global pandemic, and while I was walking down the road with a wagon full of magazines, I did question if I had made all the right decisions.
After the inaugural issue was released, it was time to start on the second issue, and by the time the second issue was out, we were working on the third. When the world stopped turning in March and April, and the pandemic was raging throughout the world, I was worried that our magazine might flounder. I was worried that people would not care about local news or would not make time to read our local content.
I found out later the opposite was true.
May 2020
When we launched Ponca City Monthly in April of 2020, by fate or by chance, our magazine ended up being a tiny bit of good news in a world of bad. It was a ray of sunshine and hope when hope was needed most. By our second issue, which featured rainbow murals on our COVID-ravaged hospital’s windows with the message “HOPE STRENGTH COMMUNITY,” on the cover, I could feel that the heartbeat of the community had come alive in our magazine. I began to get messages about the stories featured in April and May saying how much people were moved by them and how the good news in our magazine had helped them get through one of the most challenging times of the pandemic.
June 2020
In June of 2021, after moving to larger offices three times in City Central, we purchased a downtown building and officially relocated MyMediaMatters and Ponca City Monthly to the new building. This move was significant because it was owned by Fred and Sue Boettcher. In fact, it was the first building Fred had purchased and renovated downtown. For both Robyn and me, the move felt serendipitous. We both knew that Fred would be so proud to have us working side by side in a building he poured his heart into.
Ponca City Monthly Plus – January 2024
As our print magazine continued to grow, I kept thinking about how we could reach even more readers. Not everyone picks up a physical copy, and I wanted our stories to be accessible to anyone who wanted them, whether they were sitting on their couch or scrolling on their phone during a lunch break. So, in addition to our free e-edition magazine, we launched Ponca City Monthly Plus, our digital platform on Substack. PCM Plus delivers all the stories our readers love from the print magazine directly to their email inbox, but it also gave us something we’d never had before — a place for exclusive, online-only content. Stories that didn’t quite fit the print format, behind-the-scenes looks at our community, and deeper dives into topics our readers cared about. Our print magazine is and always will be free, supported by the incredible advertisers that Robyn works with every month. But PCM Plus gave us a way for readers to directly support local journalism while getting even more of the content they love. We introduced memberships at $8 a month, including a Founding Member tier for businesses and residents who believe in the value of locally-owned journalism. Today, PCM Plus has grown to hundreds of subscribers and continues to expand how we share the stories that make Ponca City special.
Ponca City Monthly Podcast
If PCM Plus brought our stories from the page to the screen, the Ponca City Monthly Podcast brought them to life. In March of 2025, we launched the Ponca City Monthly Podcast, and it felt like the most natural next step for our publication. Andy Hicks, who had already been designing the layout of our magazine for four years, stepped up as our podcast host — and I just love watching him work! Every week on Thursdays, Andy interviews a guest from a story featured in our magazine. Andy’s interviews include local business owners, school leaders, creatives, and everyday people who make Ponca City what it is. Andy’s laughter is contagious, and he’s done such a great job bringing our stories to a brand new audience in a new way. From Kevin Emmons reimagining downtown to Relo Adams sharing how he accidentally became Mr. Ponca City, the podcast lets our readers hear the voices behind the stories. I make guest appearances once a month, and we use the podcast to give listeners sneak peeks at upcoming issues, highlight community events, and shine a spotlight on the people and organizations doing incredible work in our town. During my monthly appearance, I also have a “Mayor Minute” and give a little peek behind the curtain on the goings-on at City Hall. It really has been so much fun, and we are so proud the growth with the podcast since its launch last year.
You can find the Ponca City Monthly Podcast on Substack and Apple Podcasts.The podcast has been one of the most rewarding additions to our publication because it allows us to connect with our community in an entirely new way. Hearing someone’s voice, their laugh, their passion — it adds a new, exciting dimension to storytelling that has been so fun to share.
Current Day
It’s been six years since that pivotal year in 2020 when my staff and I went all in on a crazy idea to start a local magazine. MyMediaMatters is the parent company that produces Ponca City Monthly magazine, and everyone on our team contributes to its success. In April 2021, Andy Hicks joined our team to create the layout and design of the magazine, and he has done a fantastic job for the last five years. All the tiny details and fun layouts are thanks to him. Jill Rowe joined the MyMediaMatters team in September 2022, and in addition to doing social media, she writes our Cocktail of the Month articles, which everyone loves! Fun fact – our very own Jill Rowe and is taking her craft cocktails from the page to the real world and is starting a craft cocktail lounge with her husband Clint in downtown Ponca City! So, if you’ve been a fan of Jill’s cocktail recipes, just wait until you get to taste them at their local bar. Stay tuned for a story in our upcoming issues with all the details of Jill and Clint’s business adventure!
Of all my team members, Robyn Ryan has been by my side the longest. Robyn was in at the ground level and has been such a vocal advocate for her advertisers. She spends her time each month creating beautiful ads to share their products and services with our readers, and it’s a very common occurrence in our office, especially around a seasonal holiday like Christmas, that someone will inevitably say, “Robyn’s ads are so beautiful this month!!” as they flip through the pages looking at ads decked out in holly, Christmas trees and garland. This magazine is truly a labor of love from our staff to you.
Robyn only thought she was going to retire, but when asked if she ever had second thoughts, she said,
“I have the opportunity to work with many clients that I worked with for about 25 years and many new ones. I have no regrets about coming out of my short retirement, and in fact, I’m very glad I did and am very proud of what we’ve accomplished in 6 short years.”
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