The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

7 | The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,D ecem ber 31,2020 theifp.ca We care about your hearing! Professional Arts Building 99 Sinclair Ave., Suite 210, Georgetown 905-873-6642 Serving the community of Halton Hills and surrounding areas since 1992 The Georgetown Dear people of Halton Hills; During these uncertain times, rest assured we remain open to serve you. We have adjusted services according to the guidance by Health Canada. Please call for an appointment. We are not accepting walk ins at this time. We handle every call on an individual basis to best handle each person's needs. Social distancing in clinic with one appointment per time slot in waiting room. If necessary, I offer mailbox drops as well! Take care, be safe and know this will pass. . . . Lend MeYour Ears Business (not quite) as usual.. By Cory Soal R.H.A.D. It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, we have launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This column is part of that project. Nine months. Every day for nine months, our journalists have been reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic. That's some 300 days of coverage on a public health crisis that has upended our way of life, added stress to an already taxed health- care system and contribut- ed to a staggering number of deaths -- nearly 1.7 million souls worldwide. Hundreds of thousands of words have been careful- ly chosen and professional- ly written by our team of journalists here in Halton. Through our ongoing cover- age of the pandemic, we have delivered timely infor- mation on a rapidly evolv- ing situation. It is our hope that our stories have helped you make sense of the world around you, stay healthy and safe. Never in a million years did we think we'd be cover- ing a story of this magni- tude. We feel privileged to be in a position where we can document the commu- nity during these unprece- dented times. Week after week, we've dug deep to provide answers to the questions on every- one's minds. As new infor- mation about the virus and safety measures emerges, so too did a new line of ques- tioning. While reporting on the valiant efforts of health- care workers battling an in- visible and deadly threat, our journalists have also been working on the front lines to provide you -- our loyal readers -- with infor- mation you can rely on and trust. COVID-19 has dominat- ed headlines and has kept us busier than ever. But it's not the only story develop- ing in our community. There are many other news items that have deserved and demanded our atten- tion. We were there, re- porting on those. And we'll keep at it, no matter how challenging a feat. Our team has the grit and determination needed to get the job done. This was made evident in the early days of the pandemic, when we shifted to a remote-work en- vironment; debated wheth- er we should be wearing masks, gloves and other personal protective equip- ment in public; stood in long queues to enter the grocery store only to discover they were sold out of all the sta- ples: flour, yeast, toilet pap- er, soap and disinfectant. We knew then that we were in for a long run. With a new year at our doorstep, we've laced up our sneakers for the second leg of this marathon and we'll continue to pound the pave- ment to keep you informed. But for everyone's sake, here's to hoping the finish line is near. Catherine O'Hara is the regional managing editor for Metroland Media's newspapers in Halton, Peel, Niagara and Hamilton. We welcome your questions and value your comments. Email our trust committee at trust@metroland.com. COVID-19: A MARATHON NEWS EVENT OPINION CATHERINE O'HARA Column