For The Oxford Press, it's the end of an era but for Editor Bob Ratterman, it's just the beginning.
Ratterman has decided to leave The Oxford Press - a paper he has stood behind for nearly four decades - to accept an early retirement option from Cox Ohio Publishing.
"It's just an opportunity to do something else," Ratterman said.
Ratterman began working at The Oxford Press in the summer of 1971 covering the Talawanda School Board while he finished the credit hours he needed to graduate from Miami University.
Ratterman said students didn't have as many opportunities to get to know the town at that time.
"That summer gave me a chance to see Oxford," Ratterman said.
Ratterman said he learned a lot about the city that summer, but a deeper connection was made when he witnessed a fire in a shoe store at the corner of Main and High streets.
Ratterman said he heard the fire sirens and went racing to the scene, where he spent the day covering all of the activity surrounding the building.
In the afternoon, the captain of the Hamilton Fire Department came to check on the brick structure when it fell on him and he was killed. Others were injured in the accident, and Ratterman said he felt he became part of something bigger.
"All those things really came together and just made me feel like a part of Oxford," Ratterman said.
That fall, Ratterman was offered a full time position at The Oxford Press.
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"I took the job and never left," Ratterman said.
Ratterman jokes he took only the first half of advice one professor told him when he suggested Ratterman should begin working at a weekly paper and then move on to a daily.
In 1989, former owners Bob White and Dick Taylor sold the paper to Thompson Newspapers and Ratterman was named the third editor in its history. The paper was then sold in 2000 to Cox Ohio Publishing.
Throughout his time as editor, Ratterman has worked with 237 interns from Miami University. He said helping interns find sources, put together stories and come up with story ideas was his favorite part of the job.
Before his time as editor, interns were used sparingly at The Oxford Press.
"One of the first things I did was call (Miami journalism professor) John Lowery and tell him I wanted an intern for that fall," Ratterman said. "That's where as a weekly we can be strong in a college town."
Cox Ohio southwest group editor Lisa Warren said that Ratterman's work with interns was an important part of his career.
"Bob's biggest impact on journalism was helping all the Miami interns get started," Warren said. "He has a great legacy of almost four decades of shaping young journalists."
Ratterman has also been an active community member during his time in Oxford, including working with various charitable organizations and advising the Talawanda Tribune at Talawanda High School.
"It's been very rewarding," Ratterman said. "I got from the community and gave to the community."
Oxford Press Staff Writer Ryan Gauthier said Ratterman has been the face of the paper for many years.
"Everywhere you go people know who he is and what he's done," Gauthier said. "It's going to be different."
Gauthier said the many awards the paper has received over the years are a testament to Ratterman's dedication to the publication.
"It points to his hard work," Gauthier said.
Warren said the way Ratterman was involved in the community is the future of journalism because as larger daily papers continue to struggle, local papers are thriving.
"Bob was at every meeting and every event in the community," Warren said. "He was just so integrated into the community."
Ratterman said he is looking forward to what will come next, but is not sure what that will be.
"It'd be nice to do something different but I have no idea what that's going to be," Ratterman said.
For the time being, Ratterman is looking forward to a hiatus from work.
"I'm too young to retire but it's going to be a nice break for now," Ratterman said.
Ratterman said he will most miss the interns and the sense of accomplishment that comes from holding the completed paper in his hands.
"I love my job, I love the people and I love the town," Ratterman said.
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