The first 25 years of The Hammonton Gazette will be the subject of a presentation given by Gazette Publisher Gabriel Donio and Gazette Editor-in-Chief Gina Rullo at 7 p.m. on February 2 at the Hammonton Canoe Club. The presentation is part of the Historical Society of Hammonton 2023 Speaker Series.
“It’s going to be a fun night looking at the stories that captivated the town during the last 25 years and the people involved with them. We’re also going to talk about how The Gazette was started and take a look behind the scenes at how the newspaper is created each week,” Donio said.
The Hammonton Gazette is Hammonton’s local weekly newspaper. Founded in 1997 by the then-23-year-old Gabriel Donio, the newspaper continues to grow in size and reputation after more than 25 years in business. Known for excellent coverage of local news, sports, arts, entertainment, civic life and more, the newspaper provides an informed opinion and insights about the topics it covers. With each new issue adding to more than 1,320 editions produced during the last quarter-century, The Gazette has become an integral part of both the town’s history and the Hammonton of today.
In 2021, the Society of Professional Journalists-New Jersey honored Rullo and Donio with its “Courage Under Fire” Award, and Rullo with an award for investigative reporting. In 2022, The Gazette won two national awards from Editor & Publisher Magazine. The newspaper was given an honorable mention on the magazine’s “Top 10 Publishers That Do It Right” list. Rullo was named one of 15 “Editors Extraordinaire” by the magazine.
“I’m proud of the work our staff has done at The Gazette and I’m looking forward to looking back at our 25-year history as well as the future of the newspaper. We have a lot of fascinating stories about covering Hammonton, a town that’s unlike any other,” Rullo said.
Staff members of The Gazette include Sports Editor Dan Russoman, Lead Graphic Designer MarySusan Hoffman, Staff Writer Mohammad Fuad, Copy Editor Jaime Wuillermin and Staff Writer Joseph F. Berenato, as well as a number of columnists, photographers and other contributors.
In September of 2022, The Gazette was purchased by Louie Mullen of Wyoming, who owns a number of newspapers throughout the United States.
The Historical Society of Hammonton Museum preserves the rich social, political economic and multi-cultural heritage of our town and its people. Our mission is to increase awareness of Hammonton’s history, and to establish public access to that history by collecting, conserving, interpreting and promoting it to the widest possible audience. Our historic 188s (former Town Hall/Library/Kindergarten) Museum, a treasure itself, is located behind Hammonton Veterans Memorial park in Leo Club Park at Veterans Memorial Park open to the public Tuesdays 10 a.m. to noon and every Saturday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. New volunteers always welcome! Join the fun and learn about our great town!
If you can’t attend the presentation, come in and play back recordings of this and dozens of other past presentations. Monthly meetings and presentations will continue the first Thursday of each month through June, resuming again in the fall.
Funding has been made possible in part by the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of Cultural Affairs within the Department of State, through funds administered by the Atlantic County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs.