Linda Smith Hancharick named managing editor of West Milford Messenger

WARWICK - Linda Smith Hancharick, the veteran reporter and writer for The Warwick Advertiser, has been named managing editor of The West Milford (N.J.) Messenger, Straus News publisher and president Jeanne H. Straus announced this week. In her work as a journalist for the past 15 years, Smith has covered the Town of Warwick, the Village of Warwick, the Warwick and Chester school boards, plus a variety of spot news stories and issues. But for as many stories as she has written about taxes, educating children or development, Smith was equally versatile in telling stories that revealed the fabric of the community and celebrated people’s accomplishments large and small. The Messenger, The Warwick Advertiser and The Chronicle are three of nine Straus News papers that deliver local news and advertising to more than 80,000 readers each week in southern Orange County in New York, northern New Jersey and Pike County, Pa. The newspapers are available online atwarwickadvertiser.com. “I am very excited about this terrific opportunity with Straus and The West Milford Messenger,” Smith said. “I absolutely adore Warwick and have loved covering the boards and the people here for many years. The best thing about my job has been meeting and writing about the wonderful and interesting people here in Warwick. Good, responsible community journalism is vital. I will do my best to continue that in West Milford.” Smith and her husband, Mike Hancharick, have lived in Warwick for 20 years. Their two children, Kyle and Kathryn Hancharick, are both students at John S. Burke Catholic High School in Goshen.