Staff Picks — Our Favorite Articles from (614) Magazine

If you followed along with (614) magazine this year, you know that Travis & Co. did a pretty stellar job (not to toot anyone’s horn.) From interviewing Middle West Spirits to a WWII Code Breaker, the articles ranged from lovely and heartwarming to shocking and awesome. This isn’t a definitive list by any means, and were merely some of the stories that help make 2016 a memorable year for the magazine.

Kudos to the writers, the photographers, and the designers who make the magazine possible. Here’s our top ten list of favorites!

10) The New (Para)Normal – October

“We have a very fun time … queer people are very funny—and I think our queer ghost entities respond to that,” she said. “How nice to laugh at oneself not only now, but 100 years ago.  And I think our community is happy to come along with us and have fun—and learn about our bold, fearless LGBTQ ancestors.” — Lori Gum, Queer Ghost Hunters

9) Still Innovating – August

“I can’t imagine building the front end of our distilling operation in any neighborhood other than the Short North. We’ve always wanted to have an urban distillery, to be part of the heart of the city. From convention goers to travel writers covering the drink scene, there has been a lot of support from the city to include us in the narrative of Columbus.” — Brady Konya, Co-Founder Middle West Spirits

8) Little BIG Adventures – July

“It all started out pretty low-key. We’d be out for the day, we’d throw on the space suit, and I’d click a few pictures with my camera (no tripods, lights, or reflectors, please). No big deal.” — Aaron Sheldon, Stay-at-home dad for Harrison, the space-suited kid

7) Reality Bites – September

“I’m not trying to shed the country aspect, because I’ll never lose those roots, but as a songwriter I just want to be known as a f*cking songwriter. I don’t want to be stuck in the Rolling Stone ‘country’ section,” says Loveless of misconceptions. “What sucks is that I do love the quiet and I do love being out in nature, but I hate that culture and I hate the argument that always asks if what I do is “real” country. Which has a lot to do with the title of this record. What the f*ck is “real” country? The title is a poke at everything that gets questioned for being real or not.” – Lydia Loveless

6) Come Together – December

“I started tearing up when everyone sang together on “Because” … I needed that emotional release. I had no choice but to connect with my life in a very visceral way after having a child, and I needed to do that in the same way with music … this was my way of doing that.” — Sergeant Peppercorn

5)  The Colorful One in the Family – June

“Aunt Doll’s generation—even beyond my own family—has always been my favorite. They’re street-smart. They share great tales of hustling and living it up during Canton’s heyday, stories which paint a culturally vibrant picture of my hometown. So, whenever we’d visit, my camera was always rolling, for no other reason than to capture and preserve them for myself. I never wanted to forget their voices or their dialogue.” — Michelle Maguire, artist of Salami Dreamin’

4) Second Chance Inc. – February

“We always think of those SPCA commercials with the sick puppies and Sarah McLachlan—we don’t want our staff to feel like sick puppies,” DeLoss said. They’re motivated and working hard, he continued, so they don’t need sympathy. “We find that there’s more pride associated with their involvement at Hot Chicken if they involve it with being one of the best restaurants in town.” — Joe Deloss, Founder Hot Chicken Takeover

3) Why I Came Back – April

“Now I don’t see Columbus’ trajectory as trying to rival bigger cities like Chicago or Philadelphia,” says Krohn. “To me, success for the city of Columbus is being the best that it can be. Because of geography, Columbus is never going to be a proxy for New York City. Success looks like, and it may sound corny, being a unique and individual city, a place you can’t get anywhere else.” — Jon Krohn, RJD2

2) The Man Who Wasn’t There – November

The box contained 13 cyanide pills.

“They didn’t want me to be picked up and tortured for what I knew or what I was doing there.” — John Bergmann

1) Modern Gospel – May

“I couldn’t allow being gay to be an option. I just hoped and prayed, with everything in me, that I could just be straight—that I could be attracted to women, and that it would all work. I tried. I have two kids. I wouldn’t trade everything in the world for them.” — Trey Pearson

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