Lorianne Willett

After two years in the Texan’s social media department, I’ve gotten good at summarizing things into a 280-character post.

Despite this, I can’t figure out how to write this column and finally say goodbye to my first real home on the Forty Acres. 

It’s fitting to me that social media is what brought me to The Daily Texan, considering a UT Austin “day in the life” TikTok is what brought me to Texas in the first place, nearly 1,000 miles away from my home in South Carolina. Without social media, I wouldn’t have applied to the Texan, and I would have never met all of the people or had the experiences that have shaped my life since my freshman year. 

Being an out-of-state student at UT is both exciting and scary, but I can’t thank the Daily Texan and its staffers enough for making it all worth it. 

Bernice and Sarah, thank you for hiring me and giving me the chance to spread my wings. This journey is quite literally not possible without both of you.

Sophia, my first friend at the Texan! You are an incredible journalist and an even better friend, thank you for being with me since the beginning. I look up to you and can’t wait to see all the amazing things you do. 

Trinity, the best co-editor in the world, but most importantly, the most amazing friend. This past year wouldn’t have been half as great without you, and I don’t have enough words in this column to tell you how much you being a part of my journey here at the Texan means to me. You are beyond talented and I can’t wait to see where you take our digital presence. 

Carla, like I always say, you are the GOAT. I had no idea what to say to you when I interviewed you for the first time last summer, and now you can’t get me to shut up. Your passion and work ethic will take you far and I hope you remember how incredible of a designer and person you are. 

To my digital department heads and a few p-staffers: Aislyn, Stephanie, Claire, Joseph, Lorianne, Manoo, Kennedy and Diego. Not only are all of you talented individuals, but you are also some of the funniest and most hard-working people and I will miss you tremendously. Each of you has gone above and beyond for your department and the Texan is better for it. Aislyn, thanks for sticking around for me.

Sascha, I will miss our chats about anything and everything. Working with you for this past year on management has been so rewarding and I feel lucky to come out of this experience with such a good friend. 

Lucero, like Trinity, there are not enough words to describe how much your friendship has impacted me this past year. After all the journalism classes we’ve had together, I can’t believe it took us until junior year to become friends! Thank God we did and thank God for the opinion office. 

Peter, thank you for trusting all of us to run this paper. I will miss watching you destroy everyone else in ping-pong and listening to your crazy stories. I, for once, hope we run into each other on campus. 

To my mom and dad, Matthew, KC and Emma, thanks for making me feel cooler than I actually am and supporting me throughout this journey. I (seriously) wouldn’t have survived this long without any of you. 

Life&Arts, especially Mimi, I love you all. Thank you for always collaborating with Digital and writing some of my favorite stories. I wouldn’t stay up until 2 a.m. to tweet about Five Nights at Freddy’s for any other department. 

And to anyone who has ever liked, followed or left a comment (good or bad) on any of our social media sites, thank you, honestly. You all have been a part of this journey in some form, and without you my job is meaningless. 

My time here hasn’t been perfect. I’ve cried a lot, cursed this paper, and made a joke or two about burning down the tower just so we could go viral on social media (sorry Morgan), but that’s what’s made it all so unforgettable. Goodbye, Daily Texan.

And for the last time, I’m from South Carolina, not North Carolina, thank you very much.