Cedar Falls Editor's Notebook: 2012 in Review - Can You Believe What a Year We've Had?

Other journalists - people who have been doing this job far longer than I have - tell me they can't remember a year quite like this one.

Big, dramatic news seems to keep breaking here in the Cedar Valley. Every time I feel I'm starting to get a handle on one story, something else happens of equal or greater importance.

We kicked things off with the Caucus, of course, and the end of the parade of Republican nominees through town. The brief post-caucus respite quickly gave way to general election campaigning.

Within a few months time, President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, former President Bill Clinton and Republican candidate for vice president Congressman Paul Ryan all stopped in either Cedar Falls or Waterloo. Not to mention a steady flow of their surrogates. We also saw several very closely contested statehouse races.

Besides politics, the year started out with drama at the University of Northern Iowa - the announcement of the decision to close Price Lab along with dozens of academic programs, followed by a no confidence vote by UNI faculty in President Ben Allen. More recently, Allen announced he would retire in July, and the search for a replacement began.

With spring came Taylor Morris' devastating injury in Afghanistan, with the entire town - and, more recently, even the country and the word - following the story of his recovery.

This summer saw two major news stories which also caught national media attention. The first was the suicide attempt and subsequent arrest of Russell Wasendorf Sr. The announcement the CEO of Cedar Falls-based Peregrine Financial Group had allegedly embezzled over $200 million was shocking to those who saw Wasendorf as a noted philanthropist and pillar of the local business community. It also led to the collapse of his brokerage company as well as his popular downtown restaurant myVerona.

Finally, perhaps the saddest of all the year's local news was the kidnapping and probable murder of . When the Evansdale girls went missing July 13, the entire community and state searched for them. For almost five months their friends and families held onto hope. Then the news came: the cousin's bodies were found in a rural Bremer County park Dec. 5. The hunt for their killer(s) continues.

That's not to mention the flow of stories that would normally count as big news in our town of just under 40,000 people. Businesses opened and others closed. Crimes happened and accidents occurred. There was the Blue Zones Project and community festivals like Sturgis Falls and Holiday Hoopla. The school district welcomed a new superintendent and school remodeling projects were completed. A conversation began about whether or not a new high school is needed.

And then there are other major stories out of Waterloo, from the shuttering of the BPI and Hostess factories to the recent shooting death of Shantorio Evans - which also impacted the lives of Cedar Falls residents.

For the next couple of weeks, I'll be re-posting some of the top Cedar Falls Patch stories of 2012. Besides the big stories, mentioned above, what do you think deserves to make the list of the notable stories of the year? Tell us in the comments.

In closing, on a personal note, I would like to say thank you. This tumultuous year was also Cedar Falls Patch's first year in operation. You, our readers, have welcomed me and Patch with open arms. You have allowed me to share your lives, and to tell your stories, and I thank you. I can't wait to see what 2013 brings.