[VIDEO] Welcome to the Patch family, Waukee!

The hardest part of starting a new job is explaining to people what it is exactly that you do. Take my dad, for example. When I told him that I took a job with Patch he was like, "What is Patch?" giving me the perfect opportunity to launch into my 10 second elevator speech.

"Patch is a one-stop source of news and information that's entirely local and entirely online," I said. To which he replied, "Ok?"

So maybe I hadn't perfected the speech yet, but how do you tell someone what Patch is when it's not exactly defined?

See, the beauty of Patch is that it is what YOU make of it. Sure, I'll cover business and education, sports, government, even features and human interest stories, but the rest of Patch is all yours. It's a community news source, and you are the community.

Got an idea for something we should cover? Just e-mail me and I'll get on it. Want to voice your opinion? Comment on a story or blog. At Patch, you can do it all.The best part? Waukee Patch is online so you will be able to see your content right away. No more waiting a few days to see it in the newspaper.

In fact, we want you to discover all there is to do at Waukee Patch. Here are just a few ways you can interact with readers:

• Sign up for an account to leave comments on our stories.
• Sign up for our newsletter.
• Add an event to our community calendar.
• Submit an announcement about yourself or a friend or family member.
• Rate your favorite (or least favorite) businesses in our directory.
• Start a blog on the site and share your knowledge or passion.
• Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for the latest information.

I want to hear from you – every single one of you! Maybe you have something you want to see in Waukee Patch. Maybe you just want to talk about who you saw at the Farmer's Market Wednesday night. Whatever it is, drop me an e-mail at jody.gifford@patch.com or call me at 515-708-1320.

Welcome to Waukee Patch! I can't wait to hear from you!