Dawn Arrington sits at a table with a comic book display at Rice Library.
Arrington at an event at Rice Library in Cleveland. Credit: Carol Malone

I was unfamiliar with Comics At The Corner when I saw it mentioned in Documenters notes last month. A quick online search revealed that it was the brainchild of Dawn Arrington, and she had launched the effort to try to make a difference in literacy rates in her neighborhood with stories about heroes.

I admire people who see a need and step up to fill it, with no expectation of recognition or praise (like Jacinda Walker, whom I wrote about last month). That DIY spirit is the thing I love most about Cleveland.

And interviewing Dawn was a treat. The conversation was filled with geeky tangents, like our shared disappointment in DC movies, the breathtaking genius of the HBO series Watchmen, and how everyone should read more comic books.

I hope you enjoy Dawn’s story as much as I did.

Thanks for reading.

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Associate Editor and Director of the Editors’ Bureau (he/him)
Important stories are hiding everywhere, and my favorite part of journalism has always been the collaboration, working with colleagues to find the patterns in the information we’re constantly gathering. I don’t care whose name appears in the byline; the work is its own reward. As Batman said to Commissioner Gordon in “The Dark Knight,” “I’m whatever Gotham needs me to be.”