A colleague, friend, and exemplary journalist has said goodbye to the island newspaper he’s helmed for the past 12 years.

Richard Walker has been named editor of the North Kitsap Herald newspaper in Poulsbo. He has left his post at The Journal of the San Juan Islands in Friday Harbor, where he has served as editor since November 1999.

On San Juan Island, he was a member of the San Juan Historical Museum Board of Trustees for 10 years and authored the photo history book, “Roche Harbor.”

Richard has been a reporter, city editor and editor in Alabama, California and Utah. He has been a journalist since 1978, with the exception of four years in the U.S. Navy.

Richard has said he can’t think of a more important profession than journalism. It’s a philosophy that has been evident in his work from the moment he began his tenure. He has led the Journal’s newsroom with strength, integrity, and a wicked sense of humor.

County reporter Scott Rasmussen has succeeded Richard as editor of the Journal. Scott joined the Journal as a staff writer in December 1999.

He is a native of the Portland/Beaverton, Ore., area. He graduated from the University of Oregon in 1988 with a B.A. in English literature. Scott began working in journalism as a freelance writer for several publications in the Portland area.

For the Journal and Sounder, he’s covered county government, sports, environmental issues, courts and crime, numerous plane crashes, myriad human interest stories and is the author of the weekly, ever-popular “Cops Log.”

We are confident Scott will rise to the occasion as an outstanding new editor. He is a wonderful writer, has a strong nose for news, and, as luck would have it, a wicked sense of humor.

We thank Richard for his many years at the Journal, and we are thrilled he is staying within the Sound Publishing family, even it is over the hills and far away.

We congratulate Scott on his promotion, and look forward to seeing the Journal evolve under his leadership.