As the 2025-26 school year closes off, The Forge waves a warm goodbye to its three senior editors: Camia Garcia-Otero, Ember Reiter, and Claire Putnam, who each left a personalized mark on the school newspaper.
After four full years on The Forge, Garcia-Otero, the current features editor of two years, reflects on The Forge, which she joined due to an accidental scheduling by her counselor. She later grew to find a home in the newsroom. “I stayed because I liked the environment of The Forge,” Garcia-Otero said. “I think it’s good to learn how to work with people that you don’t know well, and to build up that sense of community.”
As features editor, Garcia-Otero edits five to six articles per edition, centered around featuring teachers, students, programs, and more around SBHS. Her favorite edition to date has been the June 2025 Senior Edition. This edition has emotional connections for her, as many of her friends were in the class of ‘25. “My favorite is specifically last year’s senior edition because a lot of my friends were seniors and it was nice to see them graduate,” Garcia-Otero said. She recommends this class for anyone looking to find community, and she’s excited for the future of The Forge. Garcia-Otero, after graduation, will be staying local and attending Santa Barbara City College (SBCC).
Along with our features editor, The Forge is also saying goodbye to its sports editor, Reiter. Reiter joined the paper as a freshman by recommendation from her friend, and Editor-in-Chief, Anya McCue.
“My favorite memories have been the times we’ve been out of class interviewing, and also the end-of-year parties,” Reiter said. Reiter has been the sports editor for two of her years on The Forge and has had a positive experience. “I love, as an editor, being able to pick the articles I’m writing first in my section and having authority,” Reiter shared. Post-high school, Reiter will be attending the University of Southern California, majoring in dramatic arts.
Last but most definitely not least, Putnam, who joined The Forge just this year and became the Arts and Entertainment editor in February, is a strong writer and plans to take skills learned in The Forge further in life as she pursues fashion journalism. Studying with Vogue School of Fashion, the New York Times, and SBCC, Putnam provides new perspectives on the student body and art as a whole.
“The Forge is a real community for me on campus, and I love all of the people in it. We’re a tight-knit group, and we all get along really well, so it makes working together fun,” Putnam says.
As a former yearbook editor, Putnam has made various contributions to The Forge, such as creating cover images for special editions like The Forgery, which was also Putnam’s favorite edition of the year, and helping teach not only other forgers but students in JOUR 101 camera skills as the photography editor.
With plans to continue journalism and hopefully make it to the Fashion Institute of Technology, Putnam will continue to use her impressive journalism skills after leaving a powerful mark on The Forge.
The Forge wishes these three amazing editors a wonderful future. We know they will continue to do amazing things. SBHS’s newsroom will not be the same without them; their incredible impact and great personalities will forever be remembered in room 87. Good luck out there, Ember, Camila, and Claire!
