Three months ago, after we had been in quarantine for a week and were all trying to figure out what our new normal was going to be, we noticed a lot of our followers on social media were struggling with the same things we were: fear, loneliness, boredom.
After about a week, like many of you, all the days started to blend together: We literally did not know what day it was. Maybe in an attempt to gain control of just one thing, we decided to keep track of the weekdays, for ourselves as much as for you.
So we enlisted Andrea, Dennis, Josh and Keith. Each would take one day of the week and say the day of the week and the date. We got to see all the Dateline correspondents at home trying to work out their new normal. Keith had an able assist from his dog, Jasper.
Andrea had her SIX little helpers. We got to spend birthdays with two of her daughters, Charlie and Elle. And we got to see baby Tripp take his first tentative steps!
We felt connected.
We didn’t want to bother Lester, since he has a whole other day job, but the four correspondents could only get us through Thursdays. What to do on the most important day of the week -- Dateline Friday?
Well, it only took about a nanosecond to figure that one out. YOU. You would get us through! Friday, April 3, 2020, the Unofficial Dateline Friday Calendar Ambassador was born.
We enlisted one of our best friends, Dateline fan India Sweetney, to introduce the concept and we were off and running. Followers have signed up in droves.
At the end of May, as quarantine restrictions eased a bit, we made a decision. The time had come. We all needed to start keeping track of the days of the week on our own.
So we said goodbye to the correspondents and sent them on their way. The one thing we will not say goodbye to, however, is you. So we dropped the word Calendar from the title and have continued the instant tradition.
We’ve met your spouse. We’ve met your kids. We’ve met your twin. We’ve met your cousin. We’ve met your dogs. And we’ve loved every second of it.
The list of followers who would like to represent our community as an Unofficial Dateline Friday Ambassador is now on page seven. We are still on page one. We cannot wait to see and share all of your videos for years to come.
Many of our UDFAs have thanked us for the opportunity to represent our social community. The gratitude is all ours. We have the best followers, who -- as anyone who follows us knows -- are more commonly referred to as friends. Thank you for representing us so well.
- Your friends at Dateline