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# First Longleaf meeting held
- URL: https://www.longleaffl.com/first-longleaf-meeting-held/
- Published: 2026-08-28T05:17:56.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-28T05:17:56.000Z
- Author: Dylan Gentile

On Aug. 27, 2026, the first meeting of interested contributors to the longleaf was held in Panama City, Florida.

The turnout was more than expected by Dylan Gentile, author of this post and editor of the publication

Many were added to a text chat, and around 9 people turned out. It was a mix of older and young folk and the chemistry was "on point," as the youth would say, according to this writer..Those who attended had a lot of excitement around The Longleaf and offered many ideas that organizers, including this author, intend to implement.

Part of this would be a more formal communication network between contributors and creating a list of ideas that prospective writers could pick from. Organizers are still deciding whether this would be on a platform such as Discord or on Facebook Messenger.

The community seems to want such a publication, and those in attendance made it known they would like recurring monthly meetings. The incentives of contributing to this publication appear to be social as much as it is filling the gap not able to be covered by local media.

Having a structured meeting of creatives geared towards an end goal seemed to appeal to attendees. While Gentile and Spittler work out the kinks, they regarded the meeting as a success in furthering the goals of this project.

This author appreciates the inter-generational friendships that made this meeting what it was, but would appreciate broader diversity.

To amend this, Gentile, the editor, and Spittler plan to have somewhat of a grassroots campaign inviting more people into the project. Both intend to distribute flyers across not only our Black communities but also towns throughout the region.

To those who showed up, The Longleaf would like to extend its gratitude.

We are still working out some kinks; however, overall, Gentile feels optimistic about the project. The anticipation could lead one to believe that The Longleaf could be a publication to persevere through the tides of public discourse in our area.

Please reach out to longleafeditor@gmail.com if you are interested in contributing.

[More about the Longleaf:](https://www.longleaffl.com/get-your-work-published-in-the-longleaf/)

[Contribute to the Longleaf](https://www.longleaffl.com/contributor-portal/)

See our goals and mission on our public pages regarding this initiative.