Who Am I?
I am a music and journalism graduate of St. Bonaventure University, a private Franciscan liberal arts university located near Olean, N.Y.
Where I Come From
Born and raised in Jamestown, N.Y., I am a proud 2016 graduate of Jamestown High School. At JHS, I served as author and blogger of The Rowdy Raider, a regionally recognized sports blog that documented the successful period of Red Raider athletics from 2013-2016. Because of the lack of student-run media at JHS, The Rowdy Raider became a product of my intrigue in writing about high school athletics.
What I’ve Done
COMMUNICATIONS
Presently, I serve as a staff reporter for The Post-Journal newspaper, the Jamestown region’s primary news outlet. I began my career at the newspaper in 2014 as a freelance sports writer, occasionally contributing while I was in college. Upon my graduation, I was hired as a part-time sports writer until the COVID-19 pandemic hit at which time I became a part-time news staffer until my promotion in May 2020.
At The Post-Journal, I’ve had the opportunity to interview a wide range of personalities such as former Buffalo Bills wide receiver Don Beebe, Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and the greatest athlete in St. Bonaventure basketball history Bob Lanier as well as his teammate, co-captain, and starting point guard Billy Kalbaugh and jazz artist Wynton Marsalis.
I spent two summers as an intern at the Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, N.Y. The Jackson Center is dedicated to the memory of former Supreme Court Justice and Chief U.S. Prosecutor of the Nuremberg Trials, Robert H. Jackson. Jackson practiced law for many years in the Jamestown area and the Jackson Center is dedicated to preserving “liberty under law” through different exhibits and various programming. As part of this summer experience, I completed a research work that documents Jackson’s opinions on the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Prior to my second summer at the Jackson Center, I secured funding to endow a marketing/communications internship thanks to a gift from St. Bonaventure alumnus and Chautauqua County native Tom Marra. That summer I helped redesign the center’s social media channels and worked on a project and exhibit dedicated to the life of former U.S. Sen. Charles Goodell, Jamestown native and father of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
MUSIC
In addition to my experience in the communications field, I am an accomplished musician. In December 2015, I attended the prestigious New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) Conference All-State festival where I was a member, along with roughly 200 other voices from Buffalo to Long Island, of the Mixed Choir.
I served as president of the historic Jamestown High School A Cappella Choir and served as such during a choir tour of Washington, D.C. which included a performance at the National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on the campus of Catholic University of America.
I am a former voice student of Marjorie Switala of Jamestown and of Kathryn Black, SBU artist-in-residence. I also studied piano with SBU Assistant Professor of Music Laura Peterson. Further, I was a member of the SBU Concert Choir, the SBU Chamber Singers, and a vocalist in the SBU Chamber Ensemble. In other artistic arenas, I am also a member of a Jamestown comedy troupe, The Lights of Broadway.
Cameron Hurst 