We announced here recently that Ajay Singh, the longtime Eagle Rock Patch editor, is transferring to nearby South Pasadena Patch.



The news moved Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar's office to issue Singh a certificate of appreciation at Tuesday night's Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council board meeting.



This puts us in the temporarily awkward position of reporting on ourselves here at Patch, but Nate Hayward, field deputy for Huizar, had so many nice things to say about Singh and Patch we couldn't resist sharing the news and his comments with our readers.



"We really want to thank Ajay. I want to say that Patch literally makes communities so much more involved," Hayward said before presenting Ajay with the certificate. "The reality is that you can go on and see hyperlocal information about whether a business is opening, or a neighborhood council agenda item, and I want to say, we're very lucky, Eagle Rock is, to have you reporting."



Singh has worked for Patch for over three years—Aug. 30 was his three-year anniversary.



"It was very gratifying to get a certificate of recognition from the CD 14 office, signed by Councilmember Huizar, especially because it underscored the role of Patch in connecting the community," Singh said after the meeting. "But the honor also shows that advancing the community's goals is really a team effort in which the CD 14 office plays a key role."



Singh launched Eagle Rock Patch in the fall of 2010 and has essentially served as editor the entire time but for a short few months when he was on special assignment for Patch. Singh will still continue as the nearby Highland Park-Mt. Washington Patch editor.



"I know I'm going to miss you, I know a lot of other people are going to miss you," Hayward said. "You're still going to be in Highland Park, which is lucky for me, but unfortunately not for you guys. I'm sure the new editor is good, but I really want to congratulate Ajay on his excellent reporting that goes above and beyond, like brining your dog everywhere and really investing himself in Eagle Rock. It's really the true definition of what it means to report and be involved and it gives this community a lot of credibility."

