Mountain Monthly Under New Ownership

Longtime local print newspaper changes hands. Meet the new owners with the Reader.

(L-R) Chris Hearne, Hannah Dean, and Justin Muñoz—the new Mountain Monthly owners.

Now in its 38th year of monthly publication, Cloudcroft’s Mountain Monthly newspaper has a new owner/operator, the third in its history.

Mountain Monthly LLC, a partnership between Justin Muñoz, Hannah Dean, and Chris Hearne, acquired the newspaper and its assets on October 6th from long-time owner/editor Darrell Pehr.

Muñoz explained the group’s enthusiasm for the purchase: “I am honored to help support the next chapter of Mountain Monthly. We are excited for the new team to build on this legacy and continue showcasing the people and places that make our mountain communities unique.”

Raised in Cloudcroft, he owns and operates Future Real Estate with his wife, Marianne. Get to know Justin better with the Reader in this 2024 interview.

Letter from the Mountain Monthly Team:

For nearly forty years, this paper has been part of Cloudcroft’s story. As the new owners, we’re honored to help carry that tradition forward.

Founded by the Woods family in March 1988, the newspaper was bought by Darrell Pehr in August 2006.

The new ownership team—Justin, Hannah, and Chris (and our families)—are village entrepreneurs, neighbors, and stakeholders dedicated to making sure these pages reflect the beauty, charm, and spirit of our mountain home.

One feature we’re excited to debut: The Monthly’s Local Guide, which will point readers to local shopping, lodging, restaurants, outdoor recreation, events, and more.

We aim to guide visitors and provide villagers with a platform to be seen and heard.

This newspaper belongs to you. We promise to keep it rooted in our shared lives and to celebrate the community we all cherish.

While maintaining tradition and community contributions within the Monthly, we plan to upgrade services, add new features and sections, expand in-person distribution and mail subscriptions, and make ongoing improvements. We plan to make the paper free, making it more easily accessible to visitors and villagers alike.

We’re excited to reintroduce old favorites like “Around Town,” now called “Mountain Life”—send us scenes of your mountain life for our monthly selection at the Mountain Monthly Facebook page.

(L-R): Justin Muñoz with former Mountain Monthly Editor and owner Darrell Pehr and new Editor and part-owner, Hannah Dean.

Thank you for welcoming us into this legacy. We look forward to entering this new chapter together.

Sincerely,

Chris Hearne, Justin Muñoz, and Hannah Dean

Partners, Mountain Monthly, LLC

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