It is the small things in life that can make the biggest difference, the little words that can mean so much.

When someone opens a door to let you pass through first it catches you off guard. This small courtesy is so unfamiliar to us now, that it is sadly unexpected and feels strange.

You have to almost pause and process what is happening before realising that all you need to do is show simple gratitude and say, ‘Thank you’.

So The Shift is pausing for a moment, making time for simple gratitude and saying, ‘Thank you’ to all our supporters. Every donation and each word of support means so much to us. We are here because of you.

We try to acknowledge each donation we receive but sometimes it is not always possible to thank our donors directly because, although no donation is anonymous, on occasions contact information is restricted – not every letter we receive contains an address, not every donation to the bank account has contact information that allows us to express our gratitude.

It is our hope then that those people are reading this piece now because we want to thank them too.

The donations we receive at The Shift come in all sizes and from people of all backgrounds. We know who our friends are, and they often send notes offering encouragement and support.

We have some favourites which we refer to when we need a little motivation:

• “A feisty newsroom that isn’t afraid to expose the criminals.”
• “Just continue doing what you’re doing. I’ve grown tired of mainstream media a long time ago and I thank you for your work and hope you manage to continue despite all that there is against you. A breath of fresh air in a stifling atmosphere.”
• “Kuraġġ! Grazzi ħafna tal-ħidma kollha tagħkom. Mhux faċli imma ċert li qed tagħmlu l-almu kollu tagħkom. Grazzi ħafna mill-ġdid. Kuraġġ!!!”

The notion of a truly independent and politically uncompromised newsroom in Malta was beyond people’s imagination. In just over two years, The Shift has challenged the status quo that exists within the media landscape in Malta.

We report the news, we expose corruption, we investigate scams and deceits without fear or favour.

Every donation made to The Shift is accounted for and our records are audited.

They’d love to make you think, and they’ve been trying to insinuate, that some hidden hand is financing our operations…there isn’t. Our reporting speaks for itself. We have not held back from exposing any individual or Party that needed to be held accountable.

The Shift doesn’t need to ‘nurture’ dubious business relationships to pay its way, ‘cosying’ up with whoever will pay the bill. Our business model, which when we started was ridiculed, is now a success others are trying to emulate.

They told us that people in Malta support charities and that they would never support a newsroom and a campaign for truth and justice. You have proved them wrong, and we are very proud of this.

Thank you also for your support for our project to launch a new website which we have started building and with your continued support we hope to launch next month.

It is essential that we constantly develop this platform so that The Shift can be accessed universally, be more interactive and withstand any attack to take us down. These attacks are relentless and will get worse the more corruption we expose.

These attacks are not only about attempts to take down our site but also to discredit our work, and they are coming from many different sectors and all directions.

We have been proven right time and time again – the latest being the Standards Commissioner confirming The Shift’s findings that the tickets for Joseph Muscat’s trip to Dubai were bought from Jordan, and the Auditor General’s report that proved the deal to privatise our hospitals was “pre-determined” and a result of “collusion”.

We can face the challenges along the way… we have had lots of practice, but we do need your support as each is a cost. This is a drain on our resources and time, and that is exactly what they are intended to achieve. But we know you’re with us.

You have helped us every time we’ve asked. We are counting on you this time too. Thank you.