The Fresno Bee Guild learned on Sept. 10 six reporters, a photojournalist and an editor will be laid off from The Bee within a few weeks. That's nearly half of our staff.

Some of these reporters have children, spouses or others who rely on them. Others will be losing their sole income after these mass layoffs made by McClatchy, the hedge-fund backed owner of The Bee.

These award-winning journalists have worked for years or even decades covering the San Joaquin Valley, including government and police accountability, underprivileged communities, local schools, development and a slew of other topics.

We work in these roles because we believe journalism is important in the community we live in and are passionate about covering. We still have that fervor for local journalism.

We worked in these high-stakes roles while making very little money from McClatchy, which has not paid a living wage for years. Many of us don't have large savings to get by while we look for more work.

It has been a privilege to work in Fresno and the Valley. All donations will be split among the eight staffers lost to layoffs.