Thank you very much for your time and consideration. Include your name and daytime and evening phone numbers on the piece. Call your local newspaper to find out the name and title of the person to whom you should send the piece. Do not offer your piece to more than one newspaper at a time. If your first choice rejects the piece, then submit it elsewhere.
Editors are usually busy and can be very terse in their conversations.
If that's the case, don't be offended or take it personally. If an editor wants to edit the piece, allow him or her to do so. If the piece is rejected, ask how it might be re-drafted to better suit the editor's needs.