2012 BNC Booklet

Booklet Design & Layout by: Sylvie Tremblay

President’s Message

With each passing year, the Better Newspapers Competition allows us to honour the great work of Ontario’s weekly community newspapers. This year, without exception, we are able to do just that. The competition provides the members of OCNA an opportunity to showcase their accomplishments, highlighting the hard work which goes into each and every edition of their newspaper.

We, as always, would like to extend our appreciation to the volunteer judges who spend countless hours reading and re-reading your entries. And this after they have spent a full day (or more) putting their own newspapers to bed. Without their time & dedication to this competition, it would not exist. A huge thank you to all of you!

We must not forget our sponsors, who make this competition possible through their generous donations. Thank you for allowing OCNA to highlight the accomplishments of our members!

One final thank you to the staff of Ontario’s weekly community newspapers. Your dedication to holding our newspapers to the highest standards feed our communities knowledge, and allows them to flourish. OCNA received an amazing 2,014 entries for the 2012 competition, all of which deserve recognition.

Congratulations to all our finalists for a job well done!

Mike Mount OCNA President 2012/13

GENERAL EXCELLENCE

CLASSES 1 - 8

Number of entries: 14

First Place

GRAVENHURST BANNER

The front page of the Gravenhurst Banner demands attention. Above the fold, the reader is not only drawn to a large, well-played spot news photo, taken at nighttime, but a story about an interim CAO’s questionable salary that would surely raise more than a few eyebrows. The paper had a good arrangement of photos throughout the newspaper, making it very eye appealing. Nice local features. It was also refreshing to see such a lively editorial page, one that had a signed editorial, letters to the editor, and columns. It’s obvious this paper is well-regarded in the community.

Second Place

BARRY’S BAY, THE VALLEY GAZETTE

GENERAL COMMENT

The top papers in this category had active front pages, ones with dominant photos and headlines that pulled the readers in. The layout of the papers were uncomplicated and easy to navigate, with sections clearly labelled. One of the areas in which this entire class of newspapers can improve upon relatively easily in is the photography department. A lot of the photos were static shots; nothing more than simple grip-and-grins. There were very few spot news photos, and very few action shots that were in focus. You don’t have to have an expensive camera these days to take a decent shot. A few well-thought-out photos would drastically improve some of these papers. Many of the papers in this category either had too few photos, or far too many crammed on a page. There needs to be a balance.

Rob Vogt Editor, Claresholm Local Press, Claresholm, Alberta

Those designing the Valley Gazette’s Remembrance Day edition held nothing back as they went for a colourful front page collage. While collages can be hit and miss, this one was OK, and definitely eye-catching. The headline of the story below the fold made readers want to know what the ‘disturbing results’ were. Great production quality – it is nice to see so much colour on every page. One area where this paper could easily improve upon is not jumping the front page stories to the back of the paper. Nice layout of ads and good ad design. The paper looks clean and organized.

Third Place

MINDEN TIMES

The front pages of the Minden Times were simple yet effective. They weren’t afraid to run a large front page photo, and the sidebar index serves to further draw the reader in. They utilize it well with advertising – by the looks of it, it is a money maker. One area where this paper can improve is to cut back on excessive white space.

JUDGES

Laura Blackwell Publisher, Lakes District News, Burns Lake, BC

Carole Morris Underhill Editor, Hants Journal, Windsor, Nova Scotia

2,000 - 3,499

First Place

WINCHESTER PRESS

The Winchester Press emerged as our consensus choice, and it was largely due to the old adage: first impressions matter. The front carried the Press above its peers, as did a strong collection of news. Good design for the ad department was evident. Greater attention to modular design and appropriate use of photos would have led to an easier selection as the best in this circulation category, but the news content alone was sufficient to boost the Press to its first-place standing.

Second Place

KINCARDINE INDEPENDENT

The Kincardine Independent had, in our mind, one of the best ad ideas of the batch, with its easter-egg colouring contest. The pictures in the Independent were above the standard of this class, which aided in the second-place selection. A better use of dividers for standalones, along with a better placement of photos in general (so that a man cooking pasta isn’t dropped beside a pair of unrelated obituaries, for example) is strongly suggested.

GENERAL COMMENT

It is the united opinion of the judges that all the offerings presented this year featured basic flaws in layout such as non-modular design, questionable photo selection and placement, excessive turns, and similar. Sports sections cried out for action photos, and many entries stacked ads against the spine of left-side pages, thus isolating news copy and making the paper hard to read. The judges, all of whom oversee similar-sized publications and thus understand the challenges of small-circulation products, strongly suggest greater training for young and/or small-market editors, and hopefully publishers will recognize the value in the resulting easier-to-read, easier-to-sell products.

Vern Faulkner Editor, Saint Croix Courier/ Courier Weekend, St. Croix, New Brunswick

Third Place

BURKS FALLS ALMAGUIN NEWS

The Burks Falls Almaguin News offering gained a consistent rating from the judges, which is a plus – and also sign for growth. We felt staff had a sense of news, but tried to force-feed a buffet of news on the reader, resulting in baffling and haphazard turns, rather than enticing the reader into the paper with one solid main dish, and limiting turns to one, maybe two, into easily-found, modular holes, on p. 2 or 3. We noted a more modular layout to the March issue. A more coherent photo selection policy and betterframed photos will help improve the paper’s standing – as will losing the Impact typeface!

JUDGES

Keith McNiell Editor, Clearwater Times, Clearwater, BC

John Arendt Editor, Summerland Review, Summerland, BC

Number of entries: 8

First Place

EGANVILLE LEADER

3,500 - 6,499

The Eganville Leader embodies what a good community newspaper should be. There’s unflinching coverage of hard news, a commitment to provide in-depth coverage to local issues and the occasional feature to provide insight and context. As one of the few independents left, kudos to publisher/owner Gerald Tracey for investing in beautiful paper stock which helps make the photos pop off the page. A solid effort throughout, from a strong front page to extensive quality coverage inside, supported with great ads.

Second Place

HUNSTVILLE FORESTER

The Huntsville Forester holds up a huge mirror to its community. The paper is chock-ablock full of news, providing a great service to readers who want to know what’s going on and community groups who want to share information about their events. The layout could be updated. Strong writing and photography, combined with numerous attractive ads make it an outstanding paper that provides readers with a quality product while doing a great job covering the community.

GENERAL COMMENT

It was a pleasure to judge the newspapers in this category. Communities in Ontario are well served by these newspapers, each of which is doing an exemplary job of holding a mirror to their communities. Each paper produced an interesting mix of hard news, features, photos and opinion, packaged with display and classified advertising. Without exception, the papers in this category deliver to their readers a strong newspaper. However, it’s also important to keep in mind the needs of readers who, while needing that information, also turn to their community newspaper to provide insight and new perspectives. A few more features would be welcome! The papers that rose to the top of the competition exhibited a commitment to quality throughout the newspaper, beginning with strong, newsy front pages and continuing with extensive news and feature reporting, engaging opinion sections and interesting sports sections.

Third Place

NUNAVUT NEWS/NORTH

Spanning a few time zones in its coverage area, Nunavut News/North does an absolutely stellar job in challenging conditions. It has an excellent mix of hard news and feature stories supported by attractive, effective advertising. The paper should be proud of the quality of its writing. Casey Lessard’s coverage of a tragic fire is both wide in scope and sensitively done. Bravo to the paper for printing stories in two languages. A commendable investment!

JUDGES

Frank McTighe Editor & Publisher, The Macleod Gazette, Fort Macleod, Alberta

Martha Perkins Editor, WE Vancouver

BC

, Vancouver,

Joyce Carlson Publisher, The Powell River Peak, Powell River, BC

General Excellence – Class 4

Number of entries: 15

First Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES

6,500 - 12,499

The Hill Times has solid design, making the most of a compact tabloid. Top points were awarded to this publication because of its impressive front pages, clean masthead, great looking info boxes, strong quality photos, innovative cropping and overall presentation. There is a diversity of political opinions represented within the publication, as well as some lighter entertainment offered on the Party Central pages. Room for improvement: too many turns on the front page (readers hate turns), and in my opinion, too many opinion pieces.

Second Place

NIAGARA THIS WEEK, THE LEADER

Niagara This Week, The Leader is community focused with loads of local content and a strong sports section. Masthead is a little cluttered, but the front page is clean looking with a layout that is reader friendly. Strong editorial, op-ed pages and lots of community news round the paper out nicely. The Leader is impressively thick with advertising, special features and classifieds

GENERAL COMMENT

It was a pleasure to review so many strong publications that embody their communities so admirably. However, this made the competition very difficult to judge as there were many great newspapers to pick from. It’s obvious that a great deal of hard work goes into these publications and most do an excellent job providing community news to their readers, many with a small staff to carry out those duties. One of our main concerns were the many stories in a lot of papers which were not attributed (no bylines on copy). Stories need attribution and photos need captions. It’s that simple. But the biggest thing was having to cut points to some outstanding publications for a lack of a sports section.

Third Place

NIAGARA THIS WEEK, TOWN CRIER

Niagara This Week, Town Crier is a well-balanced community news publication that scored high in all categories. It has a good looking front page, strong info box. Like The Leader, lots of letters on the strong editorial and op-ed pages. Points were deducted because of stories without bylines along with the very high advertising content.

JUDGES

Lisa Joy Multi-media Editor, Lacombe Globe, Lacombe, Alberta

Carol Farnalls Publisher, Barrhead Leader, Barrhead, Alberta

John Morash Publisher, Prince Albert Herald, Prince Albert, Saskatchewan

General Excellence – Class 5

First Place

CIRCULATION

12,500 - 22,499

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

The Elmira-Woolwich Observer offers a strong front page which stands out from the crowd. Excellent coverage of community news and a solid sports section with good photos round out the publichation nicely. It’s outstanding local features and an honest-to-god Arts section raises this paper above all others.

Second Place

DUNDAS STAR NEWS

The excellent writing and tight editing of the Dundas Star News isn’t often seen in papers of this size. A nice, clean modular design, easy to read with good use of colour throughout. Recycled editorial from a sister paper on a pretty motherhood-and-apple-pie subject, but the letters to the editor section reflects a very intelligent and engaged community that the paper is obviously serving well. Nice local features. One downfall –too many grip-and-grins and cheque presentation photos.

Third Place

RENFREW MERCURY EMC

GENERAL COMMENT

A strong category, and really all of the papers appear to be serving their communities well. Continue to have issues with the number of cheque presentation and grip-and-grin photos throughout all, and the lack of creativity this speaks of to the readers.

The Renfrew Mercury EMC has a great great editorial package, with editorial on local business that goes way beyond puffery. A nice front page, among the best layouts in the category, with a fabulous selection of local news. Could use tighter writing and editing. With a great sports section, catchy headlines and lots of colour throughout. This is a lovely paper all around.

Carol Picard Founder & Former Editor, Rocky Mountain Outlook, Canmore, Alberta

Kevin Weedmark Editor & Publisher, The World-Spectator, Moosomin, Saskatchewan

John Barlow Associate Publisher/ Editor, Okotoks Western Wheel, Okotoks, Alberta

Number of entries: 20

First Place

WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA

22,500 - 44,999

First place goes to What’s Up Muskoka. Being printed on glossy paper certainly makes a difference as it scores high in production quality, photography, and the overall look and feel of the paper. However, while the photos popped on the glossy paper, the layout was lacking and without a classified ad section, lost points there.

Second Place

STONEY CREEK NEWS

The Stoney Creek News is an excellent paper that delivers its content in a wellorganized package that is clean, sharp and easy to read. The paper provides a well-rounded mix of community news and strong features topped off with firstclass editorial and op-ed pages.

GENERAL COMMENT

There was no one newspaper that immediately rose to the top this year and none that were immediately dismissible. The newspapers in this class are quite similar. All are larger-circulation papers with broad audiences. Almost all of them have devoted considerable resources to their products. This attention to detail shows, as the news writing, advertising, photography, printing quality and general layout of almost all of them is at a very high level. Judging this category was not easy because so many of them set high standards. Overall, this is a credit to the Ontario community newspaper industry and shows that this industry, despite the doom and gloom coming from many observers, is in excellent shape to meet the challenges of the future.

Third Place

WHITBY THIS WEEK

Whitby This Week covers the community of Whitby in extensive detail. It is a well laid-out paper with a great deal of important information for Whitby residents. Photography was sharp, and general layout, editorial page and advertising all scored strongly. Overall, it fulfils a good community newspaper’s mandate.

JUDGES

Bill Phillips Managing Editor, Prince George Free Press, Prince George, BC

Frank Bucholtz Editor, The Langley Times, Langley, BC

Taylor Editor, Campbell River Mirror, Campbell River, BC

Alistair

General Excellence – Class 7

First Place

BRANT NEWS

CIRCULATION 45,000 & OVER

The Brant News included good visuals on the front page. Kudos to your photographer for strong shots that manage to stand out and catch the eye. Photography is quite strong throughout the paper. It includes good community news content and a strong sports section, with an excellent mix of hard and soft news. The design is clean and easy to read. Overall a wonderful community newspaper.

Second Place

BURLINGTON POST

The Burlington Post is chocked full of what’s happening in the community. An easy to read front page, clear and concise headline writing, good photography, and an active classified section.

Third Place

NEWMARKET ERA/ AURORA BANNER

GENERAL COMMENT

To review the papers in this category was to realize that every editor and publisher strives to be as community-minded and local as possible, regardless of the pressures of space and resources. Community News is alive and well. It was quite obvious that papers are actively covering a wide range of community events in their area, and actively promoting interaction with readers.

It was heartening to see an elegantly styled broadsheet still fighting the good fight as a community newspaper. And succeeding, too, by the looks of its four sections and healthy ad book in the Newmarket Era/Aurora Banner.

John Kendle Managing Editor, Canstar Community News, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Marlyn Graziano Publisher, The Now Newspaper, Surrey, North Delta and White Rock, BC

Peter McCully Publisher, Parksville Qualicum Beach News, Parksville, BC

JUDGES

Number of entries: 7

General Excellence – Class 8 COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY

First Place

ALGONQUIN COLLEGE – ALGONQUIN TIMES

What a pleasure! Clean, easy to read with a good mix of advertisements. Best over-all sports quality and coverage (Watch the punctuation) Well balanced mix of news and features made a huge impact on us. Lost marks due to lack of copy. Great targeted advertiser choices and market specific layouts. Well done!

Second Place

NIAGARA COLLEGE – NIAGARA NEWS

The Niagara News is an “easy to read” paper from the front page layout to the last page. The lack of advertisements and sports hurt the marks. It is evident that a lot of thought and creativity goes into putting this paper to bed.

Third Place

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – RYERSONIAN

Overall a nice job! Good features and local copy. Photography needs some work and layout could use a bit of creativity. (Try playing with some of your headlines).

JUDGE

Lois Perry

Lois Perry is the General Manager of the Temiskaming Speaker and Weekender in New Liskeard. Her background is in graphic design and business and she will tell you that she has had, “ink in her veins” for about 28 years. Lois has contributed to all areas of the newspaper industry at one time or another but her passion continues to be, “coming up with unique and profitable new ideas”. She has won many awards for her community service, ad designs, front page layouts and special sections. Lois believes that if a newspaper team is staffed with people that take ownership and care about their community, it is evident when the paper rolls off the press. Assisting her with the judging of this category:

*Gord Brock – Editor with 35 years service to the industry.

*Steve Laroque – Photographer and Sports Reporter with 18 years service to the industry

*Ralph Edes – Press Operator with 45 years of service

*Kelly Adams – Graphic Design for 14 years

PREMIER AWARDS

Premier Award – Writing

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

First Place

NEW HAMBURG INDEPENDENT

Doug Coxson’s entry has it all: good story, good photos and good graphics. It is obvious that the entire news staff valued this piece. This two-page advance splash made this reader keen to see the production. Bravo!

Second Place

NORTH BAY NIPISSING NEWS

HONOURABLE MENTION

Burlington Post – The front page placement of this story says a lot. This is more than an arts story because of the doggedness of this young male dancer. Kudos to him & to the Burlington Post.

GENERAL COMMENT

Wow! What an amazing galaxy of arts and entertainment entries. So much to display, to set on stage and be proud of. Community newspapers are called upon each week to herald the achievements of multiple arts organizations. Some do it, in the midst of greater news gathering, with a photo and a single voice story. Others manage to find the time and ingenuity to literally proclaim the arts with multiple voices and images. It is those newspapers, the exceptions who set a higher value on culture, that we salute.

Wendy Elliott

Laurel Campbell’s story covers one angle on a very important national issue: cuts to arts programs. We felt the pain of the student interviewed, but there was also balance to the piece. Well done!

Third Place

MANITOULIN EXPOSITOR

Absolutely loved the irony of the photos in this colorful spread. Most interesting partnerships going on between countries and a darned good read to boot. Well done Michael Erskine.

Arts & entertainment judge Wendy Elliott is a reporter and columnist with the Kings County Advertiser in Nova Scotia. In her over 30 years as a journalist, she has won awards at both the regional and national level.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 82

BEST BUSINESS AND FINANCE STORY

First Place

GRAVENHURST BANNER

Allyson Snelling’s “Downtown ... but not out?” was the total package. Quality writing, extensive research and a compelling layout gave this entry the edge. A good business story isn’t just about the numbers. Allyson does a great job conveying the effect a crumbling downtown has on the people that rely upon it to make their living. Probably the best lede of all the entries.

Second Place

NEW HAMBURG INDEPENDENT

When it came to pure writing, Doug Coxson put on a master class. Tight, muscular prose helped readers seamlessly navigate through a story that chronicled the demise of a treasured local bookstore.

Third Place

MARKHAM

ECONOMIST & SUN

GENERAL COMMENT

Many entries in this category contained solid writing, but weak presentation. Just because it’s a business story, doesn’t mean there isn’t art to be found that can entice a reader. Too many entries also bordered on being glorified “advertorials.”

JUDGE

Ken Goudswaard

Solid writing and research put L.H. Tiffany Hsieth’s “Condos cash in on cell antennas” entry into third place. Objective reporting on a controversial subject left the question of whether condo owners should take the money or be more concerned about possible detrimental health effects firmly up to the reader to answer.

Ken has been in the ink trade for more than 25 years as a reporter, editor, publisher and newspaper owner. He is currently editor of the twice-weekly Chilliwack Times in beautiful British Columbia. Ken has won numerous international, national and provincial awards during his newspaper career.

Premier Award – Writing

First Place

MISSISSAUGA NEWS

Gerry Timbers took a stand and stuck with his opinion. Quality of writing was impeccable.

Second Place

UXBRIDGE TIMES-JOURNAL

Judi Bobbitt satisfied all the judging components. Found the article to be of interest to a wide range of readers. Strong writing skills.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Brant News

GENERAL COMMENT

The entries were great overall. There was good content and great variety.

Third Place

OSHAWA EXPRESS

The writer commented on a sensitive issue and took a strong stand on the issue. An extremely relevant and important subject matter to the community and the province.

Andrea Nicholl

Andrea’s roots are set deep in Barrie, Ontario where she spent the majority of her life. Though the winds of change planted her in Saskatchewan, she still calls Ontario home. She spent two years studying print journalism through Sheridan College, and went on to secure an internship at the Barrie Examiner. A subsequent reporter position at the Lloydminster Source was followed by an opportunity in Grenfell, Saskatchewan. She currently works as the managing editor for their weekly publication, the Grenfell Sun/Broadview Express.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 30

First Place

NUNAVUT NEWS/NORTH

Tim Edwards has a well-presented, well-written and a forceful, realistic approach to a serious problem for the communities residents. Top marks for honesty and readability.

Second Place

SIOUX LOOKOUT WAWATAY NEWS

A reasoned and thoughtful approach to the outcome of a story that should be of concern to all residents of this community and beyond. Well done to Shawn Bell.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Alexandria Glengarry News – Fresh, witty approach to a quick decision. Nice touch.

GENERAL COMMENT

Generally well-written editorials from smallcirculation papers that are serving their communities well. Many brave stances on topics from teacher strikes to community Christmas trees to controversial court decisions. Well done and keep making a difference in your respective communities.

JUDGE

Third Place

BURKS FALLS ALMAGUIN NEWS

Humour and creativity allowed this motherhood piece by Rob Learn to claim a top mark. Who says editorials can’t be fun and thoughtprovoking at the same time?

Glenn Mitchell

Glenn Mitchell is the managing editor of The Morning Star newspaper in Vernon, B.C. and has worked at Black Press newspapers since 1986. He is a former director of the B.C. Press Council.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Cobden Sun – A heck of a lot of good information with respect to a serious issue. The story on teen suicide and mental illness does a great job in relaying one teen’s tale while also imparting crucial lessons for all of us. Well done.

GENERAL COMMENT

I was impressed with the entries and had a damn difficult decision once I pared them down to my top 15 or so. I like the diversity of the entries (I really liked the story on the kids and the frogs and the teacher who uses her family ties to teach about the war). Some really good work. I especially like that reporters went out and spoke to kids in many, if not all, of these pieces. That sounds like a no-brainer, but there are far too many stories that simply quote the powers-that-be.

JUDGE

EDUCATION WRITING

First Place

TORONTO FOREST HILL TOWN CRIER

The writing is crisp and brings the reader into the classroom in the first sentence. Shawn Star takes a subject often dismissed as dull – math – and makes it interesting in humanizing fascinating learning techniques.

Second Place

CALEDON ENTERPRISE

Andrew Livingstone and Robyn Wilkinson use very good imagery to open this story. A decision to use quotes that have impact brings a story reported by many to a higher level.

Third Place

SIOUX LOOKOUT WAWATAY NEWS

In this annoying age of iPhones, iPads and perpetually crooked necks directing eyes to stare into cellphones, it was refreshing to read a tale of a community leading the way in introducing native youth to their traditions. Lenny Carpenter used effective quotes and told an interesting tale.

Chris Foulds

Christopher Foulds is editor of Kamloops This Week, which is like being a horse and carriage operator as Henry Ford is opening his first factory down the street. Foulds has a Facebook and Twitter account, but prefers ink on his fingers. If not for the grounding employed by his kids and the B.C. Lions, he shudders to think of what this business would have done to his fragile mind.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 65

First Place

VANKLEEK HILL REVIEW

ENVIRONMENT ONTARIO

GENERAL COMMENT

Many stories need more research, but aside from that, the writing was sharp and the list of environmental concerns, both on a local and global level, was what made these stories important and a pleasure to read.

JUDGE

Richard Tardif

A very complex and complicated environmental issue but with some solid research, good writing, and factual information Justin Bromberg was able to keep the reader’s interest in what could have been a rather dry read. The local impact of road salt usage was certainly the base of this story, and it left me asking the next question; what is being done about this environmental problem? Great job.

Second Place

WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA

A close second. Corey Wilkinson gives us a story of how tightly linked we are to our environment. A seemingly harmless storage of railway ties begins, almost immediately, to affect the health of local residents. A connection is made and the source of the problem is removed. How great is that for a story making a difference? I would have liked to see a reference to some research; nevertheless, the local population drove home the message.

Third Place

HAMILTON MOUNTAIN NEWS

Something was foul with this story right from the start, and that is just the point. This story by Richard Leitner had everything from politics, homeowners, illegal sewage hook-ups to the blame game. A great headline and the quick reference to e-coli near the end drove home the point. A little more input from local research groups would have solidified the story. It isn’t a story local residents will soon forget.

A graduate of environmental science and journalism at Concordia University, Richard began a freelance reporting and editing career in 1994 and continued his career at The Eastern Door in Kahnawake, Quebec in 2006, covering municipal politics, community sports and writing investigative environmental features. An award winning journalist, beat reporter, and photographer he is also Executive Director of the Quebec Community Newspapers Association.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Elmira-Woolwich Observer – This is a well-written account of a family coming to grips with their mother’s death in the Haitian earthquake. It revisits both the disaster and the death of a community member while exploring the connection and grief shared by two communities a world apart. It’s interesting and colourful, if a little long and a bit shy on insight. Tidy, attractive layout with plenty of photos to support the narrative.

GENERAL COMMENT

The quality of entries in this category was uniformly high with a satisfying level of editorial polish. However, most took a very newsy approach. Great features dig into their subject matter and find the real story and the local context, which provides true insight. They also simply tell a good story and get to know characters and issues in a way that news stories do not. Though their styles differ, the winning entries take this approach.

JUDGE

First Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES

What appears at first to be a straight news profile is much more. Jessica Bruno takes us through the compelling legal and personal twists of a professional bureaucrat’s legal fight with her former government employer. Bruno lets the story unfold in a way that does justice to the battle’s time frame and her subject’s efforts and frustrations without bogging down in the details. The insights drawn are all the more powerful come the excellent conclusion.

Second Place

CLARINGTON THIS WEEK

Jennifer O’Meara takes solid initiative in getting ahead of an evolving community issue. Her sharply written and wellresearched examination of the effects of a wind turbine farm on a neighbouring community is full of valuable insight of her own. Solid, informative sidebars provide context, but the design of the piece is underwhelming.

Third Place

NORTH BAY NIPISSING NEWS

Solid reporting as well as a strong, conversational voice grab the reader in Laurel J. Campbell’s account of a pet store robbery and sexual assault. The journalist has done an admirable and sensitive job of coaxing the story of the incident and its aftermath out of her traumatized subjects.

Ian Doig

The current editor of Where Calgary, Essential Calgary and former editor of Fast Forward Weekly, Ian Doig’s feature writing has been published in numerous magazines and newspapers including The Globe and Mail, Calgary Herald, Canadian Geographic, Alberta Venture, Quill & Quire as well as online at OpenFile Calgary.

by O’DONNELL,

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 34

First Place

VANKLEEK HILL REVIEW

A must-read for every parent of a teenager. This well-crafted article by Justin Bromberg presents a very telling look inside the machinations of the provincial police procedure as well as the potential pitfalls of social media. Well researched with a good narrative flow. Story is a stellar example of what community news does best.

Second Place

NEW HAMBURG INDEPENDENT

Excellent piece. Informative, both about the disorder and limited treatment options available to the community. Doug Coxson deftly incorporated the human element to help demystify and destigmatize a mental illness. Great use of visuals and quick facts in the sidebar.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Sioux Lookout Wawatay News – Great descriptive narrative presented alongside wonderful photographs that captured the mood of the journey. I felt like I was right in the back seat along for the ride. And that’s exactly what a well-written story should do.

GENERAL COMMENT

This was an incredibly difficult competition to judge – the calibre of the writing made it almost impossible to select only three winners of the 34 submissions. There clearly remains a readership for longer features and this is reflected in the quality of the submissions. Bravo.

JUDGE

Third Place

NUNAVUT NEWS/ NORTH

Very well-researched and comprehensive. Casey Lessard clearly illustrates the dire living conditions and housing crisis in the north. Superbly written.

Carmen Marie Fabio

A recovering high-tech employee, Carmen Marie Fabio made the leap to journalism in 2009 and has enjoyed every minute of it. An award-winning journalist and staunch advocate for the role of the community paper, she is now the editor and columnist at Your Local Journal in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Vankleek Hill Review – I really liked this story. It was well written and flowed well. It could have used more sources, however, which would have driven the score for this piece higher.

GENERAL COMMENT

Overall, this category was extremely rewarding for me to judge; about the myriad of health problems faced in Ontario communities, and how they all tie into each other in so many ways. Politics, money and access (or lack thereof) to proper health care were common. Frustration with wait times, and feeling alone and helpless, were also paramount in the entries. Some entries were discounted early because they were missing a key element: A personal journey, a tale of woe. The pieces that placed and won had multiple sources, an urgent issue, and they weren’t afraid to talk about topics that can be taboo at the best of times. I learned a lot from the 77 entries and I came away from it more informed. And that is primarily what we strive to do as good reporters serving our communities.

First Place

PETERBOROUGH THIS WEEK

This piece has everything. In-depth research into an extremely complicated issue, multiple sources that continued to drive the story further, clear, concise writing that was filled with colour, and photos that went beyond the garden variety pose, point and shoot. It laid out a dangerous mental health issue in relation to elderly parents, and you couldn’t help but feel for all parties involved, including the police. Only one minor criticism: I noticed a few errors that could have been caught, but they didn’t have significant impact on the overall piece. The lead pulls you in and it only gets better after that. Great job from Sarah Frank! An easy choice for first place!

Second Place

ORLEANS EMC

A fitting second place finish for a story by Brier Dodge that dug deeper into a dicey issue no one wants to talk about: suicide. Getting a teen on board to talk really made you feel for those involved, and giving a bit of background into two high profile suicides was probably not received well by everyone in the community, but the reporter was not swayed. The people drive the story but the sheer numbers are horrifying. The increase in mental health cases underline the need for more money to help the youth, especially the way they responded, by reaching out for professional help in alarming numbers after the suicides of a famous hockey player’s daughter and a city councillor’s son. A small criticism: Always introduce abbreviated names (like CHEO), and don’t assume readers know. Even if they do know, it looks better.

Third Place

BURKS FALLS ALMAGUIN NEWS

Although the headline was off-putting with two acronyms, the story is timely, well researched and intriguing to read. Kelly McShane combined a health problem – which is tough enough on its own – with a political connection that outraged community members. It laid out a good lesson about health and politics, and the frustration that comes when those two elements are combined. The sources ranged far and wide and I was able to get a good picture of this issue as an outsider, which is the mark of a good reporter. A solid piece on a pertinent local issue!

Steve Bonspiel

Steve Bonspiel is an award-winning journalist from the Mohawk community of Kanesatake who purchased The Eastern Door newspaper in his sister community of Kahnawake in 2008. He is editor/publisher and sole owner of the paper. Major highlights of his career include a nomination for the paper in 2011 for the prestigious Michener Award, which pitted the small community newspaper against giants like CBC and the Vancouver Sun. Steve also won the 2011 and 2012 Canadian Association of Journalists’ top prize in community journalism.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 77

First Place

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

Congratulations to Colin Dewar on creating a story that was both memorable and refreshing, simply by bringing a small stage back to life. Well-researched and artfully crafted, the story and its supporting graphics are both informative and entertaining. The treatment of the piece, specifically through fonts and graphics, showcase the work well.

Second Place

PRESCOTT JOURNAL

A beautifully-told, somewhat chilling story by Jeff Morris, that shows the impact the loss of one life can have on the world. Good supporting images, and solid reporting.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Haliburton County Echo – Wonderful lead, clever writing tools and visual descriptions put this story in the front running for Honourable Mention.

GENERAL COMMENT

Ontario’s rich heritage provided for an impressive array of topics, spanning from personal stories of loss to those demonstrating impressive community spirit. It is clear that the drive to save the province’s heritage is alive within Ontario newsrooms. Heritage writing gives us the chance to delve into our community’s past, while relating an issue to the present. The winning entries were selected for their ability to do both. The winners here prove that through strong storytelling, solid research and evocative images, any subject can have new life breathed into it.

Jessica Peters

Third Place

BRAMPTON GUARDIAN

This story precisely charts the history of a oncebeloved building that has been painstakingly restored, in a way that the reader can sense the love that local history buffs have for the building.

Jessica has been the editor of the Agassiz-Harrison Observer for the past four years, as the newspaper’s sole photographer, writer and web manager. The Observer is a frequent award recipient, including Ma Murray General Excellence and Great Ideas Awards. She began her career with Black Press in 1999, shortly after graduating from Kwantlen University. As a mother of three young children, she is an avid community volunteer. Jessica also speaks to students at the elementary school and university level as a way to increase interest in journalism and literacy.

Premier Award – Writing

BEST INVESTIGATIVE NEWS STORY

First Place

CALEDON ENTERPRISE

Andrew Livingstone and Robyn Wilkinston rose to the top for uncovering proof that dog attacks in their community were being poorly or incompetently reported by officials, understating the risk to the community at large.

Second Place

WATERLOO CHRONICLE

Paige Desmond did well by finding out why 10 school children were suspended despite the school board’s privacy policy which suppresses the sometimes bizarre reasons justifying them.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Bracebridge Examiner – Louis Tam deserves credit for bringing a poverty-stricken couple at risk of losing their trailer home to the community’s attention, and shining a light on the blight of rural economic misfortune.

GENERAL COMMENT

Smaller reporting staffs and the “doing more with less” work ethic may have resulted in a sharp decrease in entries and quality of entries this year. That’s why this year’s winners deserve extra credit for finding a way to tell important community stories using investigative techniques. First some general comments: Reporting on law suits can’t be considered an investigative story if all the reporter did was get a copy of a statement of claim. Nor can a “he said, she said”, one-dimensional story. The winners in this category went to the trouble and expense in two cases of filing Freedom of Information requests to obtain documents that prove facts, then interviewing the principles behind those documents. Each of the three winners did immensely detailed, multi-page reports that, combined, showed a determination to SHOW, rather than tell, readers what is at the center of the controversies they covered.

Third Place

GRAVENHURST BANNER

Neil Etienne did stalwart duty by laying bare the myth that there are no homeless in rural towns, despite the usual suspects attempting to suppress such information.

Joe Banks

Joe Banks has been an Ontario community newspaper reporter, editor and publisher for 25 years. He now coordinates, and is a professor for the journalism program at Algonquin College.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 63

First Place

TORONTO TODAY

Great work by writer Omar Mosleh who had several top notch stories in this category from Toronto-area newspapers. This one stands-out for it’s in-depth look at this issue, strong layout and a great read from start to finish.

Second Place

TORONTO FOREST HILL TOWN CRIER

HONOURABLE MENTION

Niagara this Week, Niagara Falls – A well-written piece from Richard Hutton going inside the mind of a woman who tried to save an accident victim. Just an average citizen trying to help out, but this certainly was not an average story. Well done.

GENERAL COMMENT

Overall, this was a very difficult category to judge, evident of all the close scores among many of the newspapers. Lots of great stories from several fire scenes, robberies, shootings and stories of loss, anger and frustration with labour disputes, there was certainly lots to choose from. Why some scored better than others was the overall quality of writing, story placement and treatment of headlines, artwork and page turns. In some instances, the whole story could have been placed on a front page with great artwork and that could have meant the difference for some. For others, they turned the story to several pages without artwork and that lost marks. Overall though, some outstanding work by the reporters, editors and graphics people.

JUDGE

Ian Jacques

Reporter Omar Mosleh, with Shadi Raoufi, does it again with a great story on a possible casino coming to this community. Again, well researched and the layout and front page graphics really draw the reader in, so extra kudos for that.

Third Place

SCARBOROUGH MIRROR

Reporter Andrew Palamarchuk was very close in this category with his well-written article on this neighbourhood shooting that touched the whole country when it made national news. Good art work and placement of the story. Just lost a few points on the writing from the other two in this category.

Ian Jacques has been the editor of the Coast Reporter on the Sunshine Coast of B.C. since 2003. Coast Reporter is an awardwinning community newspaper based in Sechelt serving the community of the Sunshine Coast from Langdale to Saltery Bay and all points in between. Coast Reporter has been named top newspaper in Canada in its circulation class twice in the past 10 years and top newspaper in its circulation class in the B.C. three out of the last four years. It has also won numerous awards for photography, ad design and special publications work the past several years at the provincial level.

Premier Award – Writing

First Place

NUNAVUT NEWS/NORTH

A disaster of the first order here. Two killed and 85 left homeless. The fact that reporter Casey Lessard went beyond to get the former fire marshal’s opinion was good as it suggested this disaster was just a matter of time. Photos helped with telling the story. Casey did well in being on scene and getting interviews.

Second Place

PARRY SOUND NORTH STAR

A good team effort here on copy and photos. Good work on getting quotes on scene and from fire and weather experts. A good selection of photos assisted in telling the story.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Cobden Sun – A heart tugger of friends and family left behind in the aftermath of a crash. Good front page play with photos and quotes from family and friends.

GENERAL COMMENT

Fatalities were quite prominent in this category, unfortunately, and reporters should be commended for taking on the difficult task of interviewing those left behind. For the most part copy was quite well rounded and balanced and often, decent photography was incorporated to help tell the story.

JUDGE

Third Place

WEST CARLETON REVIEW EMC

This one’s a heartstring tugger by Theresa Fritz. This story paints quite the picture of two sides of a St. Patty’s party – a drinker drives away, while a couple walks away. The tragedy.

Dave Whitfield

Dave Whitfield is editor of the Rocky Mountain Outlook weekly newspaper. The Outlook covers Banff, Canmore and the Bow Valley in Alberta. Whitfield has spent more than 20 years in journalism, with weekly community newspapers, an alternative entertainment weekly and a professional rodeo monthly, as well as dabbling in freelance work.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 38

First Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES

This story combines some the best elements not only of community newspapering, but of journalism, period: social injustice, addressed through thorough reporting, clear writing, striking presentation... and even a touch of zeal. Yes, the news around Attawapiskat has certainly progressed since this story was written in December, 2011 – and so, to some extent, the events accounted for here are moot. But the fundamental issue being so well-addressed in this story is as critical now as it was then. Congratulations to reporter Bea Vongdouangchanh.

Second Place

WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA

HONOURABLE MENTION

Peterborough This Week – For a community newspaper reporter in an area where almost ‘everyone knows everyone,’ it can be tempting to just go with the flow of prevailing local opinion on a controversial subject. But while reporter Joel Wiebe lets angry locals have their say against wind turbines, he also takes care to research and present the other side of the issue. The package is enhanced with dramatic photography by Lance Anderson and a layout organized with sub-heads and a fact-box. Well-done.

GENERAL COMMENT

As usual, judging a category in the OCNA competition is ‘the best of times, the worst of times.’ The quality of submissions is consistently high, and that’s very gratifying. But it means I have to go back... and back... over them to eventually arrive at my top four! But the other entrants in this group should know that I was impressed across the board. Congratulations to all.

JUDGE

Stephen Cogan

Municipal governance and related matters – taxation systems, the budgeting process, relations between levels of government –can be daunting for readers and reporters, but Chris Occhiuzzi tackles a serious local controversy coalescing around them with comprehensive research, conversational writing and balance between the two sides. Readers are well-served.

Third Place

NEWMARKET ERA / AURORA BANNER

This was one of a half-dozen entries – all well-done – about withering weather and its dramatic effect on fruit-growers and other farmers. Reporters L.H. Tiffany

Hsieh and Simon Martin and photographer Sjoerd Witteveen get the nod for their version of this important story by quoting a wide variety of sources with varying experiences and views, and by presenting their information with attractive simplicity.

Stephen Cogan is a proud alumnus of community newspapers in the Upper Ottawa Valley. He’s also been a writer and editor at the Kingston Whig-Standard, CBC News in Toronto and NBC News in New York. He co-manages the journalism programs at Centennial College in Toronto.

Premier Award

First Place

MANOTICK MESSENGER

Reporter Jeff Morris wrote an exhaustive news feature about the effect changes to Ontario provincial government slot machine policy were going to have on horse racing tracks; this wasn’t the only entry to approach this issue. Morris’ article was packed with facts, excellent quotes and some nice photography. Morris’ greatest achievement here was showing, not telling, what effect the changes were going to have on people, families and businesses. Bravo Jeff.

Second Place

MINTO EXPRESS

HONOURABLE MENTION

Gravenhurst Banner – Neil Etienne’s feature about a woman forced by circumstance to live in her car in an affluent community may come as a shock to some. But homelessness is an issue across the country, and not just in metropolitan areas. Rural areas face it too. Etienne’s story really gave a name and face to homelessness, and it shows the human cost of poverty.

GENERAL COMMENT

This was a tough category to judge, as the majority of entries were deserving of a top three finish. In order to identify and recognize the top three stories, I added an invisible judging criteria, “Creativity/Initiative.” With this, three stories and one very worthy honourable mention rose to the top. The top three plus the honourable mention have excellent writing, illustrative photography and solid factual information, but also are creative or show great initiative from the reporters, photographers and other staff involved. All three illustrate issues which rural communities across the country are facing: government cutbacks, the quality of rural healthcare and government mendacity. The honourable mention brings to the forefront an issue growing in many rural communities: homelessness. Once again, a very difficult category to judge: easily, two-thirds of the entries could have been top three finishers.

JUDGE

Stewart Salkeld

Shannon Burrows’ entry, part of a series on changing healthcare services in rural communities, is going to seem more and more relevant as the next five to 10 years pass. As the Baby Boomers retire and require more and more healthcare resources, younger generations are going to ask, “How are we going to pay for this?” The answer may be a new breed of healthcare professional. All rural communities across the country should be looking at this issue.

Third Place

WEST CARLETON REVIEW EMC

Reporter Derek Dunn’s great little story about a beloved community bingo had great impact. Since the Sixties, community members enjoy this outdoor bingo, but the provincial government cracked down, noting bingo is gambling and no children allowed.

The story certainly deserves some follow up, and it would be interesting to see if provincially elected representatives could press for changes to allow children to attend bingo. Obviously, children in this community want to do just that.

Stewart Salkeld grew up in a tiny farming community located in the east-central region of Alberta, so he is no stranger to rural communities. Graduating from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in 1991 with a diploma in Journalism, Salkeld has spent his entire newspaper career as a reporter or editor with community newspapers. The papers he’s worked for include the Oyen Echo, the Arrow Lakes News, the Macleod Gazette and the Rocky Mountain House Mountaineer. Salkeld has been at The Mountaineer since 2001, starting as a reporter/photographer and becoming editor after the sudden passing of Brian Mazza in 2007.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 53

First Place

THUNDER BAY SOURCE

This series is very well done. It handles a tragic event tactfully, and conveys the emotion of the community. Very well done on the writing, and there is an effective use of photos. It’s rare that a photo without people in it can be as effective as the highway photo in this series is. Very well done. The simplicity of this entry is really what sets it apart from the others. It’s a hugely complex story to put together, and to get it down to such a human level, where the emotion is key, is not an easy task.

Second Place

BRIGHTON / EAST NORTHUMBERLAND INDEPENDENT

HONOURABLE MENTION

London Community News – This series is great. Simple things are used in a very efficient manner to get points across. The reader is not led in any way, but is instead offered the opportunity to come to their own conclusion, which is great and too few series allow the reader that chance. Photos that are just subtle enough, such as the one with the security fence, have strong impact. The series takes a natural progression and covers the questions that readers are asking. The only reason it did not finish in the top three is because of a few layout issues that are distracting to audiences. The gap that separated this story from being in the top three, though, was very small.

GENERAL COMMENT

I would say that the majority of the pieces entered in this competition were very well put together. They were effective pieces. One of the areas that can use improvement across the board is layout. The top three selections had solid layout, while some others that weren’t selected did not. There were a lot of papers where layout was simply too tight; there was no an effective use of photos, graphs or pull quotes; and other visual issues were distracting. Another area that is cause for concern is that there were some series entered to the competition that had copyediting errors. These errors are noticeable, and they are, again, distracting to readers. Still, in general, these series were great. Some became a bit redundant, because there are some topics that are continuously touched upon. At the end of the day, it’s the series that can do something very different, or put a new spin on an old story, that will be remembered.

JUDGE

Ben Proulx

All stories included in this series are well written, and John Campbell has clear flow from story to story. Photos are well used to draw the reader’s attention, and headline writing is used effectively to do the same. By the last story written, the reader is invested in the ongoing coverage. This is a very well-written series. A lot of times, planned series can become dry. In this case, the issue arose, and what could have been written as two stories was then turned into a series. Very well done. This piece is a second-place winner because of its adaptation to everything that is happening. It doesn’t step on its own toes with what was already written, and it effectively conveys the struggles being felt in this situation.

Third Place

OSHAWA THIS WEEK

This is a great series. All the reader’s questions are answered, and it brings forward something that is of high interest to all readers, and a topic that many may not be aware of. Layout is well done, with blocks of texts efficiently broken up, as well. The use of the fundraising breakdown chart, too, is a great way to pull a potentially uninterested reader in, and I can only assume that would be enough to then make them read the stories. Great job. This is a story that’s been done before in other markets, but never quite in this way, that I’ve seen. Any time a reporter can take something and make it his own – while putting an entirely new perspective on what’s happening –that’s worthy of placement.

Ben Proulx is the editor of the Fort Saskatchewan Record in Alberta. Prior to taking over as editor in Fort Saskatchewan, Ben was a senior reporter at the Sherwood Park News, also in Alberta, where he made a name for himself through investigative reporting and in-depth news series, as well as through take-to-task opinion columns. Ben has also created layout style guides that are now being used across four markets.

Premier Award – Writing

First Place

NUNAVUT NEWS/NORTH

Casey Lessard’s “Feeding Nunavut” series required numerous interviews and indepth research to put the spotlight on a huge and pervasive problem. Along with flawless writing, it also made good use of fact files and data comparisons.

Second Place

MEAFORD EXPRESS

Scott Woodhouse’s series is a perfect example of content that readers want: personal, informative, funny and beautifully laid out. Use of Facebook status updates, an accompanying Movember moustache saga and terminology boxes were all part of the package.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Sioux Lookout Wawatay News – Stephanie Wesley’s two stories and a column on a serious community problem had real impact.

GENERAL COMMENT

Entries in this category prove that Ontario’s smaller community paper staff are continuing to invest time and talent into covering important and/or compelling topics in depth. Bravo. While the top-three winners all earned the highest marks for quality of writing, Casey Lessard’s Nunavut News/North series on poverty and the exorbitant cost of food in Nunavut narrowly beat out Scott Woodhouse’s fantastic first-person series on his experience with prostate cancer simply because “relevance to community” is such a significant judging criterion.

Third Place

GRAVENHURST BANNER

We’ve all seen a number of these “emergency services in focus” pieces, but Louis Tam’s made for great reading from start to finish without sliding into the volunteer hero worship trap.

Gail Sjuberg

Gail Sjuberg has been the editor of the award-winning Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper in B.C. since 2003 and in the community newspaper business for more than 20 years. She is also the editor of Driftwood Publishing Ltd.’s magazine called Aqua-Gulf Islands Living and the Gulf Islander tourist guide, and has been a judge for numerous community newspaper competitions.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 78

SPORT & RECREATION STORY

First Place

ANCASTER NEWS

A compelling tale about one man’s commitment to his sport despite daunting odds. In turn, he’s an inspiration to others in his community to follow suit. The presentation of this piece would have benefited from more creative photography and layout. Nevertheless, a solid winner by Mike Pearson.

Second Place

BURLINGTON POST

A well-written and researched story by Herb Garbutt about a local individual instrumental in the creation of the Special Olympics. This detailed piece gives the community a deep understanding of the effort involved in bringing disabled people into the sports world.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Prescott Journal – Jeff Morris tells a touching story about a community’s support for a young man overcoming challenges to play hockey. The entry would have scored higher with editing to tighten the writing.

GENERAL COMMENT

The top contenders in this category emerged quite quickly, as they combined strong writing, compelling subject matter, and came closest to meeting the judging criteria, namely, to raise community awareness of sports and recreation opportunities, or address related problems. Unfortunately, the majority of the 70-plus entries in this category missed that mark, with standard sports reporting on individuals or events. Mediocre photography and layout also took down the marks of many entries. Great stories deserve great art and presentation!

JUDGE

Third Place

NEWMARKET ERA / AURORA BANNER

John Cudmore writes an extensive piece on an important issue in sports – the imbalance of female coaches versus male. Hopefully, it raised awareness and encouraged female athletes to pursue coaching opportunities.

Andrew Holota

Andrew Holota is the editor of the Abbotsford News, a twice-weekly community newspaper that is part of the Black Press chain. He is also the regional editorial manager for Black Press Lower Mainland, overseeing editorial standards, and coordinating training and mentoring programs for multi-media journalists. Andrew’s journalism career began more than 35 years ago, as a photographer. He moved into reporting, and has been an editor since 1984 at various Valley and Lower Mainland community newspapers. Throughout his career, he has won numerous provincial, national and continental awards.

Premier Award – Writing

HUMOUR COLUMNIST OF THE YEAR

First Place

WATERLOO CHRONICLE – BOB VRBANAC

HONOURABLE MENTION

Elmira-Woolwich Observer – Steve Galea –Steve Galea’s great use of dialogue and wellchosen anecdotes mean his columns are reliably entertaining. Although his humour is slightly off-thewall, he also manages to be familiar too.

GENERAL COMMENT

The entire field of competitors for this year’s Humour Columnist of the Year category displayed a great knack of finding the funny in everyday life. Whether they used their own stories as fodder for commentary or poked fun at current events, neighbours or general human foibles, these writers did it thoughtfully, respectfully and - luckily for readers - entertainingly.

JUDGE

Julie McCann

with his three son

Bob Vrbanac’s kooky sense of humour is on full display as he writes about life with his three sons. Whether he’s exploring how brutally honest kids can be or recounting a trip to the emergency room with his young son, his ideas are fresh and fun.

Second Place LINDSAY POST – PEGGY ARMSTRONG

If you want to chuckle over a column that blends research, reporting and commentary with wit and lovely writing, you’ll want to check out Peggy Armstrong’s work in the Lindsay Post.

Third Place

ORILLIA TODAY – FRANK MATYS

Readers of Orillia Today are lucky to have Frank Matys’ zany but relatable humour coming at them on a regular basis. In telling the story of one family’s unexpected and, er, non-PG movie night, for example, he displays a good sense of informed fun.

Julie McCann is a full-time journalism professor at Algonquin College. Prior to that, she was a staff writer at National Post Business magazine and a contributor to Chatelaine, Canadian Geographic, Applied Arts, the Montreal Gazette and the Ottawa Citizen. Previously she was the managing editor at Canadian in-flight magazine and a staff writer at Marketing Magazine. She holds a B.A.A. in journalism (magazine) from Ryerson University and an M.J. from Carleton University. She makes her home in Ottawa.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 44

First Place

COLUMNIST OF THE YEAR

TORONTO BEACH-RIVERDALE-EAST YORK TOWN CRIER – SANDRA BUSSIN

These articles show strong knowledge and history with the subject matter. I learned a lot about a topic we’re only getting sound bytes on here in western Canada.

Second Place

BROCK CITIZEN – NEIL CRONE

Shows humour and enjoyment of writing!

GENERAL COMMENT

I scored people very hard - with 44 competitors, it was extremely difficult to separate some of the talent. The writers I chose for the top four all had different styles, different subject matter, but all had exceptional articles. Well done!

JUDGE

Third Place

WHITBY THIS WEEK – BRIAN MCNAIR

We don’t get enough opportunities to humanize our subject matter these days. These articles did just that.

Sheena Read

Sheena Read has worked in communications for what she horrifyingly realizes is more than a quarter of a century. She has been a freelance photojournalist for newspapers and magazines across Canada, and is currently the multi-media editor of the Nanton News, her hometown paper.

Premier Award – Writing

STEPHEN SHAW AWARD FOR REPORTER OF THE YEAR

First Place

OAKVILLE BEAVER – DAVID LEA

This piece did a remarkable job of handling and detailing a very sensitive topic. I loved the interviews and found the sidebar information to be a tremendous addition. This is the sort of work to which every journalist should aspire.

Second Place

LINDSAY POST – LISA GERVAIS

Such an unexpected and thorough handling of a story angle that most reporters wouldn’t think of. Excellent job of handling the facts and presenting different viewpoints. Very fair-minded.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Waterdown Flamborough Review – Catherine

O’Hara – As a BC resident I was completely unaware of this issue. I found the attention to detail and the story’s overall impact made for a compelling read.

GENERAL COMMENT

Having read each of these articles several times I am impressed by the quality of each. Community newspaper journalism is clearly thriving in Ontario and readers are the clear winners. There wasn’t a single entry in this category that didn’t do credit to its writer, newspaper, community and subject. It’s a shame that not all can receive an award other than the well-earned satisfaction of a job well done.

JUDGE

Third Place

OSHAWA EXPRESS – GEOFF ZOCHODNE

Tremendous job of researching a topic of local and national interest. Well organized and thoughtful.

Lorne Eckersley

Lorne Eckersley has been involved with newspapers since he edited his Grade 6 class paper. In his 34-year professional career he has worked as a reporter, photographer, advertising manager, columnist and publisher. He has lived in Creston BC for the entire period, having relocated there after completing the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology journalism program in 1979.

Premier Award – Writing

Number of entries: 5

First Place

OSHAWA THIS WEEK – JOANNE BURGHARDT

It is hard to argue against the immense leadership shown by Joanne Burghardt in 2012. She oversaw an award-winning 35-member newsroom. She organized two international “stretch” projects including coverage of the Summer Olympics that saw publication of 597 Olympic articles plus video, pictures, photo galleries and athlete profiles. In addition she coordinated Night and Day 2012: A 24-Hour Medical Journey, a 100 page book that delivered a rare behind the scenes look into our health care system. Her papers produce consistently high quality work, and Joanne still finds time to give back to her community and industry. Her dedication and leadership is second to none.

Second Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES – KATE MALLOY

GENERAL COMMENT

While the number of entries is relatively small their overall quality reflects a wonderful cross-section of high level editorial leadership. All entries displayed the type of initiative we expect from editors in tune with their communities. The daily reality of entrants varied significantly from large, multiple title newsrooms where management is paramount to small newsrooms where the editor is an active participant in generating copy. It made for a difficult competition to judge. On some levels the established criterion demands comparing apples to oranges. Ultimately, however, a clear winner emerged in Joanne Burghardt of Oshawa This Week.

Paul MacNeill

There is a reason The Hill Times is one of the smartest, best-written newspapers in the country, Kate Malloy. Weekly this jack-of-all trades editor delivers a product that is used as primary source material for larger media outlets. She writes compelling features and insightful editorials. Her editing is crisp, delivering thoughtful, insightful content.

Third Place

WATERDOWN FLAMBOROUGH REVIEW – BRENDA JEFFERIES

Brenda Jeffries is a small paper editor making a big impact. She oversees two reporters who produce 40 to 56 pages a week for the Waterdown Flamborough Review. Her job description should simply say ‘Do it all’ including assignment editor, copy editor, paginator, writer, photographer. She balances significant community involvement with powerful editorials, not an easy task in small towns.

Paul MacNeill is Publisher of Island Press Limited based in Montague, PEI. He has won several dozen awards on a regional, national and international basis for his editorials and investigative reporting. He is Chairman of the Newspapers Canada Board of Directors.

Premier Award – Photography

BEST FEATURE PHOTO

CIRC. 10,000+

First Place

WHITBY THIS WEEK

Sabrina Byrnes’ pic for Whitby This Week has outstanding impact in addition to being crisp, wellcomposed and used.

Second Place

UXBRIDGE TIMES-JOURNAL

HONOURABLE MENTION

Clarington This Week – Ron Pietroniro may have captured the most dangerous through-the-legs shot ever. Courageous and cool, and the photo is used well.

GENERAL COMMENT

Plenty of originality and imagination was on display in the entries in this category. The photographers are to be commended for challenging themselves to come up with fresh takes on old tropes. One note –a very nice photo was overwhelmed and ruined by huge yellow type on the pic.

JUDGE

Richard Dal Monte

Ce Klemenz captured a touching moment of remembrance and observance. This photo should, however, have been used much larger.

Third Place

SARNIA/LAMBTON THIS WEEK

Heather Wright froze an image of education and understanding at a school assembly. As with the second-place entry, I would have used this pic larger.

Richard Dal Monte is editor of The Tri-City News, a twice-weekly community newspaper serving the cities of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, BC, who has worked as a journalist for more than 26 years.

Premier Award – Photography

Number of entries: 26

First Place

HALIBURTON COUNTY ECHO

CIRC. -9,999

Simple, strong and striking, Darren Lum’s entry is a lovely portrait of a young athlete that gives the Echo’s front page outstanding impact.

Second Place

NIAGARA THIS WEEK, TOWN CRIER

Excellent composition: Gord Downey’s face, the darkening sky and the Hip’s dedicated fans – Steve Henschel captured it all. I could have done without the large head and cutline within the photo.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Gravenhurst Banner – Bev McMullen’s photo captures a striking moment on a blue-sky day. Good use of negative space is somewhat hurt, however, by placement of the cutline in that space. My advice: Don’t mess with a good pic.

GENERAL COMMENT

The winners in this category are head and shoulders above the majority of the entries. The definition of a feature pic isn’t just that it’s not a news photo. One additional note: I can’t decide whether the photo of a teacher duct-taped to a school gym wall is a) the most egregious use of a cutout I’ve ever seen or b) kind of cool.

JUDGE

Third Place

KINCARDINE INDEPENDENT

Less is more in Josh Howald’s caber toss pic: the effort and the disappearing caber. I would have liked to see the photo played bigger to maximize its impact (I would have run it top to bottom and adjusted everything else around it).

Richard Dal Monte

Richard Dal Monte is editor of The Tri-City News, a twice-weekly community newspaper serving the cities of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, BC, who has worked as a journalist for more than 26 years.

Premier Award – Photography

First Place

CLARINGTON THIS WEEK

BEST PHOTO LAYOUT

HONOURABLE MENTION

Uxbridge Times-Journal – I like the strong use of main art and the choice and placement of the other photos. The tiny picture above the copy was a great idea.

GENERAL COMMENT

JUDGE

Perry Bergson

A couple of things make this the winner. Ron Pietroniro does an excellent job not only of shooting the action but also of varying the looks. The shots alternate between tight and from a distance. The layout also shines by varying picture sizes and making terrific use of the space.

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Second Place

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

It’s easy to overuse cutouts in layout but I thought they were very effective here. Colin Dewar and Leanne Boron use a wide variety of photos that give an excellent taste of what went on.

Third Place

BARRY’S BAY, THE VALLEY GAZETTE

Gregory Zawidzki has one of those deceptively simple ideas that, in the right hands, comes alive. The choice of the black background with the cutout of the butterfly at the bottom right is genius.

Perry Bergson is the managing editor of the Prince Albert Daily Herald, Saskatchewan’s third largest daily. The Portage la Prairie, Man., native has 25 years of experience in newspapers in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and will always be thankful for the two years spent at a weekly that launched his career. He has two decades of experience working on the news desk, often doing the sort of design found in this competition.

Premier Award – Photography

Number of entries: 76

First Place

MISSISSAUGA NEWS

The excellence of this photo by Fred Loek won out. It has everything –movement, expression, crispness. Everywhere you look in the photo there is something interesting to see, yet the focus is clear. This is what a sports photo is all about – catching the unexpected drama as it happens. However, a warning that this entry only squeaked out the win, due to the extreme over-busyness of the layout. I would have liked to see the photo played bigger. These factors almost – almost – knocked it out of contention. In the end, I decided that the excellence of the photograph itself managed to overcome its environment sufficiently to put it on top.

Second Place

AJAX/PICKERING NEWS ADVERTISER

HONOURABLE MENTION

Toronto Beach/Riverdale Mirror – Excellent photograph, it was a very tough choice to leave this out of the top three. Dan Pearce did a great job capturing the action. Excellent.

GENERAL COMMENT

This was an outstanding set of photographs to judge. It made my job both more fun and more difficult. Some of the characteristics shared by the top scoring photos were good, sharp focus, capturing a moment in time, and stopping the action – this is sports, after all.

JUDGE

Andrea Rondeau

This is an outstanding technical photo. From the angle to the crispness of it, Ron Pietroniro did a superb job. It’s interesting that in the background of the photo you can see other photographers trying to capture the same subject, but at a more traditional angle that would put the sun on the jumper’s face, rather than what was done so effectively here, using the shadows. A great example of what you can do when you think outside the box. The clean layout that highlighted the photograph is also greatly appreciated.

Third Place

BURLINGTON POST

There were a couple of great celebration shots entered, but this one really stood out. Eric Riehl has captured the emotion of the moment. The three distinct elements in the photo, the group of girls standing, the girl on the ground, and the girl with the crutches, combine to make this a great sports photo. Well done.

Andrea Rondeau is the editor of the Cowichan Valley Citizen newspaper in Duncan, British Columbia. She began her journalism career with a degree from the University of King’s College in Halifax, N.S., then went to work at the Yarmouth Vanguard newspaper. A move to B.C. in 2004 saw her land on Vancouver Island at the Citizen, where she started out filling in for a maternity leave. She hasn’t left since. From reporter/photographer she made the jump to the editor’s chair at the end of 2007.

Premier Award – Photography

First Place

WHITBY THIS WEEK

BEST SPOT

GENERAL COMMENT

The key element that makes a great spot news photo, and what is also the biggest challenge, is being ‘on the spot.’ Accomplishing this allows the photographer to capture the two most valuable components of outstanding photographs, no matter if the photographs are of the spot news, sports or feature variety – what’s happening and human impact. Unfortunately, not all entries in this category came close to meeting these two elements, and even more disappointing it could easily be seen several photographs were ‘set-up’ or staged. Others were taken well after the ‘action,’ thus losing the adrenaline rush of the event and the human emotion connected to what was happening. All that being said, the photographs overall, whether good spot news photographs or not, were of good quality in terms of contrast, focus and composition.

JUDGE

Kevin Higgins

be

more. It isn’t your typical fire coverage photograph, but it captures the

Ron Pietroniro took first place because from the moment I saw the photograph I was drawn into what was happening and I wanted to know more. It isn’t your typical fire coverage photograph, but it captures the essence of spot news photography in showing the elements of what’s happening, as well as the impact of the situation on those involved – in this case the firefighters battling not only the heat of a fire but that of Mother Nature. The firefighter in the background makes the photograph awardwinning as much as the main subjects. Great photo.

Second Place

SUDBURY NORTHERN LIFE

It was very difficult to place this photograph in second place, as it too is outstanding, meeting all the important criteria in what one would be looking for in a great spot news photo. Darren MacDonald captured the seriousness of what was taking place in the faces of the law enforcement officers, as well as the emotion of one of the people involved.

Third Place

PETERBOROUGH THIS WEEK

Third place is a photo that also caught my eye from the first time I saw it, as it shows emotion on two levels in a moment that probably only lasted a little while. A minute or two earlier or later probably would not have given photographer Lance Anderson the same image

During his 19-year community newspaper career, Kevin Higgins has been a reporter, editor, community newspaper business manager, and community newspaper office manager. Since 2007, he has been the editor of The Beacon in Gander, NL, which is one of the largest community newspapers in the province. Throughout these years, he has won numerous Atlantic Canada and national awards for reporting, editorial writing, photography and page design.

Premier Award – Photography

Number of entries: 61

First Place

TORONTO BLOOR WEST VILLAGER

This photograph really grabs the viewer’s attention. There are so many emotions featured in the shot – the danger and destruction of the playground structure is obvious as is the confusion and sadness on the child’s face. This shot speaks volumes exhibiting the many emotions present from the aftermath of an arson/vandalism incident. Excellent work Ian Kelso!

Second Place

RAINY RIVER RECORD

Ken Johnston takes a wonderful photo capturing a horrific and destructive news event that will forever be part of the community’s history. The firefighters look so small and powerless as they do their best to battle this huge, destructive monster. “Fighting a losing battle” really sums it up.

GENERAL COMMENT

Judging this class was a very difficult task. I was overwhelmed with many great entries and it was extremely difficult to narrow it down to just a few. This class proved that there are many talented photographers working for newspapers and each one should be commended for a job well done. There were many great shots and I wish everyone could be honoured with an award. Keep up the great work!

JUDGE

Third Place

BRANT NEWS

This is a powerful, yet fun photo by Mike Machado, that I imagine would make viewers feel the refreshing impact of cool water during a summer heat wave. The expression on the boy’s face is priceless as he finds a great way to beat the heat.

Darryl Holyk

Darryl Holyk began working at The Minnedosa Tribune, in Minnedosa, MB as a reporter/photographer in 2001. Five years later, he was promoted to Editor and in 2008 purchased the historic newspaper becoming the ninth publisher since it was founded in 1883. Since 2009, Darryl has served as a director on the Manitoba Community Newspapers Association (MCNA) Board of Directors. Holyk’s photo of the arson of the Minnedosa United Church appeared in publications and other news media across the country and earned him a First Place Best Spot News Photo from MCNA in 2007.

Premier Award – Photography

PHOTOGRAPHER

OF THE YEAR

First Place

NORTHUMBERLAND NEWS – KAREN LONGWELL

HONOURABLE MENTION

London Community News – Mike Maloney – Solid technique, a sense of the moment and creative storytelling distinguished the London Community News submission.

GENERAL COMMENT

Dramatic spot news and sports action submissions were most impressive this year. Some entrants fell short on their technically enhanced submissions and there was a conspicuous absence of pictures with a strong sense of humanity or the human condition. Overall, submissions this year represented strong technical achievement.

JUDGE

Joe Callahan

Dramatic spot new

Dramatic spot news and sports action images combined with a creative photo illustration distinguished Karen Longwell’s submission as a clear winner.

Second Place

BURLINGTON POST – ERIC RIEHL

Impressive story-telling photographs and a strong sensitivity to everyday community events distinguished the Burlington Post submission and secured second place.

Third Place

OSHAWA THIS WEEK – SABRINA BYRNES

A sense of the moment combined with a strong graphic sense of composition secured third place for the Oshawa This Week submission.

Joe Callahan teaches photography and is coordinator of the Journalism-Online, Print and Broadcast program at Loyalist College of Applied Arts and Technology in Belleville, Ontario. With the support of the OCNA, he completed a Master’s degree in June 2010 focusing on journalism standards and accreditation. His research paper, Newsroom Practices at Ontario Newspapers - A Focus on Accuracy was published by Athabasca University.

Premier Award – Cartoon

Number of entries: 10

First Place

CARTOONIST OF THE YEAR

OSHAWA EXPRESS – KAREN LONGWELL

Call it as he see’s it, no bars hold, gut wrench impact, modern day version of French revolution grapeshot.

Second Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES – MICHAEL DEADDER

Tough call between first and second place selection, love the art work, good impact with few words.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Scugog Standard – Walt Radda – Almost there, keep it up!

GENERAL COMMENT

The most difficult component I find personally is judging the impact when you compare a paper from a larger center such as Ottawa to small town papers where the issues are minor in comparison. It’s tempting to look past the size of the issue and focus on how the cartoonist is able to communicate the impact of the issue. With the voting this year there were 3 entries that I battled with in their placement. Extremely tough, all winners.

JUDGE

Third Place

BRANT NEWS – DAVE MCCREARY

Can definitely relate to one coffee a day.

Lawrence Woodall

Lawrence Woodall is a wilderness/bear guide that spends six months of the year in the mountains and coastal regions of BC, hunting with cameras. He shares his knowledge of the wilderness through columns in the North Island Gazette and guest appearances in other papers. His time away from humanity gives him a fresh perspective in the creation of editorial cartoons, ignoring political correctness.

Premier Award – Layout

First Place

WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA

COMMUNITY SERVICE

The Muskoka Awards – A wonderful campaign highlighting the achievements of those who contribute to the success of the local area. This is especially evident in the space provided to honour each nominee, not just the winners. One really gets the sense this newspaper takes great pride in being an active and integral part of the community.

Second Place

OAKVILLE BEAVER

Sheridan College Celebrating Success – This joint project with a local college provided an excellent opportunity for the newspaper to engage many sectors of the community while helping mentor the leaders of tomorrow. It also clearly showed the newspaper’s ties and commitment to the local area.

GENERAL COMMENT

All of the entries proved community newspapers have an important role to play in the achievements and well-being of the people they serve. These newspapers don’t just inform and entertain, but they engage and make a positive difference in their readers’ lives. Congratulations to all of the nominees.

Third Place

SCUGOG STANDARD

Chrome by the Lake Classic Car Show and Shine – An all-around enjoyable showcase of this newspaper’s commitment and service to the local area. The editorial copy and advertising engaged and entertained – and the event itself looks to have been quite lively and well-received by the entire community.

Christopher Vaughan

Christopher Vaughan is editor-manager of The Georgian community newspaper in Stephenville, NL. He was promoted to his current role in early 2012 after working as The Georgian’s reporter and editor. He earned a B.A. from Memorial University and a B.J. from the University of King’s College.

The Muskoka Awards – A wonderful cam

Premier Award – Layout

Number of entries: 36

First Place

FORT FRANCES TIMES

BEST VERTICAL PRODUCT

Discover Fort Frances and Rainy River District – Attractive layout, engaging subject matter, to the point and direct. Geared to people unfamiliar with the area and immediately useful. Mapping with locations and insets layed out with local photography gave a very natural flow.

Second Place

BRACEBRIDGE EXAMINER

Cottage Under Construction

– Attractive and uncluttered layout, very useful subject matter. Stayed on topic and remained immediately useful. Plenty of gorgeous display ads that did not crowd or chop up editorial. Remained local, and on topic with consistent quality.

Third Place

BARRY’S BAY, THE VALLEY GAZETTE

GENERAL COMMENT

Very competitive category. Half of the entries were within five points of each other in total score, with many identical totals. In fact there was a six way tie for fourth place. With such a broad spectrum in subject matter, it was very difficult to pick favorites since many appealed to me personally for different reasons. I had to stick to the judging criteria as close as possible and just see where things ended up.

JUDGE

Ted Brewer

Madawaska Valley & Neighbours

– Interesting vignettes of each community. Topical photography for each region, but not too much repetition. Great format for a guide to bring along on adventures. Plenty of advertising revenue, but kept a decent balance with editorial.

Ted Brewer has been involved in sales and marketing for some of Canada’s largest corporations for over 20 years and most of that time has been spent in a National Accounts sales environment. He has a BA from the University of Guelph and has earned many sales and marketing accreditations over the years to grow and foster his professional development. He is always willing to think outside the box. Since joining AdReach as a National Accounts Manager six years ago, Ted has sold hundreds of thousands of advertising into Ontario’s Community Newspapers and has become an invaluable resource to clients, agencies and publishers alike.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Niagara this Week, Niagara Falls

GENERAL COMMENT

The process of going through these entries was a good way to remind oneself of what a community newspaper is. In judging, I looked for a “traditional” layout which is comprised of great photos, local content and pleasing layout. Many of the entries had front pages which were laid out in a magazine style with little or no written copy so it was difficult to judge “writing.” Most had amazing photos and many had creative layout. I looked for “interest” below the fold and length of front page stories. Many newspapers carried all of the front pages stories to the inside, where I would have liked to see a complete story on the front page. Judging them all together was a difficult task but in the end the winners exemplified “community” newspapers. It is gratifying to see that newspapers still exist and are dedicated to writing about the people and events in their community. Overall, excellent selections and job well done by all entrants. Only a few points, in many cases, separated the top three winners from the others.

JUDGE

First Place

BURLINGTON POST

The front page of the this paper provides a dramatic and unforgettable story with great photographs. The page draws in the readers and gives enough pertinent information on the story but still makes them want to delve deeper into the paper. Good balance between the visual and the written story. The Burlington Post poses questions while reporting on what is known and doesn’t overly dramatize with “accident” photos. A great layout overall, which leads me to believe the entire paper has the same care and attention.

Second Place

NIAGARA THIS WEEK, WELLAND

A pleasing layout with a great photo. A picture really is worth a thousand words. The photo draws the attention without being the entire focus of the front page. The teasers do not over power and have enough interest to make you want to turn the pages. Interesting above and below the fold. It was pleasing to see so many community newspapers strive to engage their readers from the first page onwards.

Third Place

PORT PERRY STAR

This front page caught my attention because of the untraditional take on Rememberance Day. It is softly poignant and the photo speaks for itself. The story and the photo relate making for a great front page. Community newspapers are all about giving coverage to those “local” stories and people who make the news in the community.

Pirjo Raits

For the past 20 years, Pirjo Raits has worked in the community newspaper fraternity. She has seen the newspaper industry change from the cut and paste days to the advent of computers and an online presence. She believes in the importance of local newspapers and the role they play in forging communities, especially in this day and age of social media. She is an award-winning writer and photographer who has worked as a reporter and editor for community newspapers in British Columbia. She has been the editor of the Sooke News Mirror for the past eight years.

Premier Award – Front Page

Number of entries: 31

First Place

COBDEN SUN

CIRC. -9,999

It was a toss up between first and second. This won out because only one of the three stories was carried over. Any more than one, in my opinion, loses the reader because some readers will never flip back and forth like they would have to if they had three stories carried over. I liked the placement and the positioning of photos at a slant for the On The Inside, as well as the listing of the other less important stories, but important in my opinion to draw readers to the inside, whether it be their favourite puzzle or columnists. The page lost some points because, although balanced, it was three vertical columns of news. With a little work, I think the design in layout could have been better.

Second Place

FORT FRANCES TIMES

Content and quality of writing were very good and the page well balanced with good photos. However, in my opinion, it lost reader appeal when it came to all three stories being carry overs and, worse yet, they were all carried over in mid-sentence. Very good use of varying size and fonts in the headlines. On The Inside, I prefer to see the regular items including columnists, puzzles and classifieds get some attention on front page to draw all types of readers to the inside pages.

HONOURABLE MENTION

West Carleton Review EMC

GENERAL COMMENT

This was a very difficult category to judge as all 31 were good, but to float up to the top, a page had to be extra good. So it was the small things that gave extra points. Some had no news on front so it was difficult to give any points for ‘quality of writing’, so watch when choosing an entry that you know how the points are being distributed. Good use of headlines and variations of fonts and size but not so much use of ‘pull quotes’ which would have helped break up some of the long stories. White space is also valuable as well as balance in layout and design. Some front pages had the advertising over power the news. My biggest complaint was the carry over stories and many in mid sentence, even some in mid word. The most carry over stories on the front page should be one, in my opinion. Despite a great deal of time commitment, it was a pleasure to glimpse into the world of Ontario newspapers.

JUDGE

Third Place

NEW HAMBURG INDEPENDENT

The ‘ragged right’ in the news copy tended to give valuable white space on front page and therefore easier for the reader. I like the On The Inside layout however, some might miss the sports item. Putting the catch words in red did help but maybe the CCNA Blue ribbon divided it from the INSIDE title too much. As I previously mentioned in the first two winning entries, the value of the items including letters, classifieds, kit’s corner being on front page adds value to the reader but a carry over in mid sentence lost points.

Joyce Webster

Joyce Webster has been in the community newspaper business for 32 years, with 27 of those as the publisher/owner of the (Coronation, Ab.) East Central Alberta Review. Not having studied journalism, she has taken it upon herself throughout the 27 years to absorb as much as she can through courses on design, writing and photography and has won a substantial number of awards. Webster is a member of AWNA and CCNA and ISWNE (International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors) where she has received invaluable information in critiquing newspapers.

BEST SPORTS SECTION Premier Award – Section/Series

First Place

BURLINGTON POST

A combination of dynamic writing, vibrant photography and exciting layout completes the triple-threat that makes this a winning sports section. Even a casual reader would feel the enthusiasm that Post reporters and photographers put into their work.

Second Place

KINCARDINE INDEPENDENT

Josh Howald has solid reporting skills and is a capable photographer with a deep understanding of a wide variety of sports that he pursues relentlessly. And he writes a column, too, so nothing seems to slow him down.

GENERAL COMMENT

The 39 entries in the Best Sports Section category were a challenge to judge due to the largely overall degree of excellence found in each newspaper. This category included community newspapers both large and small. Some were blessed by being located where major amateur sports are played and others relied largely on high school and youth activities. It was gratifying to see the quality of reporting, writing, photography and presentation at all levels. The three newspapers selected in this category were nominated for entirely different reasons. Each offered great strengths in their own particular way. It would be worthwhile for every newspaper entered in this category to take a close look at what the nominees have done to get to the head of their class

Third Place

BRACEBRIDGE EXAMINER

This newspaper really knows how to put the “community” into local sports reporting. It understands the significance of local sporting events, capitalizes on the area’s unique activities and puts it all together in a pleasant package.

Brian McAndrew began his newspaper career at the Tilbury Times in the mid-1970s before moving on to the Woodstock Sentinel-Review and The Windsor Star. He spent 27 years at the Toronto Star as a reporter, city assignment editor and associate sports editor. He is the co-author of two books --Soft Target: How the Indian Intelligence Service Penetrated Canada (1989) following the Air-India bombing in 1985 and Niagara Parks Butterflies (2000).

Brian McAndrew

Premier Award – Section/Series

Number of entries: 31

First Place

HUNTSVILLE FORESTER

The Huntsville Forester’s Tribute to Veterans stands out for several reasons: The advertising support was tremendous, a clear sign of the community’s support for veterans and for the project. The quality of editorial content was rich and varied, lots of people who had beautiful stories to tell, and they were all wonderfully written and presented. The special section was designed and laid out very nicely and was incredibly visually appealing.

Second Place

BARRIE ADVANCE

The Barrie Advance’s special section to Joe Anderson was a wonderful tribute to an individual who clearly had an impact on the entire community. Advertising support was spectacular and the editorial content was superb. The section was also visually appealing and presented.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Muskoka, What’s Up Muskoka – Muskoka Antique & Classic Boating 2012 – Simply stunning visually!

GENERAL COMMENT

This was a difficult category to judge because all of the entries submitted were creative, informative and incredibly well done. I enjoyed reading them all and each newspaper should be proud of their efforts to highlight their communities and community newspapers.

JUDGE

Third Place

NIAGARA THIS WEEK, NIAGARA FALLS

Niagara This Week’s presentation of Nik Wallenda’s walk across Niagara Falls was a wonderful combination of news, history and education combined with advertising that is sure to be kept by readers for many years to come.

Jackie Jardine

Jackie Jardine is the editor of The Advocate, a weekly newspaper in Pictou, Nova Scotia that boasts a strong circulation base and loyal readership. The newspaper’s focus is local, people-focused news, which she believes to be cornerstones of community newspapers. In addition to The Advocate, she is also the editor for two monthly magazines – The Light, which focuses on the North Shore of Nova Scotia, and the Atlantic Fisherman magazine which is circulated throughout the Atlantic Provinces.

Premier Award – Section/Series

First Place

COBDEN SUN

SPECIAL SECTION

CIRC. - 9,999

The Cobden Sun rose to the top of the category with its farming supplement “Get to know your neighbours.” The issue was a combination of excellent printing and presentation with lots of colour complementing interesting and diverse stories. Well supported by advertisers, thanks for raising the standard for us all.

Second Place

EGANVILLE LEADER

The Eganville Leader with its colourful St. Patrick’s Day edition including photos of the Emerald Isle, stories of local Irish fans and activities for the leprechaun in all of us falls just short of the gold pot but nevertheless garners recognition for second best in the category.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Alexandria Glengarry News & New Hamburg Independent – Honourable mention should go to the Glengarry News for its creative editorial writing about attending the Glengarry Highland Games and the New Hamburg Independent’s Face of the Future issue, a novel way to include youth in the paper and the community.

GENERAL COMMENT

This year’s entrants celebrated everything from anniversaries to St. Patrick’s Day and illustrating the diversity of the cultures in the communities in which the newspapers serve.

JUDGE

Third Place

BARRY’S BAY, THE VALLEY GAZETTE

The Valley Gazette’s Christmas issue, for its strong presentation and layout, is third. The emotional story of a family overcoming tragedy was an emotional and excellent read.

Brian Lazzuri

Brian Lazzuri is managing editor of the Casket newspaper, Canada’s oldest weekly newspaper. Establishing in 1852, the Casket has a circulation of 4,000 and serves as the community newspaper for Antigonish, N.S. As managing editor he has helped launch the Quad County EXTRA, a total market vehicle reaching more than 20,000 homes in the Strait Area, instituted a redesign in the Casket and developed an on-line presence for the paper. In 2011 and 2012, the Casket was honoured by the Canadian Community Newspaper Association with blue ribbons, finishing second in class in the 2012 Better Newspaper Competition. The Atlantic Community Newspaper Association has recognized Lazzuri with for his editorial writing and the Casket and its employees for various categories. Brian and his wife Clare live in Ashdale with their five children where he enjoys spending time with his family, reading, politics, sports and planting and growing a vegetable garden, just not weeding it.

Premier Award – Advertising

Number of entries: 42

BEST CREATIVE AD

First Place

MISSISSAUGA NEWS

Great creativity by Azam Baqa. Iceberg concept works and well thought out. Good use of colours.

Second Place

BURLINGTON POST

Easy to read ad. Right to the point.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Sudbury Northern Life – Interesting concept for the usage of QR codes.

GENERAL COMMENT

Too much text diminishes the visual and creative impact of an ad.

JUDGE

Third Place

ORILLIA TODAY

Arlene Blackwood has an interesting use of golf balls to make the point.

George Guzmas

George Guzmas has been working in the media field for the last 30 years including 8 years on Greek Radio and 12 years at his self produced Greek Television program. He is co-owner and co publisher with his partner George Bakoyannis of 4 newspapers in the Greater Island of Montreal all of them members of the QCNA. - The Laval News, The North Shore News, The Parc Extension News and The Greek Canadian News with a total circulation of over 70 000 every two weeks and a readership of 300 000 readers. Their newspapers have been awarded throughout the years with more than 40 awards in various editorial and content competitions. In 2008 and again in 2012, Mr. Guzmas received from Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor The Honourable David C. Onley the award of distinguished services to the Canadian society by the Media Council Of Canada. In 2012 he was also the recipient of the Queen Elisabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his media career and his service to the Canadian society.

Premier Award – Advertising

First Place

CREEMORE ECHO

IN HOUSE PROMOTION

Really nice creative adapt by Sara Hershoff. It is a simple idea that promotes the paper on your doorstep. Great job.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Markham Economist & Sun – I would definitely stop and look at this page...and there’s a lot of fun here.

GENERAL COMMENT

The winners listed really “stood above the crowd” in the category by either being very visually appealing or very interactive.

JUDGE

Second Place

BRANT NEWS

I love that this is interactive and has a life beyond reading it on the page. Almost first place...so close...

Third Place

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

Really effective. Pat Merlihan has a really well designed ad.

Wayne Aubert

Wayne Aubert is a Professor and the Program Coordinator for the Advertising Program at Mohawk College in Hamilton Ontario. He has over 25 years of advertising industry experience and is also a Program Director with the Institute of Communication Agencies (ICA) in Toronto.

Premier Award – Advertising

Number of entries: 32

First Place

ORANGEVILLE BANNER

LOCAL RETAIL LAYOUT

The group shot felt a little crowded (that’s a lot of people to fit in!) but Jennifer Hannan took a lot of content and has done the layout quite nicely.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Nunavut News/North – It can’t be easy having to do ads in both languages...but Petra Ehrke has done a nice job!

GENERAL COMMENT

This category felt “a little crowded” on submissions. The winning entries truly had some discretion on layout and created relatively clean ads compared to some of the other submissions which were a bit disappointing this year.

JUDGE

Second Place

KAWARTHA LAKES/NORTH DURHAM CAPS COMMUNITY NEWS

Good choice on photography...made me pause to admire the shots.

Third Place

MILTON CANADIAN CHAMPION

Tim Coles uses a very appealing choice of colours and images.

Wayne Aubert

Wayne Aubert is a Professor and the Program Coordinator for the Advertising Program at Mohawk College in Hamilton Ontario. He has over 25 years of advertising industry experience and is also a Program Director with the Institute of Communication Agencies (ICA) in Toronto.

Premier Award – Advertising

First Place

WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA

CIRC. 10,000+

Very well put together product. Easy and attractive. Well done!

HONOURABLE MENTION

Collingwood/Wasaga Connection – What a wonderful concept. Well thought out campaign.

GENERAL COMMENT

Seeing these projects and ad campaigns come together in print was a rewarding experience for me. The process was easy to follow and the shared ideas are wonderful. All of the entrants should be proud of a job well done. Each one had a variety of positives that I look for when creating an ad/campaign. Keep the ideas flowing. They are a valuable tool for the rest of us!

JUDGE

Second Place

KAWARTHA LAKES/NORTH DURHAM CAPS COMMUNITY NEWS

Packs alot of punch for the advertisers. Great job.

Third Place

WATERDOWN FLAMBOROUGH REVIEW

Alistair Murray has a very attractive page, great design and impact.

Mitzi Munro

The Prince Albert Daily Herald has been a pillar of the community for over 100 years. Mitzi started as an Advertising Sales Representative for the Daily Herald in 1980-83, left and had two children, and returned full time in April of 1996. She presently has two grandchildren and loves every minute of it! In January of 2011 she obtained the role of Advertising Director. Newspaper is something that is a passion of hers. Our newspaper is proud to be part of Transcontinental Media and has moved into the digital age offering many online products as well as mobile platforms. They pride themselves with being a multi-media outlet for their clients and advertisers. Mitzi manages a staff of eight and they are always seeking to create the ideal campaign for their clients. Thank you for the opportunity to judge these wonderful projects. Sharing of ideas creates great results for anyone involved in marketing.

Premier Award – Advertising

Number of entries: 10

First Place

BARRY’S BAY, THE VALLEY GAZETTE

Gregory Zawidzki has a beautiful visual. Great use of colour, simple, strong impact, good copy line. Very appetizing!

Second Place

MANOTICK MESSENGER

Good headline and copy, nice image. Relayed the message in an interesting way. Well put together overall.

GENERAL COMMENT

Very creative! In many cases there was a lot of information to include, sponsors, etc., yet the designs weren’t sacrificed. Also some great copy lines that really relayed the message well.

JUDGE

Third Place

WINGHAM ADVANCE TIMES

Very clean layout for a lot of information. Liked the school bus background. Bright, cheerful and easy to read.

Darlene Giles

Darlene is the President of Dazzle Communications, a marketing communications company that provides online, print and broadcast marketing materials, media liaison, as well as business, PR and creative writing services. Prior to starting her consulting business, Darlene was Creative Director for SPAR Group and the former Wings & Ink. There she led the development of award-winning creative product for clients including Dun & Bradstreet, Honeywell, Xerox, Moneris Solutions, Rothmans, Benson & Hedges, Lotus/IBM, Second Cup, Chubb Security and many more. Before joining Wings & Ink, Darlene worked as Advertising Manager with Caterpillar and as Creative Associate for a leading Atlantic Canada advertising agency.

Premier Award – Colour

HONOURABLE MENTION

Midland/Penetanguishene Mirror – Krista Kiefer uses bright colours reflecting the product and to attract the consumer eye.

GENERAL COMMENT

Many great entries with strong design and original ideas on ways to utilize colour to break through and attract the consumer’s eye.

JUDGE

USE OF PROCESS COLOUR

First Place

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

Leslie Kellow-Hall

reflectin Leanne

Bright colours reflecting the seasonality. Leanne Boron’s choice of colours unifies the message and makes the ad easy to navigate.

Second Place

COBDEN SUN

Tara Yourth has a strong use of colour to pull together many diverse messages.

Third Place

OAKVILLE BEAVER

Stylish way to use colour to tell the story.

Leslie Kellow-Hall is the VP of Production for Fuel Advertising in Toronto. Leslie has more than 30 years experience in the marketing communications industry in the production and operations areas. Leslie has managed interactive and print studios, production management and operation departments in several major and boutique agencies. Leslie’s experience spans the gamut of interactive, CRM and traditional mass advertising. Leslie is an instructor with the Institute of Communication Agencies and has taught the Certified Print Production Practitioner’s course for 15 years. Leslie has sat on the Mohawk College Marketing Communication Advisory Board for five years.

Premier Award – Online

Number of entries: 18

First Place

MISSISSAUGA NEWS

The Mississauga News delivers great content consistently on a clean and easy to navigate site. The news is provided through the medium that most effectively delivers the story providing a delightful variety of multi-media options throughout the site.

Second Place

CALEDON ENTERPRISE

The positioning of the Community Contributions buttons on the home page – embedded with top stories – sends a powerful message about community involvement in the paper which is borne out online.

GENERAL COMMENT

There were some outstanding examples of online papers in this category. Papers that clearly understand that building readership is key whether the paper in hand is on newsprint or a tablet/iPad. There were a surprising number of entries this year with great online foundations but sporting abandoned content areas, sporadic updates or broken links. Investing time and resources in your online product is an investment in your future and can’t be abandoned as belts are tightened. Be inspired by our finalists as they use tried and true tools - with an online twist – for building loyal readers for years to come.

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman

Third Place

THUNDER BAY SOURCE

The Source’s site effectively blends a variety of online tools to deliver local news and events. Reader engagement is high based on the astounding number of comments on most articles.

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman has over 20 years experience in publishing. Cheryl began agency-side before moving across the country to work with Black Press, first on the print side and then moving to the Digital division as the company evolved their online strategy, moving from Director of Marketing to Director of Operations. Working closely with over 80 online publications, Cheryl was provided with a unique opportunity to grow the online audience from virtually the ground up and experienced first-hand the exciting changes and challenges of online publishing. Cheryl is currently working with the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce on their websites and providing online guidance for their 1500 members.

Premier Award – Online

BEST COMMUNITY WEBSITE/ WEBPORTAL CIRC. -9,999

First Place

MANITOULIN EXPOSITOR

The Expositor’s commitment to interacting with its readers is a strong tool in building loyal readers. Contests and news polls allow for a more dynamic and immediate interaction. Great use of online functionality for classifieds & employment.

Second Place

SIOUX LOOKOUT WAWATAY NEWS

Great integration of all facets of media video, audio and articles both as stand alone areas on the site as well as through multimedia articles. Impressive use of online technology to integrate multilingual needs.

GENERAL COMMENT

These community papers may deliver under 9,999 in print but their online goals aren’t restrained by their delivery zones. I was impressed by the imagination and innovative ideas that each paper developed in order to better provide outstanding community coverage. It is this kind of will to succeed, and sheer grit in some cases, that has built community papers across the province and efforts like this make it clear that we will continue to do so for years to come.

Third Place

CREEMORE ECHO

Cohesive community tools like the Creemore Echo’s community calendar are key to building a strong online product.

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman has over 20 years experience in publishing. Cheryl began agency-side before moving across the country to work with Black Press, first on the print side and then moving to the Digital division as the company evolved their online strategy, moving from Director of Marketing to Director of Operations. Working closely with over 80 online publications, Cheryl was provided with a unique opportunity to grow the online audience from virtually the ground up and experienced first-hand the exciting changes and challenges of online publishing. Cheryl is currently working with the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce on their websites and providing online guidance for their 1500 members.

Premier Award – Online

Number of entries: 12

ONLINE SPECIAL PROJECT/EVENT/ BREAKING NEWS COVERAGE

First Place

OSHAWA THIS WEEK

London 2012 Olympics – A spectacular example of good planning and great execution providing the perfect platform for delivering high quality stories and photos. Even more impressive – hitting their revenue targets.

GENERAL COMMENT

This category presented an impressive selection of special issues and breaking news coverage where journalists were able to leverage a broad band of tools from online to print to social media to multi-media presentations in order to deliver their message into the waiting hands of their community.

JUDGE

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman

THUNDER BAY SOURCE

Emergencies Declared –Great to see the integration of the community into delivering the story. I was impressed at the on-the-spot decision making that resulted in the paper rising to the challenge of providing key info as it happened as it was needed to a struggling community.

Second Place Third Place

MISSISSAUGA NEWS

Mississauga Judicial Inquiry –

Very impressed by the online tools used like CoverItLive and the manner in which the coverage was organized to create easy to understand timelines and issues for a complicated story

Cheryl Wirch-Ryckman has over 20 years experience in publishing. Cheryl began agency-side before moving across the country to work with Black Press, first on the print side and then moving to the Digital division as the company evolved their online strategy, moving from Director of Marketing to Director of Operations. Working closely with over 80 online publications, Cheryl was provided with a unique opportunity to grow the online audience from virtually the ground up and experienced first-hand the exciting changes and challenges of online publishing. Cheryl is currently working with the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce on their websites and providing online guidance for their 1500 members.

Premier Award – Online

First Place

TORONTO BEACHRIVERDALE-EAST YORK TOWN CRIER

Second Place

Third Place

OCNA MEMBERS JUDGES

Each OCNA Member Newspaper was given a chance to vote for the Surfers Selection Award. They were instructed to choose a first and second choice for the Best Website. Each First choice pick was given two points and each second choice pick was given one point.

Premier Award – Online

Number of entries: 4

JUDGES

OCNA MEMBERS

MANITOULIN EXPOSITOR

Second Place

CREEMORE ECHO

Third Place

Each OCNA Member Newspaper was given a chance to vote for the Surfers Selection Award. They were instructed to choose a first and second choice for the Best Website. Each First choice pick was given two points and each second choice pick was given one point.

COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY AWARDS

College / University

Number of entries: 15

STUDENT FEATURE WRITING

First Place

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – OTIENA ELLWAND

This entry stood out for its clear, concise writing, its quality reporting and its insight into a challenge faced by all modern post-secondary institutions.

Second Place

HUMBER COLLEGE – KATLYN FLEDDERUS

Sports writing is often a difficult place to find new, interesting angles. Katlyn succeeded with this piece. Best layout of the bunch as well.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Humber College – Michael Gregory – Some solid reporting about an important topic. Would have been stronger had Michael talked to some students affected by the grant situation

GENERAL COMMENT

The best stories in this category were the ones where it was clear the writers had done their homework. Some promising journalists here!

JUDGE

Third Place

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – KATHERINE ENGQVIST

An always important topic gained new poignancy with Katherine’s profile of a student who had come to terms with her depression.

Brad Holden

Brad Holden is the editor of the Creemore Echo. He’s a past winner of six OCNA Better Newspaper Awards and one CCNA Better Newspaper Award.

College / University

First Place

STUDENT NEWS WRITING

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – KATIA DMITRIEVA

Brilliantly written with a variety of sources. Through interviews with classmates and teachers, this story paints a vivid portrait of the deceased. Aided by strong photography.

Second Place

HUMBER COLLEGE – ALEX CONSIGLIO

A very close second. Solid writing and photography.

Third Place

HONOURABLE MENTION

Loyalist College – Sean Macey

GENERAL COMMENT

Overall, was very impressed with a calibre of writing from all entrants.

JUDGE

Scott Howard

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – SARAH ROBINSON

An in-depth look at the difficulties students have accessing mental health support. Variety of sources adds immensely.

Scott Howard is the editor of the Brock Citizen, a newspaper serving the residents of Brock Township – a community in the north end of Durham Region.

College / University

Number of entries: 15

First Place

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – JOELLE TOMLINSON

First place was an easy pick, a very nice image, with great contrast and colour. The photographer went out of their way to come back with a captivating photo. Well thought out and well planned.

HONOURABLE MENTION

Niagara College – Chris Funston – It was nice to see that this photographer took the time to turn a mundane headshot into something a little different. Well done.

GENERAL COMMENT

On a whole a rather poor crop of images. Some just did not belong in this competition. There were other images on the same page as the entries that were better examples of photography than those entered. The sports images in particular were very poorly executed. I feel that these young photographers have to push themselves a little more. I believe they are capable of much better work in the future.

JUDGE

Second Place

LOYALIST COLLEGE – KRISTEN HAVEMAN

Nice photo from the annual polar plunge. Good reaction and well executed.

Third Place

LOYALIST COLLEGE – DAN PEARCE

Nice image. Had to look twice to see what was actually happening in this photo. A cluttered background took away from the main focus of the photo.

Ron Pietroniro

Ron recently began his 25th year in Metroland, all in the Durham Region. He is now serving as the Managing Editor of Multi Media after being a photographer for 22 years. Ron has been the recipient of over 20 awards for photographic excellence and covered the 2008 Beijing Olympics for Metroland. He helped to launch the award winning Night & Day book series in 2011 and 2012, a 24 hour one day book of photos and stories.

College / University

BEST COLLEGE / UNIVERSITY WEBSITE

First Place

LOYALIST COLLEGE – QNET NEWS

QNET News had consistent branding, colours and clear content hierarchy. The site had a nice slider on the homepage and featured many technical features such as RSS feeds, podcasts, videos and an online TV channel with newscasts. The addition of another advertising region could help improve their revenue streams. This site excelled in many aspects, making it the winner for this category.

Second Place

RYERSON UNIVERSITY – THE RYERSONIAN

HONOURABLE MENTION

Niagara College

GENERAL COMMENT

All of the sites offered great solutions and are very valuable to their post-secondary institutions. The inclusion of community involvement funnels combined with proper revenue streams results in a complete and successful web property. If adopted, all of these properties will be top notch!

JUDGE

Mathieu Beausoliel

The Ryersonian had consistent branding and their site was clean and easy to read. The site contains live video and an online TV channel with newscasts. The addition of another advertising region could help improve their revenue streams. The header did not load in Internet Explorer which should be reviewed due to the browsers popularity. Certainly, a very close second place finish.

Third Place

HUMBER COLLEGE – ET CETERA

The Humber Et Cetera had good content hierarchy and a newsy feel. There were several advertising regions with properly targeted advertisements which will ensure proper revenue streams. The use of social feeds and buttons combined with the homepage slider and video made this site a top contender.

Mathieu Beausoleil is the Web & Digital Media Manager with Northern Life in Sudbury. He’s the past winner of the 2011 OCNA Best Community Website/Webportal award and the 2012 CCNA Best Website Circulation 12,500 and over.

2012 Community Award

in Memory of Mary Knowles

Gerry Harvieux, Editor of the Tilbury Times

Work for a cause – not for applause. Live life to express – not to impress. Don’t strive to make your presence noticed – just make your absence felt. These are the words written on a sign that hangs above Gerry Harvieux’s desk. Not only are they the words he lives by; they are also perfect words to represent who Gerry is as a person.

Gerry is currently the editor of the Tilbury Times, a position he has held on and off for a combined total of 14 years. His career with the newspaper industry, however, began in 1985 when he was hired for his first reporter position at the Wallaceburg Courier Press. Later he was hired with the Tilbury Times and has served as editor three times, under four different owners. His name has become synonymous with the newspaper in the community.

It’s evident that Gerry is as passionate for the newspaper as he is for his community, a place he has called home for more than 40 years.

Gerry has been an active volunteer in his community for roughly 30 years. He has chaired various projects, lends a hand to others when necessary and is always willing to do whatever he can to make Tilbury the best it can be.

One of Gerry’s most notable involvements includes the Tilbury Family Funfest. In 2009, when he first hopped on board, the long-standing event was dying. Over the years, Gerry has helped the event’s sponsorship grow from $5,000 to an amazing $40,000. An event that once drew 1,000 guests, now welcomes more than 5,000 over the course of three days.

In 2011, while covering a Tilbury Chamber of Commerce meeting, Gerry was upset when he learned the group had no financial support to continue the annual Santa Claus Parade.

It was then that Gerry stepped forward and offered his time to organize the parade, promising he would find the funds to continue. Since then this event has grown and with the help of his constant promotion in the newspaper, groups who had not been involved for more than a decade, have begun to participate again.

Despite all other commitments, Gerry is an active member of the Tilbury Rotary Club and works to promote their image and projects in the community. He helps provide poster and billboard designs and marketing advice to the Tilbury Drug Awareness Team. In the past he has served as a member of the Tilbury Optimist Club, the Tilbury Minor Hockey Association’s Executive Board and has volunteered with the Tilbury Youth Centre.

Gerry has served as a volunteer judge for the OCNA Better Newspaper Competition and the OCNA Junior Citizen of the Year Awards.

Gerry is always willing to help those in need. He is not one to turn the spotlight on himself. Instead, he prefers to downplay his efforts and focus the attention on those who helped him accomplish the various projects.

The Mary Knowles Award is coordinated by the Ontario Community Newspapers Foundation. It wishes to recognize those in the community newspaper business who contribute their own time to the betterment of their communities. The award also recognizes the intimate connection community newspapers have with their communities.

Congratulations to Gerry and all of this year’s nominees for showing such leadership and dedication to your communities.

Class 5... continued

Class 8 (College & University)

Young Astronomers Participate in OPG’s March Break Madness Program.

2012 SPONSOR ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

would like to thank all our award sponsors:

Fort Frances Times

Giant Tiger Stores Limited

Hydro One Networks Inc.

Laurentian Publishing

Metroland Media Group Ltd., Southwestern Ontario Division

Metro Creative Graphics

Northern News Services

O’Donnell, Robertson & Sanfilippo

Ontario Federation of Agriculture

Ontario General Contractors Association

Ontario Journalism Educators Association

Ontario Power Generation

Young Drivers of Canada

New drop shadows on this one.