Newspaper garners awards at annual MPA conference

    LINCOLNVILLE — The Maine Press Association presented its Better Newspaper Contest awards on Oct. 17, at the organization’s annual conference at Point Lookout.
     Individually, Houlton Pioneer Times reporters Gloria Austin and Elna Seabrooks were recognized for their efforts in writing and photography.
    The Sun Journal of Lewiston earned top honors in both the daily and weekend newspaper categories. In the under 4,000 paid circulation weekly newspaper division, the Mount Desert Islander was judged best of its class while The Piscataquis Observer placed third behind The York Weekly. In the over 5,000 circulation group, the Bridgton News placed first, followed by the Star-Herald of Presque Isle and the Ellsworth American.
    More than 30 judges from Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island evaluated hundreds of entries in various categories from headlines to investigative reporting.
    In the Sports Photo category for weekly newspapers with over 4,000 paid circulation, Austin won first place for her “High Flying” basketball photograph. The judge called the shot an “excellent photo; captures an exciting play at the perfect moment. In the next split-second, either the shot will be blocked or a foul will be committed.”
    Austin earned third-place honors for her story “Catching a family tradition,” in the Sports Feature Story category. Judge Vince Sullivan, associate editor of the News of Delaware County (Penn.) said, “Good work detailing the inter-generational relationships between the two subjects. This is a feel-good story that shows the power of sports connecting old and young.”
FIRST-PLACE PHOTO  — Houlton Pioneer Times Sports Editor Gloria Austin won first place for her “High Flying” basketball photograph.     Austin teamed up with Pioneer Times graphic artist Melissa Wilcox to take second place in the Best Supplement Cover division for their work on the annual Hoop Preview.
    News reporter Seabrooks won a first-place award for her story “Northern Maine consolidation referendum” in the Analysis Story category. “Seabrooks puts the issue to readers clearly and completely,” wrote judge David Olsen, editor of the Salem (Mass.) News.
    In the Continuing Story division, Seabrooks earned third-place honors for her series “Many county residents face crisis.” Elizabeth Wayland-Seal, editor of The Cranston (R.I.) Herald wrote: “The choice to focus on a handful of real families — instead of the crisis as a whole — made these articles a perfect fit for the Houlton readership. The “heat or eat” series was a real gem.”
    Former Pioneer Times reporter Sarah Berthiaume earned a third-place award in the Feature Photo category for her front-page shot of a woman placing an American flag at Soldier’s Hill while managing editor Mark Putnam won third for “Rare bank note helps son settle score” in the Feature Story division.
AWARD-WINNER — Former Pioneer Times reporter Sarah Berthiaume earned a third-place award in the Feature Photo category for her front-page shot of a woman placing an American flag at Soldier’s Hill