The St. Albert Gazette was the recipient of 11 awards at the 2017 Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association (AWNA) Better Newspapers Competition Awards of Excellence on Friday.
The Gazette won first place for Best Overall paper, Best Local Editorial, Best Front Page, Best Sports Page and second place for Best Editorial Page.
The Gazette also won Best Special Section and Supplement for its Canada 150 project. The series of feature stories were produced by Kevin Ma in the months leading up to Canada's 150th birthday.
The publication also took home several photography awards. Photographer Dan Riedlhuber won first place in Multi-Photo for his piece “Gone to the Dogs” and second place in Photo Illustration and Sports Illustration.
Riedlhuber and Gazette photographer Chris Colbourne took home third place in Multi-Photo for their piece “Rodeo Roundup”.
Reporter Kevin Ma won third place in Excellence in Education Writing for his piece “STEAM-powered fun”. The article followed students as they participated in science-, technology-, and engineering-focused challenges
“It’s very gratifying and it’s a testament to the entire staff. We have a terrific newsroom that works hard and contributes on a daily basis,” said publisher Brian Bachynski.
“We’ve got great production staff and sales staff. Everyone in this building contributes to an award-winning product.”
When it comes to being an award-winning paper, being a passionate team player is a must.
“You have to have the passion and the drive to be successful. It’s the culture of our organization,” Bachynski said. “We do it because we owe it to our readers. Our readers are our number one priority without question.”
Other Great West publications to take home awards were: Rocky View Weekly, St. Paul Journal, Airdrie City View, Okotoks Western Wheel, Rocky Mountain Outlook, Cochrane Eagle, Lac La Biche Post, Westlock News, Athabasca Advocate and Bonyville Nouvelle.
