ST. FRANCIS — The Milwaukee Catholic Herald’s “Thanks Be To God, Gratitude for Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan” section earned the publication first place in the best one-time special issue category at the Catholic Press Association awards ceremony. The awards were presented June 4 as part of the CPA’s annual convention in New Orleans.
Of the 48-page staff effort, judges said, “The section’s clean layout, focused stories, and reader contributions mixed with highly focused advertising made this an interesting tribute from front to back.”
The Herald also earned second place in general excellence among papers with a circulation under 17,000. Judges said, “… the layout and content of the paper is newsy, helpful and connected to its community. It is not preachy like many of its peers. It shines in special sections, such as the Parenting edition and MyFaith, a section for young adults. The fish fry and movie listings were unique and very helpful. It appears to be more connected to its online edition than other papers of its ilk. This shows great instincts about the coming era of digital media dominance.”
The Madison Catholic Herald earned four awards, including a first place for an editorial on a local issue. Judges said Mary C. Uhler’s “Church is committed to helping the poor,” “achieves resonance and relevance to readers’ personal economic stresses.” Uhler received a third place for her editorial on a national issue titled “Draw an ethical line in regulating research.”
Uhler and Kat Wagner earned a second place in local news writing for their “Madison Surgery Center controversy” story.
Audrey Mettel Fixmer’s “Grand Mom” earned third place in the regular family life column category.
Megan Miller, editor of the Superior Catholic Herald, was awarded the first Ethel M. Gintoft scholarship during the ceremony. The scholarship is named for the late associate publisher of the Milwaukee Catholic Herald who died in June 2009.
Archbishop Emeritus Rembert G. Weakland’s book “A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church: Memories of an Archbishop,” received first place in the biography category.