The Evangelist is honored in four award categories

The Evangelist has won two major journalism awards during the annual Catholic Media Convention, held last week in Toronto:

* Former editor James Breig, who retired in April, won second place for a Jan. 11, 2007, editoral titled, "If not Saddam, then no one," discussing whether Catholic teaching on the death penalty should be strengthened even more in the wake of Saddam Hussein's hanging; and

* assistant editor Kate Blain won first place in the category of "best reporting on senior citizens" for "You can find nonagenarian atop chairs and mountains," a Dec. 6, 2007, feature article profiling 96-year-old Sister Catherine Schuyler, CSJ, who still serves at St. Cecilia's parish in Warrensburg -- and climbs mountains.

The annual competition includes diocesan newspapers from the U.S. and Canada. Regarding Mr. Breig's editorial, the judges stated: "This was a very smart topic that grabs you from the first paragraph and does an excellent job, step by step, of creating a persuasive case for its argument."

Ms. Blain's article garnered these comments from the panel of judges: "From the arresting headline/photo combination [see above photo] of a quite elderly person 'celebrating life' to the lively interchange between reporter and subject (right from the lead), this was an article on senior reporting to keep the reader's attention. A naturalness pervades the story; there is no evidence of cosmetic editing or smart wordplay...and there was clearly a story to tell. The end result is heartwarming, encouraging and [gives] a sense that reading this article was time well spent."

Ms. Blain also won two honorable mentions:

* one for feature writing, for "School comforted students after three parents died," a Jan. 25, 2007, article describing the grieving process at St. Jude's School in Wynantskill when three second-graders each lost a parent in less than a year; and

* one for "Good News for Kids," her weekly commentary aimed at children that reflects on the Sunday Gospel. This is the sixth time the column has been so honored.

(Read the award-winning articles and commentary at www.evangelist.org.)

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