It was a weekend that lived up to its potential. With the Westender newspaper and sister magazine, The Alchemist, up for a total of nine awards at the British Columbia Yukon Community Newspaper Association's annual Ma Murray Awards gala, the team ultimately took home a tally of three bronze, one silver, and five golds at the April 29 ceremony at River Rock Casino – tied for the most first place finishes out of any newspaper group in the province.
As the evening began, the paper earned first in its class for Best Special Section for its comprehensive Pride 2016 coverage. “A bright, fun section. Thorough and full of useful information,” wrote a BCYCNA judge. “It engages readers and gives Pride-goers everything they need to make the most of the event.”
In writing awards, editor Kelsey Klassen was honoured with a gold Arts & Culture award for her emotive piece on painter Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun. “Art and the Indian Act is an important article because it educates non-indigenous people about the experience of indigenous people in Canada – a history that has long been ignored and disbelieved,” the judge explained. “The writing is artistic, precise and informative. I can only hope the reader learned something.”
Meanwhile, longtime Westender film and television writer Sabrina Furminger took bronze in the same category for her “strong and insightful” piece on Dene lawyer and environmental activist Caleb Behn, followed by the Westender’s resident opinionator, Grant Lawrence, taking home some gold hardware for his Kits retrospective, Positively 4th Avenue: The rise and fall of Canada’s hippie mecca. “Engaging, informative, and well-researched […],” wrote the judge. “A great read.”
In door prize news, Grant also won a spiffy new Apple watch thanks to this 'gram from the event, which emcee Fiona Forbes dubbed "jazzy suit Lionel Richie." In that moment, we all regretted not taking more selfies.
Over on the design front, in addition to being on a number of the other award-winning teams, Westender creative manager Tara Rafiq took home a trio of personal awards: Gold for collaborative ad design for her “tantalizing” work with Via Tevere Pizzeria Napoletana; silver for her colourful Denman Liquor Store Pride ad; and bronze for her “clever” Growler craft beer handbook promotional spot.
The Westender also won bronze for newspaper promotion for its “polished and well executed” Best of the City Dining poll campaign, which encouraged readers to vote in the paper's annual readers' choice food and drink awards.
And, speaking of food and drink, Alchemist publisher Gail Nugent, editor Fiona Morrow and designer Tara Rafiq were honoured with a first place award for their work on the paper's gorgeous seasonal craft cocktail guide. The mag also wins the unofficial award for best critique of the night: “A complete winner in every way, cover to cover,” the judging notes enthused. “Drop the mic."
The British Columbia Yukon Community Newspaper Association Ma Murray Awards celebrate the best in community publishing from across the province and territory. Newspapers of similar circulation size and writers from any eligible community newspaper compete against each other and are judged by a panel of industry experts. We congratulate all our fellow nominees. If the talent in the room was any indication, the future of journalism is in good hands. But, it can always use more support, so check out the tweets, Instagrams and videos from the awards by searching the hashtag #mamurray17, and show local journalism some love!
