MADISON, Wis. — Staff writer Erin Noha and photographer Paul Williams each earned three first-place awards to lead the Marinette Menominee EagleHerald to a Best Division award in the Wisconsin Newspapers Association Foundation 2023 Better Newspaper Awards contest.
The annual banquet took place Friday at the Madison Hotel and Governors Club in the shadows of the State Capitol.
The EagleHerald won 15 awards and three honorable mentions for its editorial work. The EagleHerald is in Division B, which includes daily (non-weekly) papers with a circulation under 9,999.
“I am very proud of the work performed over the last year,” said Mark Lewis, regional president of Adams Publishing Group Southern Wisconsin. “It is a credit to our news operations with the winning of this award. It is quite an honor for us all.”
EagleHerald general manager Todd Colling agreed.
“There was a lot of competition in this year’s WNA Awards Contest,” he said. “I’m proud of our talented team and what they’ve accomplished to earn these awards. Well deserved!”
Besides her three first-place awards, Noha also earned two thirds and an honorable mention. In addition to his firsts, Williams earned a second and a third.
Page designer Melissa Kowalczyk had a first-place winner and senior reporter Dan Kitkowski captured two second-place awards and one third. The entire news staff won a third-place for general excellence.
Sports editor Matt Lehmann had two honorable mentions and sports writer Josh Lacy had one honorable mention.
“This might be the best showing we’ve had from our editorial staff in my 33 years at the EagleHerald,” Kitkowski said. “I’m thrilled to say I’ve had a hand in hiring all of our writers and our photographer. They all are excellent and devoted in what they do. What a talented group.”
The awards:
Erin Noha
• First for Feature Story (Non-profile), for a story on Nick Schetter, a 27-year-old from Carney with Down Syndrome who competed in the swimming world championships.
Judge’s comments: “I loved every word of this piece. Nick is an inspiration to all and the writer did a fantastic job with this feature! This was by far the hardest to judge. Many really, great pieces!”
• First for Localized National Story, for a story on area students who attend Michigan State University and their reaction to a campus shooting.
Judge’s comments: “This is a tragedy that newsrooms across the nation must cover. The lede drew me in and made it personal. Great take on this.”
• First for Enterprise/Interpretive Reporting, for a series she wrote called “Vets & Pets.”
Judge’s comments: “An important, likely untold story across the country. Told exceptionally well using the stories of the actual people involved and members of the community impacted.”
• Third for Feature Story (Non-profile), for a story on a Menominee woman, Phoebe Anderla, who gave birth three months after her twin boys had surgery in the womb.
Judge’s comments: “I experienced every emotion with this one. Heartbreak, tears forming, and overall elation. Very nice!”
• Third for Reporting on Local Education. Noha submitted three stories for her coverage of the Menominee School Board.
Judge’s comments: “Complicated, difficult topics told well. Made it easy to understand issues within this district. Good mix of real families and officials quoted in stories instead of relying on officials alone to explain the impacts.”
• Honorable mention for Environmental Reporting, for a group of three stories titled, “Study confirms PFAS in the bay.” There were no judge’s comments.
Paul Williams
• First for Artistic Photo, for a photo titled, “Early morning light.”
Judge’s comments: “The position of the street lights draws your attention.”
• First for Feature Photo, for a photo titled, “Rocket outhouse.” He photographed the outhouse races at Da Yooper Winterfest in Menominee.
Judge’s comments: “Love the creativity with the rocket. God Bless the USA! Great feature photo!”
• First for Photo Essay, for a group of six photos titled “Breakfast on the farm,” from the Marinette County event.
Judge’s comments:” These great photos tell the story from multiple angles, eliciting excitement and interest among readers.”
• Second for Feature Photo, for a photo titled, “Here’s Looking at You.” It’s a closeup of pig at the Marinette County Fair.
Judge’s comments; “Piggy is ready for his closeup Mr. Deville. Love it!”
• Third for Artistic Photo, for a photo titled “Spectacular Ending.” It was the conclusion to a fireworks display on Stephenson Island in Marinette.
Judge’s comments; “The color and detail displayed is extraordinary.”
Melissa Kowalczyk
• First for Best Front Page. Each paper had to submit three front pages. The EagleHerald submitted front pages focusing on the disastrous Resolute Forest Products fire, the historic Menominee Opera House and a tense Menominee City Council meeting. Stories and photos were all tied together by Kowalczyk and her exceptional design skills.
Judge’s comments: “Great images and photo placement. I like how you mix up the format of the front page and don’t necessarily use the same template every day. The photo illustration for the opera house story is really cool.”
Dan Kitkowski
• Second for General News Story, for a story on the launch of the future U.S.S. Cleveland.
Judge’s comments: “Good use of details about the ship, about side-launching vs using a lift, and about the event. Liked the photos; they added to the story.”
• Second for Feature (Non-profile), for a story titled “To infinity and Beyond” about a NASA astronaut with ties to the Peshtigo Elementary Learning Center and his visit to the school.
Judge’s comments: “Good combination of description of the event and interviews. The front-page picture is exceptional.”
• Third for Breaking News, for a story about a fatal shooting in Marinette.
Judge’s comments: “Covering the good, bad, and sometimes ugly has no limits. Great use of informative breaking news reporting.”
Staff
• Third for General Excellence.
Judge’s comments: “Paper is nicely laid out with lots of good photos. Not a fan of the sports page jumping backwards.” (That experiment has since been stopped.)
{p dir=”ltr”}Matt Lehmann
{p dir=”ltr”}{span}• Honorable mention for Sports News, for a story titled, “Maroons slay Copper Kings behind Bardowski’s late-game heroics.” No judge’s comments.{/span}
{p dir=”ltr”}{span}• Honorable mention for Sports Feature, for a story titled, “Beating the Odds: Menominee’s Villas Named recipient of Gil Heard Courage Athlete Award.” No judge’s comments.{/span}
Josh Lacy
• Honorable mention for General News Photo, for a photo titled, “Class and Splash,” showing the U.S.S. Cleveland being side launched into the Menominee River. Lacy, normally an outstanding sports writer, stepped into a news role for this dramatic photo.
Judge’s comments: “The technical aspect of this photo is absolutely superb, but the other three just had stronger reader impacts.”
Best of Division winners were: The Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, Division A; The EagleHerald, Marinette and Menominee, Division B; The Lakeland Times, Minocqua, Division C; Superior Telegram, Division D; and The Northwoods River News, Rhinelander, Division E. Newspapers of the Year were, The Wisconsin State Journal for daily papers and The Lakeland Times for weekly papers.
The 2023 contest received 2,144 entries from 102 newspapers. Eligible entries were published between Sept. 1, 2022, and Aug. 31, 2023, and were judged by members of the Kentucky Press Association.
Jay Rothman, Universities of Wisconsin president, was the speaker at Friday’s banquet.
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