{"id":6382,"date":"2026-06-09T15:33:40","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T19:33:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/betsiecurrent.com\/?p=6382"},"modified":"2026-06-09T15:33:45","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T19:33:45","slug":"award-and-grant-winning-journalism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/betsiecurrent.com\/index.php\/award-and-grant-winning-journalism\/","title":{"rendered":"Award- and Grant-Winning Journalism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Betsie Current <\/strong>wins eight state awards and a regional grant to work with Gen Z<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From Staff Reports<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have had a lot to celebrate recently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in April, The Betsie Current <\/em>won eight awards in five different categories from the Michigan Press Association\u2019s 2025 Better Newspaper Contest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   \u2022 In the \u201cSpot News\u201d category, our editor\/co-owner Aubrey Ann Parker won first place for \u201cDisaster Averted \u2013 The importance of being prepared at Sleeping Bear Dunes.\u201d The story is a play-by-play of 16-year-old Brody Patterson\u2019s contributions to the rescue of two young men from Ohio who were suffering from heat stroke. Since \u201cspot news\u201d is defined as \u201cimmediate, real-time reporting of unexpected events as they occur from the scene,\u201d this first-place win was a particular surprise to our team, because it is not often that The Betsie Current<\/em> covers breaking news stories. Thanks to Russ Patterson, the boy-hero\u2019s father, who called us with this story, so that we could tell it in our pages. (If you missed it, go to bit.ly\/DuneScare<\/a> online to read Parker\u2019s award-winning spot news story.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   \u2022 Our writers swept the \u201cOpinion\u201d category: first place went to Kendall Rose for \u201cLeave The Lights On \u2013 An essay on neighbors and nostalgia,\u201d second place went to Jess Piskor for \u201cOnce More Unto the Beech \u2013 Beach trees, passenger pigeons, and the struggle to survive in Northern Michigan,\u201d third place went to Tim Mulherin for \u201cNorthern Michigan Chaos Theory \u2013 An essay advocating for appreciative adaptation.\u201d (If you missed these award-winning opinion pieces, go to bit.ly\/HweenLights<\/a> online to read Rose\u2019s entry; go to bit.ly\/PPigeons<\/a> to read Piskor\u2019s; go to bit.ly\/NMChaos<\/a> to read Mulherin\u2019s.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   \u2022 In the \u201cFeature Story\u201d category, Bree McGregor won second place for \u201cSoaring High \u2013 Green Point Flyers sustain local tradition of motorless flight,\u201d while Aubrey Ann Parker won honorable mention for \u201cHave You Seen This Fish – Help needed to locate the 40s Fish.\u201d (If you missed these stories when they published in our pages, go to bit.ly\/GPFlyers<\/a> online to read McGregor\u2019s award-winning feature story or bit.ly\/40sFish<\/a> for Parker\u2019s.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   \u2022 In the \u201cBusiness News\u201d category, Keith Schneider won honorable mention for his profile of Honor Grocery: \u201cSmall Town Grocery \u2013 Outsized community role.\u201d (If you missed it, go to bit.ly\/HonorMarket<\/a> online to read Schneider\u2019s award-winning business news story.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

   \u2022 In the \u201cSpecial Section\u201d category, The Betsie Current <\/em>won first place for our \u201cSpecial September Issue.\u201d Since September 2021, we have dedicated the entire September issue to first-person narratives of difficult topics: suicide, sobriety, miscarriage, adoption, depression, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, and more. This marks the second year that we have won first place in this category. This year\u2019s award-winning contributors included Bear Howe writing about transracial adoption, Christina Ryan-Stoltz reflecting on the 10-year anniversary of her son\u2019s death by suicide, and Emily Stoddard\u2019s melodic essay that links attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with Disney<\/em>\u2019s \u201cFantasia\u201d film. (If you missed it, or want a refresher, go to bit.ly\/TBC-2024-14<\/a> online to read our award-winning special issue.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also worth mentioning: the Glen Arbor Sun<\/em>\u2014our Leelanau County-based semi-sister publication\u2014won 18 awards in 11 different categories. This included one piece that we re-published in our pages: Jacob Wheeler won second place for \u201cSaving Cherries, Saving Farms\u201d in the \u201cAgricultural News\u201d category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, the Glen Arbor Sun <\/em>was named \u201clocal news media publication\u201d of the year, with The Betsie Current <\/em>coming in second place for that honor, and Crain\u2019s Grand Rapids Business<\/em> coming in third.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This marks only the second time that The Betsie Current <\/em>has ever submitted for the Michigan Press Association awards in our 15 years of publishing\u2014we went from winning two awards last year to eight this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then in May, we\u2014along with our friends at the Glen Arbor Sun<\/em>\u2014were awarded a $6,300 grant for a joint project to begin working with aspiring young journalists and influencers during the summer of 2026. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMeeting Young Journalists Where They Are\u201d is an innovative way to collaborate with high school- and college-aged Northern Michiganders, who will be paid to produce compelling and topical local news in their rural communities through online video platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn journalism, we often talk about rural \u2018news deserts\u2019 and how people living in communities without adequate access to local reporting and storytelling become less engaged in civic life and less trusting of institutions\u2014from government, to schools, to hospitals,\u201d says Jacob Wheeler, Sun<\/em> editor. \u201cWe worry that teenagers and young adults are also turning away from news and civic engagement. That\u2019s why we\u2019re trying to \u2018meet young journalists where they are\u2019 and appeal to their sense of storytelling, through mediums that speak to their generation.”  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This project will be funded by Press Forward Northern Michigan, hosted by the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation, which is giving out a total of $50,000 to six projects with a goal of supporting news operations across rural communities that spark innovation, build trust, and expand access to local news and information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you know a young person between the ages of 15 and 23 in Leelanau or Benzie county who would be interested in participating in this innovative project? Would you like more information sent to you about this project? Fill out the form at <\/em>https:\/\/bit.ly\/YouthJournalists<\/em><\/a> online. A grant from Press Forward Northern Michigan will pay young journalists per video.<\/em>
Featured Photo Caption: <\/strong>Kendall Rose’s “Leaving the Lights On” essay won first place in the “opinion” category of the 2025 Better Newspaper Contest from the Michigan Press Association.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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