Valley Press brings home awards

| June 25, 2010 4:17 PM

The Valley Press was awarded for their journalistic excellence bringing home a slew of first place awards this past weekend at the annual Montana Newspaper Association's Better Newspaper Contest in Bozeman.

The event judged the writing, photography and layout desgin of the Valley Press' 2009 staff and awarded three first place wins to the newspaper, which were collected by Editor Matt Unrau.

Unrau won first place in Best Agricultural Reporting for his coverage in August of the noxious weed problem and the infestation of Eurasian watermilfoil, an invasive aquatic species, in the Noxon Reservoir.

Unrau also took home first place for his Spot News Coverage for his timely reporting on a fire that burned down a calving barn in Hot Springs in early May of 2009. The barn was completely destroyed by the fire which was caused by an unknown source.

First place for in-depth investigative reporting went to Unrau and Danielle Switalski for their coverage of the recent pressure added to the food banks in Sanders County during tough economic times. The food banks have struggled to stay afloat despite increased demand.

Graphic designer Christina Jermyn took home third place for Best Single Ad, Spot Color.

Additional awards went to Unrau who received an Honorable Mention for Best Sports Event Coverage.

Switalski also received Honorable Mention for Best Column Writing.