Awards season is rewarding and energizing for journalists.

When The Bulletin’s reporters, photographers, editors and designers are in the midst of doing the work — grinding away on stories and practicing quality photojournalism — awards are not at the forefront of their minds. But once a year, they’re asked to reflect on their work and put forward their best efforts. Then, we wait to hear what unbiased, out-of-state journalists determine is worthy of first, second or third place. 

The results are in from the Oregon Newspaper Publisher Association’s contest and The Bulletin has much to celebrate. We brought home 10 awards for work done in 2023.

Noemi Arellano-Summer, youth, families and schools reporter, placed first in Best Educational Coverage for ‘WE ARE TEACHING IN A WAR ZONE’, which described how teachers feel about safety and security in the classroom at Bend-La Pine Schools.

Anna Kaminski, former public safety reporter, took first place in Best Spot News Coverage for the story about a man who planned a mass shooting in Deschutes County targeting rock climbers: “Man who allegedly planned shooting arrested.”  

Suzanne Roig, health and business reporter, won first place in Best Writing for her narrative about a Prineville man who spent three hours with his arm stuck in a meat grinder, and Shiloh Binder’s perseverance after losing his right hand and part of his forearm: “Stronger than ever.”

Dean Guernsey’s photograph of a family with children living in a homeless camp was awarded first place for Best News Photo. Joe Kline’s photo of a skier mid-air during a celebratory “pond-skimming” event won first place for Best Feature Photo. Both are superb examples of photojournalism, capturing a story in one shot, in one moment.

Photographer Andy Tullis won second and third place for feature photos, and Guernsey placed second for his photo essay. 

Dave Jasper, features editor and columnist, won second place for a collection of columns written during the inaugural year of Dropping In. Features writer Janay Wright placed second for her piece on a supper club that she called a “new, underground fine dining experience in Bend.”

The editors are so proud of our staff’s work and glad to see it recognized. The journalism we do here is a window into Central Oregon communities and people’s lives, and we’re glad to see its quality recognized by those outside of our community. 

If you don’t already, please take the time to consider a subscription to The Bulletin, so we can continue bringing you the award-winning news that matters to Central Oregonians. 

– Jody Lawrence-Turner, projects editor