The Catholic Sun was recognized with several awards at the 2014 Catholic Media Conference June 20 in Charlotte.
The Phoenix diocesan newspaper, which reaches 115,000 homes each month, was presented with awards in four categories: editorial writing, coverage of vocations, general excellence and advertising.
The conference was hosted by the Diocese of Charlotte and its news outlet, the Catholic News Herald, and drew more than 250 reporters, editors, communication directors and others serving in Catholic media across the United States and Canada. The Catholic Press Association and the Catholic Academy of Communication Professionals partner each year to organize this annual conference for Catholic media professionals.
Robert DeFrancesco, president of the Catholic Press Association and associate publisher of The Catholic Sun, received second place for his editorial about assisting the working poor. “Simply stated, an important call to action to respond to the poverty rate in Arizona,” the award committee wrote.
The newspaper received an honorable mention for general excellence. “The Catholic Sun employs color images and color blocks to give graphic life to its pages, but what stands out are well written stories,” the judges wrote.
J.D. Long-Garcia, former editor of The Catholic Sun, received third place for his in-depth article about Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted’s 10th anniversary as bishop of the Diocese of Phoenix. The awards committee noted that it was a “well written, insightful profile…the personality of the man and his place in the community shine through.”
Several advertisements published in The Catholic Sun received recognition at the awards ceremony. Mick Welsh, graphic artist for the newspaper, received first place for his “Mexico Pilgrimage 2013” ad Long-Garcia. “Good use of color and size. Good consistency between the ads,” the judges wrote.
Welsh, along with Alana Kearns, an advertising representative with The Catholic Sun, received third place for a Catholic Cemeteries and Mortuaries ad. The duo received an honorable mention for their Holy Cross Cemetery ad as well. Welsh also received an honorable mention for his Catholic Community Foundation ad along with Brigette Dayton.
Tamara Tirado, a freelance photographer for The Catholic Sun, received third place for her Triduum and Easter photos. “Some nice photos, evocative of the moment,” the committee wrote of her work.
Joyce Coronel, interim managing editor of The Catholic Sun, received third place for her novel, “A Martyr’s Crown,” in the first-time authors category. The committee described Coronel’s book as “inviting…an enticing read” involving a “lightly fictionalized account of the plight of Iraqi Chaldean Catholics.”
