Bringing home the 'big cup'

Thirty years is a long time in between Editorial Leadership Awards. When Gary Stevenson told me we needed to write more editorials three years ago, my response was: "We are too diverse to agree on anything." You should hear some of the arguments we have in this office.

No matter who the reporters are, we don't always agree, but we started finding ways to agree on something.

This year, we finally brought home the Editorial Leadership award for our work in 2015. The last one was in 1986, when Mike Lindsay owned the Saratoga Sun. It was for his editorials in 1985.

For our editorials, we all read them, adjust them, edit them and we must agree with what we say. It doesn't work that way at all newspapers. Some have an editorial board, others the publisher writes the editorial and the staff is left to defend it.

Two years ago, we got second place in Editorial Leadership. It was the first year we had written editorials on a regular basis.

This newspaper has been winning awards since I took over as general manager in 2008, and has consistently been winning awards since Gary bought the paper in January of 1993. Three years ago, we started bringing home major awards. That ended a 12-year dry spell of for major awards.

It is always a thrill to hear the name of the newspaper you work at have its name announced. It is an even bigger thrill to be recognized by your peers.

The newspaper business is competitive. There are three newspapers in this county alone. In the Wyoming Press Association competition, we compete against 25 other newspapers. That is why we work so hard to try and bring you the best newspaper possible. You may not like to see your name in the paper in a bad light, but it is our job to report what happens at meetings, at games, at car accidents and in police reports.

Sometimes, our job is not very much fun, but most days are good though. Collectively we attend more meetings than you can shake a stick at.

We are constantly reading open meeting laws to make sure we know what we are doing. We are not always experts, but we have experts we can rely on.

The year we got second place in Editorial Leadership, I teased Bob Bonnar, publisher of the Newcastle News Letter Journal, that I was gunning for first place because he had won it so many years in a row.

I was a little disappointed we didn't get any mention last year for our editorials and was not expecting to win this year.

When Keith McLendon, the Sun's graphic designer, saw we didn't get second, he said he knew we got first.

I was not that confident.

I was expecting to see the Newcastle News Letter Journal show up on the screen once again.

I couldn't believe it when the presenter announced "The Saratoga Sun."

I went up to the front to collect the 'big cup,' still reeling from the win. It was not as heavy as I expected it to be, but of course, when Bonnar won he always filled it with champagne and passed it around for everyone to take a drink. Not this year. It sat on the table in my room and was the first thing I saw when I woke up the next morning.

We all feel a little pride when we have done a job well, even if it is not recognized by someone else. But it is so much better when your peers say "You are the best!"

I hope our readers enjoy the work we do at the Saratoga Sun. We put in a lot of time and effort.

Thanks for reading the Saratoga Sun.