Appeal staffers awarded for various photos, saga of girl's battle with meth

A Nevada Appeal series detailing a Carson teenager's battle with methamphetamine has been selected Story of the Year by the Nevada Press Association. The three-part series was written by Teri Vance.

Judges said Vance's story was an "extraordinary three-part series on the life and redemption of a young woman named Raquel who gets hooked on meth when she moves to Carson City."

The judges also commented on the story's "effective use of street language and stark description."

Appeal photographer Brad Horn won second-place for Best Multiple Feature Photos for the story "The long goodbye." The story chronicled how Cal Wilkinson handled his wife's Alzheimer's. Horn also won Best Sports Photo for his photo of a bull rider.

Chad Lundquist won second-place for Best Portrait for a photo of Lee Hobold, restoration specialist for the State of Nevada, who was working on the McKeen Motor Car.

Appeal chief photographer Cathleen Allison won Honorable Mention for Best General News Photo for a photo of James Thornhill holding his grandson after his home on Brown Street in Carson City burned down.

The awards were handed out as part of the NPA annual convention, held Friday and Saturday in Reno.

The honor was one of several awarded to papers in the area that are part of Swift Communications.

Adam Jensen, a reporter with the Tahoe Daily Tribune in South Lake Tahoe was honored as the Journalist of Merit in the paper's circulation category.

The judges said, "From global warming issues that will arguably affect the Sierra Nevada region to invasive species that threaten Lake Tahoe, Jensen's ability to tell interesting stories backed up by facts and scientific statements takes some doing."

The Sierra Sun in Truckee took first-place in its circulation class in the general excellence category. Judges said, "This paper has a variety of news on front page and good design throughout the paper."

The Lahontan Valley News in Fallon and the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza in Incline Village both finished second in their classes for general excellence. The Tahoe Daily Tribune and the Record-Courier in Gardnerville finished third.