Saturday morning (13 May), I drove to Julie's house in Florissant to pick her up to take us to Mike Duffy's Pub and Grill in Kirkwood. We were there to attend the Missouri Professional Communicaitons (MPC) gathering for presentation of the 2023 Communications Contest awards for work MPC members performed in 2022.
There were eight of us there--Julie was the only guest--and we had soft drinks and appetizers as we socialized early in the program. Then, MPC co-president Janice Denham announced the contest results. Most of the members present, plus two who could not make it, received awards for their work.
When my name came up, Denham said that I had really taken to heart the judges' comments from my submissions in previous years. I had won three First Place awards and one Second Place for my four 2022 submissions. One of my Firsts was for editing The Arch Scaler News, member newsletter of the Gateway Chapter of the International Plastic Modelers' Society (IPMS). The judges cited the consistency with styling job titles, phone numbers, dates, and times, as well as the close-up photos and the clean and clear layout. This entry was in Editing for Print or Online Publications; newsletter/other publication--nonprofit, government or educational.
The next First Place award was for running IPMS/Gateway's Facebook page, in the category of Web and Social Media: Social Media Presence; nonprofit, government or educational. The judges liked the good use of photos and the clear and informative writing.
The final First Place winner was for my press release announcing IPMS/Gateway's 2022 Invitational contest. This was entered under Information for the Media: News or Feature Release; single release. The judges mentioned that it received two very prominent placements and that it was clear and basic.
Additionally, this blog earned Second Place under Web and Social Media: Blog, personal. I submitted the post Grand Day in South St. Louis from last August. The judges liked the basic blog post, but wished I could pump up the writing.
My three First Place winners are eligible for awards from the National Federation of Press Women (NFPW) at its National Communication Contest. (MPC is a state affiliate of NFPW.) Those awards will be announced at the conclusion of NFPW's Communications Conference late in June in Cincinnati. They asked me this past week for my photo, which I sent them, as at least one of my entries may be a winner. That would be nice. (By the way, St. Louis hosts next year's NPFW Communications Conference.)
Denham then had a lucky number type drawing for a cloth book bag from the St. Louis Artists' Guild, and I had the lucky number. A nice added gift for the day.
After the gathering broke up, I asked Julie to take my picture with the First Place awards, and she did.
I was most proud of my efforts, as you might expect, and very happy to receive these awards and the judges' comments, which I plan to take to heart in my work this year. Also, I was happy for my MPC colleagues with the honors they received for their work. Julie enjoyed the gathering and chatted with Denham and the other attendees.
After this gathering, I drove Julie back to her house, as she had an appointment that afternoon. We kissed and hugged, promising to see each other again soon.
On my way home, I stopped by Oberweis Dairy in Oakville for an ice cream cone, as a celebration for my awards, then drove to Schnucks in Oakville to shop for Mother's Day. I got a box of six cupcakes, a greeting card, and a gift card for Bob Evans Restaurants. After paying for my purchases, I waited inside as it was pouring rain. After the rain lightened up, I walked to my car and drove home.
Later.
Websites of Entities Mentioned in This Post:
Mike Duffy's Bar and Grill, Kirkwood: Kirkwood | Mike Duffy's Pub & Grill (mikeduffys.com)
Missouri Professional Communicators: Missouri NFPW affiliate | Missouri Professional Communicators | Clayton (moprocommunicators.org)
IPMS/Gateway: IPMS Gateway Chapter (google.com)
National Federation of Press Women: Home (nfpw.org)
St. Louis Artists' Guild: St. Louis Artists' Guild (stlouisartistsguild.org)
Oberweis Dairy: Oberweis Dairy
Schnucks: Home | Schnucks
Bob Evans: Bob Evans | Breakfast Near Me Delivery | Breakfast Restaurants
