Grant Haven journalists recognized nationally

By Grant Haven Media Staff

The Canadian Community Newsmedia Awards (CCNAwards) celebrate the best in community publishing from across the country. Therefore, it was a thrill earlier this week to see several of our journalists recognized for the valuable work they do in their communities.

The 2026 competition included more than 650 entries in 29 different categories which spanned the areas of editorial, photography, multimedia and general excellence from the 2025 calendar year.

Our company’s original newspaper, the St. Marys Independent, recorded a trio of third place finishes within the General Excellence section for newspapers with circulation of 1,500 to 6,499 copies. The Independent, under the leadership of editor Galen Simmons, took the bronze for “Best All-Round Newspaper”, “Best Editorial Page”, and “Best Front Page”. In each of these General Excellence categories, the Nunatsiaq News (Nunavut) and Town and Country This Week (Athabasca, AB) took the first and second place spots, respectively.

“I feel like the St. Marys paper truly has something for everyone,” said Grant Haven Media publisher Stewart Grant. “Spencer Seymour consistently puts together one of the best sports sections in Canada; Wendy Lamond captures so many of those small-town feel-good stories that make St. Marys special; Nancy Abra provides excellent regional coverage of nearby Thorndale; Mary Smith provides unparalleled historical features from the Stonetown; Alona Vasylieva’s Ukrainian Corner is a weekly must-read; and this is just a sampling of what’s inside each issue.”

Simmons also won third place for “Best Local Editorial” for his June 12, 2025 column entitled ‘Little St. Marys stands up to provincial giant’.

Stratford editor Connor Luczka won first place for “Best National Editorial (print circulation up to 9999)” for his patriotic April 4, 2025 editorial ‘A eucatastrophic nation’. He also won top honours in the category of “Best Local Civic Journalism (print circulation up to 9999)” for his May 16, 2025 article entitled ‘Do municipalities have legal authority to fight strong mayor powers? Not according to experts’.

Tillsonburg editor Jeff Helsdon won first place for “Best Business Writing (print circulation up to 9999)” for ‘A look inside Shaw’s, Tillsonburg’s own ice cream plant’. Helsdon also won second place for “Best Historical Story” for his Oct. 9, 2025 article, ‘Reimagining Tillson’s journey to launch Dereham Forge’.

Finally, the Wilmot-Tavistock Gazette took third place nationally for “Best Agricultural Edition” with its 24-page March 27, 2025 special. Along with stories from editor Galen Simmons, the farm feature included articles by Lee Griffi, Emily Stewart, Gary West, Julia Paul, Luke Edwards, Jeff Tribe, Diane Baltaz, Tim Rau, and the Ontario Federation of Agriculture.

“Looking back at the Gazette farm edition, it’s clear that it took a lot of editorial planning along with a strong cast of journalists with varied backgrounds,” said Grant. “The Best Little Pork Shoppe, Windrose Farm, the late Donald Hart, Silver Creek Nursery, Danzel Holsteins, and Golspie Dairy were among those to be featured in this award-winning edition.”

Grant added that any of Grant Haven’s past articles and editions from recent years can be accessed by visiting the company’s website at granthaven.com, selecting the newspaper of choice from the drop-down menu, and viewing the PDFs from the Past Issues menu.