"Community newspapers need to take heed about what the Pique is doing in Whistler," according to judges with the BC and Yukon Community Newspaper Association, who recognized the paper at the annual awards event on April 27 in Richmond. "They are covering all the bases of the community from a civic politics level and then they go above and beyond with thoughtful and interesting pieces relevant to readers."
Reporters Joel Barde and Brandon Barrett won Gold in the Feature Series category for the "On the Mend: Charting the gradual, if uneven, recovery of the region's grizzly bear population," cover feature and associated articles.
Said the judges: "This series has been given the room and visual support it deserves ... This well-researched and organized series serves as an articulate call to action."
Pique took five other Golds: Crank'd (Alison Taylor, Claire Ryan and Karl Partington); "Best of Pemberton" (Andrew Mitchell, Barrett and Jon Parris); Newspaper promotion—Ode to Ullr (Partington); ad campaign—Sushi Village (Whitney Sobool); and ad design, collaborative, under 25,000—Sidecut for Four Seasons (Lou O'Brien).
Pique was awarded Silver in the General Excellence category, with Barde also taking Silver in the columnist category and Partington taking Silver for ad design collaborative for his work for the Audain Art Museum open house.
Pique was recognized with five Bronze awards: Historical Writing Category—"Lessons for Whistler's aspiring councillors,"(Braden Dupuis); Business Writing—"Modular Housing is coming to the Sea to Sky," (Barde, Barrett and Parris); newspaper promotion—Love in the fast lane (Sobool); special section under 25,000—Exploring Whistler's ski town archetypes (Ryan, Vince Shuley, Barrett); and special publication under 25,000—FAQ (Taylor, Catherine Power-Chartrand, and Partington).
