Two members of The Lake Report’s staff have been nominated for prestigious journalism awards administered by the Ontario Community Newspapers Association.

Photographer Dave Van de Laar and news reporter Julia Sacco were singled out in the industry organization’s annual awards competition.

Van de Laar, the association’s reigning Photographer of the Year, is one of the finalists for that honour for the third consecutive year and Sacco is a finalist for Reporter of the Year.

Both awards honour recipients for a selection of their work over a 12-month period, from October 2023 through September 2024.

Their nominations are among 19 awards for The Lake Report and its website, niagaranow.com, in the annual Better Newspapers Competition, which is adjudicated by the industry association. The Lake Report competes in the largest circulation category (8,000 and over) and is up against some of the biggest publications in Ontario.

Despite that, NOTL’s newspaper again was singled out for more awards than any other publication in the province. Since 2020, the paper has now received 131 provincial and national awards for its journalism, advertising and community work.

“It’s sort of surreal that what started as a small monthly newspaper in 2018 has evolved into Canada’s most-awarded newspaper,” said Lake Report founder and editor-in-chief Richard Harley.

“Every day we are thankful for our readers, supporters and advertisers who help us continue to produce meaningful journalism that matters to the residents of our town,” he added.

“To continue to receive recognition of the quality of our work, not just from our readers, but from unbiased industry peers and experts, helps to fuel the fire that keeps the paper going.”

The finalists will gather at Queen’s Landing in Niagara-on-the-Lake on April 11 when first, second and third-place winners will be unveiled during a gala awards presentation.

It is the first time since 2018, prior to the COVID pandemic, that the newspaper association will hold its awards presentation in-person. The organization’s board voted last month to hold the event in NOTL.

The Lake Report is one of three finalists for overall General Excellence in the largest circulation class, along with the Elmira-Woolwich Observer and the Haliburton Highlander.

The paper’s expansive letters and opinion pages also are nominated for Best Editorial Section and niagaranow.com is a finalist for Best Community Newspaper Website.

Our “Celebrating the Women of NOTL” special section last March 7 marking International Women’s Day was chosen as a finalist in the Community Service category, which aims to honour publications that go above and beyond just reporting the news.

The Lake Report’s photography was recognized with several awards.

NOTL resident and freelance photographer John DeLorenzi is in the running for Best Spot News Photo for his drone’s-eye image showing crews and heavy equipment reinforcing the breakwall to protect the Lake Ontario shoreline near the NOTL Golf Club.

The Page 1 image, published Feb. 8, 2024, gave readers an unusual and exclusive view of the massive project.

Former reporter Evan Loree’s heartwarming image of Kat Forbes and Brandon Poirier at the Candlelight Stroll earned a finalist spot in the Best Grip and Grin Photo category.

Van de Laar is also nominated for Best Feature Photo, for an image published on Oct. 13, 2023,  depicting six-year-old Jack Hill, clad in a soldier’s uniform at the 254th birthday celebrations at Queenston Heights for Maj.-Gen. Sir Isaac Brock.

He also scored a nomination in the Best Sports Photo category for an emotive front-page image published Feb. 29, 2024.

It showed a teary-eyed Niagara Predators’ Tyler Gearing consoling all-star goaltender Zane Clausen after the Jr. A team was ousted from the Greater Metro Hockey League playoffs.

Sacco received an honourable mention along with Richard Hutton and Kevin MacLean in the Best Investigative News Story category for a series of stories on the firing of NOTL chief librarian Cathy Simpson over the content of an opinion piece she wrote for The Lake Report about Freedom to Read Week.

As well, Sacco earned an Arts and Entertainment nod for her Feb. 14, 2024, feature story on NOTL artist Edward Spera and his expedition to the Arctic. She also is in the running in the Health and Wellness category for her ongoing “Code Grey” series on health care problems in town.

Her April 25, 2024, feature looked at the surging senior population in NOTL and the efforts to attract more doctors and nurse practitioners to care for a sicker and older demographic.

Harley, who started The Lake Report and niagaranow.com seven years ago, is a finalist in four categories.

His emotional and thought-provoking front-page story on NOTL store owner Peter Earle’s battle with ALS and plan to die on his own terms using medical assistance is a finalist for Best Feature Story.

It was published on May 2, 2024, one month before Earle died.

As well, Harley’s blistering, critical editorial taking federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre to task for lies, innuendo and pandering statements made during a visit to NOTL.

The Aug. 15, 2024, editorial made waves across the country as thousands of people shared it on social media.

Harley also is a finalist in the Best In-house Promotion category, for creating a four-page section celebrating the 27 provincial awards that The Lake Report won in 2023.

He and MacLean also are finalists for the Best Headline Writing award.

Former staff reporter Richard Wright received two nominations for his exclusive and in-depth six-part “Summer of the Flood” series, which explored problems and repercussions related to heavy rains that caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to homes and properties this past summer.

His work was singled out in the Best Feature/News Series and Best Online Journalism categories. The series was published between Aug. 29 and Oct. 3.