Wilsonville Spokesman earns 11 awards at Pacific NW Better Newspapers Contest

Published 2:53 pm Monday, July 21, 2025

The Wilsonville Spokesman took home 11 awards in the 2025 Pacific NW Better Newspapers Contest organized by the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association.

The honors included recognition for reporting, photography, special sections and more. To be eligible, entries had to be from the calendar year of 2024. For the first time, the contest included entries from the states of Washington and Idaho as well as Oregon.

“I am always proud to work with some of the best journalists in the Pacific Northwest, but these awards are a good chance to reflect on the work we do,” said Wilsonville Spokesman editor Patrick Malee. “As local journalism continues to face an uncertain future, I hope community members will reflect on what these types of stories mean to them.”

Clockwise from top left: Krista Kroiss, Miles Vance, Jaime Valdez and Patrick Malee. (Staff file photos)

Added publisher J. Brian Monihan: “I’m so happy for all our journalists to be recognized by our peers for their outstanding work. These awards are also an important reminder to our readers about the many stories we produce that have a direct impact on our communities. If we didn’t write these stories, who would?”

The full list of awards is as follows:

Best Coverage of Business or Economics Issue

Third place, Krista Kroiss: “An intensifying dispute”

Best Feature Story — General

Third place, Krista Kroiss: ‘Getting the right resources to the right people’

Best Feature Story — Personality

Second place, Krista Kroiss: ‘A second chance’

Best Lifestyle Coverage

First place, Krista Kroiss: ‘A second chance’

Second place, Krista Kroiss: “Wilsonville church to close after more than 100 years”

Best Sports Story

First place, Miles Vance: “Wilsonville’s Schaan named 5A Player of the Year”

Second place, Miles Vance: “Wilsonville’s Mark Wiepert finishes on top”

Best Writing

Second place, Krista Kroiss: Multiple stories

Best Government Coverage:

Second place, Krista Kroiss: “Wilsonville’s three ballot measures failed – now what?”

Best Photo Essay

Second place, Jaime Valdez: “Welcome back!”

Best Sports Photo

Third place, Miles Vance: “Wildcats finish their four-peat”