BIDDEFORD — The Journal Tribune recently appointed veteran journalist Rod Harmon to the position of managing editor. Journal Tribune Publisher Devin Hamilton was thrilled to bring in Harmon, who brings 25 years of experience with him.

“We are excited that a community-minded editor of Rod’s caliber is joining our team,” said Hamilton. “Rod brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the newsroom, including serving as an editor for several years in Maine.”

Harmon, who has worked for newspapers in Illinois and Florida, was an assistant managing editor at the Portland Press Herald for six years before being promoted to executive editor of the Coastal Journal in Bath in 2013.

Harmon started his own freelance consulting and public relations business in January and has been specializing in helping non-profits and small businesses in Maine and New England.

Harmon is ready to help bring the Journal Tribune to the next level. “I saw an opportunity here. There is a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of potential for growth – especially under new publisher Devin Hamilton,” said Harmon. “I like challenges and I like the opportunity to help a product realize its full potential.”

Hamilton believes with Harmon’s leadership the Journal Tribune is positioned to become an even bigger asset to the community – from both the digital side, which includes a new website, and an improved print edition. “We are set for a tremendous 2016. Rod joins our associate editor, Dina Mendros, in leading the way to strengthen our media presence in York County,” said Hamilton.

Harmon lives in Freeport with his wife, Martha, and his daughter, Rachel, who is an eighth-grader at Freeport Middle School. Since moving to Maine in 2007, Harmon says his family has made several trips to York County. “We’ve done the usually touristy things since moving to Maine – Old Orchard Beach, Ogunquit beach, Ogunquit Playhouse. We love the playhouse, we try to go to at least one production there a year. Sometimes we make our way down to the Kennebunks to do some shopping or some sightseeing,” said Harmon.

Harmon is ready to start exploring the rest of the area and getting to know the Journal Tribune community. “I’m excited to be here, and I’m looking forward to meeting new people in the community,” said Harmon.

Melanie Sochan Lawlor joins the marketing team as a part time creative services photographer. Melanie has many years’ experience as a professional photographer. She was a staff photographer at the Tribune Chronicle in Ohio and Saginaw News in Michigan. Since coming to the east coast, Melanie has been a self-employed, owning her own photography business.

Sam Bonsey joins the Portland newsroom as a part time news clerk. Sam is a recent graduate from the University of Maine-Orono, obtaining his bachelor’s degree in journalism. Sam was an intern with the sports staff at the BDN.

Gina Johnson joins the South Portland distribution team as a part time distribution assistant and Michael Hodgkin joins the South Portland circulation team as a part time field services representative.

(sorry, no pictures of Gina and Michael available.)

Thanks to everyone who attended the Annual Fall Conference on October 17 in Bangor. We were pleased to host 75 attendees at the 2015 Hall of Fame Induction, and 145 MPA members and guests at the Awards Dinner & Banquet.

From engaging sessions, moving Hall of Fame induction speeches to the MPA singalong, surprised Unsung Hero award recipients, and the return of the newspaper entry display boards, this year’s conference had something for everyone.

Now that it’s done and we begin to look ahead to next year’s conference in South Portland, we’d like to hear from you. Tell us what you liked, or what you didn’t like; what worked well, or what could be improved upon; what was missing, or what you’d like to see dropped completely.

Send your raves, your rants, your suggestions or feedback to Diane Norton, MPA Executive Director at mainepressmail@gmail.com.

Unfortunately, we are declaring the Analysis category — both weekly and daily categories —  permanently lost. The judge repeatedly insists he sent back the winners but we received no notifications in any form. We understand this is extremely disappointing to everyone who entered and we share in your frustration. With the volume of categories to be judged and the numerous volunteer judges enlisted, we routinely face the loss of a few categories every year.

Thank you for your continued support of the Maine Press Association and the yearly contest.

Here are the winners of the 2015 MPA Better Newspaper Contest’s missing  Weekly News Story category, which was received after the Conference:

1st place: Dan Dunkle, The Courier-Gazette: “Memory of horrific fire haunts local friends, family”

2nd place: Susan Morse & Deborah McDermott, The York Weekly: “‘We were very lucky’: Microburst damage leaves residents busy but thankful,” “Town waiting to release funds”

BANGOR – The Portland Press Herald, The Republican Journal of Belfast, the Mount Desert Islander of Bar Harbor and the Maine Sunday Telegram have been honored by the Maine Press Association for General Excellence print newspapers.

The Bangor Daily News, the Camden Herald/Republican Journal and the Mount Desert Islander took top honors for digital General Excellence in the MPA’s Better Newspaper Contest.

The awards were presented Saturday night at the Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor, concluding a day of workshops for journalists, advertising staff and newsroom managers throughout the state.

Earlier in the day, the association inducted three new members to its Hall of Fame: Lou Ureneck, former executive editor of the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram; Bob Kalish, who wrote for national publications and The Times Record in Brunswick; and longtime Press Herald/Telegram columnist Bill Nemitz.

In the General Excellence competition for print newspapers, the Press Herald was judged the best daily in Maine for the third year in a row while the Telegram was the weekend Newspaper of the Year for the fifth time in six years. The contest judge wrote, “They are far and away the best paper(s) in Maine. They are solid professional newspapers of substance, initiative, energy and readability.”

In the Weekly 1 division, for newspapers with less than 4,000 print circulation, The Republican Journal was described as having a “clean design and nice mix of hard news and features.” The Weekly 2 winner, the Mount Desert Islander, was applauded for its “wide-ranging, eclectic and thorough coverage of community.”

The Mount Desert Islander has been named Newspaper of the Year nine times since 2006 – five times in the Weekly 1 division and four straight years in Weekly 2 (4,000 and over circulation).

The digital General Excellence winner among daily/weekend papers, the Bangor Daily News, was lauded for “featuring an attractive, understated presentation. Frequent updating with fresh news. Easily identifiable points for reader interaction, including news tips, polls and quizzes, and judicious use of video.”

The Weekly 1 winners, The Camden Herald & The Republican Journal, were commended by judges for “doing a fine job of placing fresh news in front of readers who don’t want to wait for the print edition.”

Judges praised the Weekly 2 winner, Mount Desert Islander, for providing a “beautiful, news-forward presentation. Easily navigated. Plenty of fresh content for readers.”

The Advertiser-Democrat of Oxford County won the Freedom of Information first-place award in the weekly category, while the Portland Press Herald took top honors in the daily/weekend division.

The Journalist of the Year award went to Scott Dolan of the Portland Press Herald; the Advertising Person of the Year is Barbara Hendsbee of the Press Herald.

Christopher Crosby, formerly of the Sun Journal in Lewiston, won the Bob Drake Young Writer’s Award; and Bridget Campbell of the Kennebec Journal/Morning Sentinel, Melanie Creamer of the Portland Press Herald, and Kathy Lizotte of The Lincoln County News were honored by the MPA as the Unsung Heroes of the Year.

A complete list of 2015 award winners will be posted this week on the MPA’s website: www.mainepressassociation.org

We’re looking forward to seeing MPA members and guests at the MPA Annual Fall Conference on Saturday, October 17, at the Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor.

The day’s events kick off at 8:45 am with the Annual Business Meeting. Morning sessions will run from 9:15 am to 12:15 pm followed by The Hall of Fame Luncheon at 12:30 pm, and our last session of the day slated at 2:15 pm. Bring your bidding paddle to the ever-popular Scholarship Auction & Reception at 5:30 pm followed by the 2015 Better Newspaper Contest Awards Dinner and Banquet.

The MPA has a special group rate of $149 a night, good for the nights of October 16 and 17 at The Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor. Although the room reservation deadline has passed, you can check with the hotel at 207-262-0099 to see if they still have availability.