(Above) Herman Lensing (right) was congratulated by Melrose Beacon-Stearns Morrison Enterprise General Manager Berni Orbeck upon the receipt of his award in the annual Minnesota Newspaper Assn. Better Newspaper Contest last week.

Lensing's photograph (below), "A shadow drummer," that appeared in the April 4, 2009 issue of the Melrose Beacon was named runner-up in the feature photo division of weeklies with subscriptions of 2,501 to 5,000 in the annual Minnesota Newspaper Assn.'s Better Newspaper Contest.

Judges comments included, "Good use of shadowing. Photo really compliments story. Great use of lighting. This is a really cool photo."

The photograph was taken by Herman Lensing on Thursday, March 26, 2009 at a Melrose Area High School band concert.

Several other American Community Newspaper journalists won several prestigious awards at the convention and annual awards contest.

Chris Olwell (Eden Prairie) won the "New Journalist of the Year Award," a new award at MNA. The AP had previously sponsored this honor.

Paul Groessel (Excelsior-Shorewood) took second in this category.

Keith Anderson, Waconia Patriot, won first in best local news story, "Explosion, fire stun Waconia."

Seth Rowe won Best Columnist for his columns on his Republican National Convention arrest.

The Sun Focus newspapers took First Place Best Special Section, for the I-35W bridge section, "A New Beginning 35W Bridge." The section was a collaborative effort. The Waconia Patriot staff led the project, with support and assistance from other individuals throughout the company.