OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, April 22, 2009 · 12 Staff win OCNA awards Continued from page 1 possible due to the unique community we serve. We are grateful for the ongoing support from both our advertisers and our readers." "For The Oakville Beaver to win four General Excellence Awards in a row is a remarkable achievement. I am proud of all the staff who work diligently to bring Oakville residents the best community newspaper possible," said Jill Davis, editor-in-chief. "We are a team. Each department plays a significant role in producing the newspaper. I would also like to thank our wonderful carriers who bring The Oakville Beaver to your doorstep. Most of all, I want to say thank you to our loyal readers and clients who support us unconditionally," she said. "We owe our readers a debt of gratitude for welcoming us into their homes and making us a part of their lives. Our readers are our best source of information and our toughest critics. They make our work possible," said Oakville Beaver Managing Editor Rod Jerred. In the OCNA's Premier Awards, Oakville Beaver photographer Chantal Ayotte finished third in the Best News Photo for her picture Father's Mission, of Rob Ellis with his head bowed in the background while the picture of his deceased son, David, appears on a computer screen in the foreground during a presentation an at Iroquois Ridge High School. Other Metroland Halton Division reporters and photographers, whose work has appeared in the Oakville Beaver, also won awards. Burlington Post reporter Jason Misner won the Best Investigative News Story for his work on the Is there a Doctor in the House series, which also ran in The Oakville Beaver. Photographer Liesa Kortmann won the Best Spot News Photo category for her shot of EMS personnel rescuing a man holding onto a floating log trapped in the middle of an overflowing creek. Burlington Post reporter Herb Garbutt finished second in the Best Feature/News Series category for his three-part feature on young gay athletes in Halton. The series also appeared in The Oakville Beaver. Burlington Post reporter Tim Whitnell earned third place in the Best Feature Writing category about a woman carrying her sister's child as a surrogate mother. That story also ran in The Oakville Beaver. Milton Canadian Champion photographer Graham Paine, whose work has appeared in The Oakville Beaver, finished third in the Photographer of the Year category.