OLYMPIA – The staff of the Okanogan Valley Gazette-Tribune won several awards at this year’s Washington Newspaper Publishers Association convention in Olympia on Oct. 4-5.

The Gazette-Tribune brought home first- and second-place wins for their recreation guides this year.

Angela Larson, Gary DeVon and Bryon Kemph from Sound Publishing, won first place for the Summer 2024 Recreationland and second place for the 2023 Winter Recreationland, the newspaper’s first winter guide.

Larson also won first place for the best Arts & Entertainment Ad for the Okanogan County Fair 2023 and first place for Use of Small Space with the Jon Avis Celebration of Life ad. Larson received second place for Single Advertiser, Half Page or Larger, for OK Chevrolet.

DeVon received third place in the Breaking News Story category for “Eagle Bluff fire estimated at 15,349 acres.” He took First Place in the Breaking News Photo category for the accompanying photograph “Two fire bombers drop water on Eagle Bluff fire.” He also took third place for his General News Photo, “Rubber band powered water bottle submarines” taken at the Tonasket School Science Fair.

Other Okanogan County newspapers with staff receiving awards at the convention were from the Omak Chronicle and the Methow Valley News.