1 special honor

PEARL HARBOR — West Hawaii Today was honored this weekend by the Special Olympics of Hawaii.

The newspaper earned the Outstanding Media Award for its coverage of the athletes and their achievements during the year during a jubilant Opening Ceremony celebration Saturday at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on Oahu.

Denise Lindsey, area director for the Special Olympics Hawaii-West division, nominated the paper because of its support for the program in all 18 years that Lindsey has worked for it.

“Our local newspaper is what we look for to get the word out for our fundraisers, call for volunteer help and to capture those special moments of Torch Run, Cop on Top and local fundraisers that Special Olympics Hawaii repeatedly does,” she wrote in the nomination. “It brings much joy to see the professional job the photographers and journalists do for our Special Olympics program in West Hawaii.”

The 2015 coverage included features on fundraisers and athletes, such as Kailua-Kona’s Isaiah Wong, who can deadlift more than 400 pounds and represented Hawaii on the powerlifting circuit at the Special Olympics’ 2015 World Games in Los Angeles.

“Watching these athletes do their best at everything they attempt has been an inspiration to our news staff. It’s been a pleasure working with Special Olympics over the years,” said WHT associate editor Brenda Jensen, who oversaw much of the coverage in 2015.

The ceremony, attended by more than 1,000 athletes, was part of the bi-annual Special Olympics event. The Holiday Classic ran from Saturday through Monday and marked the end of the season for the athletes and is one of the two largest game competitions held during the year.