The Sky-Hi News team picked up 29 individual awards in addition to being named the best newspaper of its size in Colorado for the second year in a row.

The awards were handed out at the annual Colorado Press Association convention from Aug. 14-16 in Thornton. At the awards, member news organizations are grouped into categories of similar size, with Sky-Hi News competing in the midsize weekly category alongside 19 other publications, including the Pikes Peak Courier, Crested Butte News, Delta County Independent, Rio Blanco Herald Times and Ouray County Plaindealer.

In addition to being named the best newspaper of its size, Sky-Hi News was also honored with awards recognizing its editorial, advertising, photo and design, and mixed-media teams as the best among papers of a similar size. Those awards are handed out to the newspaper with the most individual awards in each of the four categories.

Sky-Hi News reporter Meg Soyars Van Hauen attended the conference for the second time, calling it the highlight of her year.

“Attending the conference gives me a chance to learn and network with other journalists,” Soyars Van Hauen said. “I appreciate meeting all the skilled writers and photographers who won awards for their work in 2024.”

Soyars Van Hauen won 11 individual awards recognizing her work in reporting on everything from politics to agriculture and breaking news. She was also awarded for her photography.

“I am extremely honored to receive my awards, but my success wasn’t earned alone. I give credit to my team,” she said before thanking everyone at Sky-Hi News for helping shape her talents over the past year. 

Soyars Van Hauen said she is especially proud of the first-place win for Best Public Service Project for sustained coverage on wolf reintroduction. She partnered with regional reporters Ali Longwell and Elliott Wenzler on the effort.

“Together, we were able produce robust stories on the controversial decision to release wolves on the Western Slope,” Soyars Van Hauen said. “These stories involved many issues that impact our readers — wildlife, ranching, the environment and politics.”

Among the awards where the full team was recognized, Sky-Hi swept the special sections category, winning first place for its 20th anniversary coverage of the Granby bulldozer attack and second place for its Still Standing publication, which celebrated the 150th anniversary of Grand County with a series of articles about the area’s history.

All the awards recognize work done in 2024, when former Editor Tara Alatorre led the news team. After hearing about the awards, she said she was “overjoyed” and thanked the Sky-Hi team for its “work, compassion and dedication.”