2008 Society of Professional Obituary Writers Awards
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT for obituary writing, Jim Nicholson Jim Nicholson (Philadelphia Daily News, pre-2007)
BEST BODY OF WORK
Co-winners Kay Powell and Tom Hawthorn
Kay Powell (Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2007)
Valerie Daniel, 44, translated speeches into sign language
Tillie Wood, her cabin was a trail hiker's oasis
Claude Miller, 104, sawmill master and proud moonshiner
Boyzie Daniels, preacher, pushed black voting rights
Arnold Hardy, 85, took Pulitzer-winning photo
Tom Hawthorn (Globe and Mail, 2007)
'Tattooed king of the midway' was a tough act to swallow
Jack Winter, comedy screenwriter 1942-2006
RCAF bomber pilot destroyed the real bridge over the River Kwai
Toronto infielder was a neglected star and the stuff of 1955 fiction
Cooking-show host was known as the Urban Peasant
BEST MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION
Gayle Ronan Sims (Philadelphia Inquirer, 2007)
Master Gunnery Sgt. Nicholas Formosa: "A son of S. Phila. who gave all for Corps"
BEST CELEBRITY OBIT (LONG)
Co-winners Tim Bullamore and Sandra Martin
Tim Bullamore (Daily Telegraph of London, 2007) Sandra Martin (Globe and Mail, 2007)The Honest Ed Story (Mr. Toronto dies at 92)
Tom Hawthorn (Globe and Mail, 2007)
'Tattooed king of the midway' was a tough act to swallow
BEST CELEBRITY OBIT (SHORT)
Co-winners Holly Crenshaw and Kay Powell
Holly Crenshaw (Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2007)Margaret Anne Barnes, 'Murder in Coweta' author
Kay Powell (Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2007) Arnold Hardy, 85, took Pulitzer-winning photoBEST AVERAGE JOE OBIT (SHORT)
Carol Smith (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2007)
Dying vet planned a final mission
BEST TRIBUTE/MEMOIR/COLUMN (LONG)
Daniel Asa Rose (Obit Magazine, 2007)
Fare Thee Well, Ex-Father-In-Law
BEST TRIBUTE/MEMOIR/COLUMN (SHORT)
Judy Bachrach (Obit Magazine, 2007)
(Read some of the runner-up 2008 SPOW Awards entries here.)