Awards
2024 POMAC COMMUNICATIONS AWARDS WINNERS
This annual competition recognizes and rewards excellence in outdoor communication and promotes craft improvement. It is open to all members of the Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada "in good standing".
In each category the winner of the 2024 Outdoor Communication Award is listed first followed by two Award of Merit winners.
The awards are presented annually.
Also Including:
National Communication Awards
- Sponsored by Tourism Saskatchewan, Shimano and Outdoor Group Media
The Ducks Unlimited Canada Award in Conservation and the Ducks Unlimited Canada Youth Writing Contest in Hunting and Conservation
- Sponsored by Benelli
The Future of Hunting in Canada Writing Award
- Sponsored by Delta Waterfowl
1. COLUMN
1st T.J. Schwanky
Title: Failure is an Option…to Learn From
Publication: Alberta Outdoorsmen
2nd Scott Gardner
Title: Worm Wisdom
Publication: Outdoor Canada
3rd T.J. Schwanky
Title: O’Connor Would have Loved the Creedmoor
Publication: Alberta Outdoorsman
2. BOOKS
1st Bill Curry
Title: Tight Lines
2nd Stephen Ridgwell
Title: The 6x45mm Bolt Action Rifle
3rd Jon Robert Remus
Title: Hunting Woodland Moose
3. TELEVISION/VIDEO
1st Vanessa Harrop
Title: Full Circle in the Arctic (Part 2)
Broadcaster: Sportsman Channel Canada
2nd Vanessa Harrop
Title: Full Circle in the Arctic (Part 1)
Broadcaster: Sportsman Channel Canada
3rd T.J. Schwanky
Title: Cape Mountain Zebra
Broadcaster: Sportsman Channel Canada a
4. HUNTING FEATURE
1st Vern Peters
Title: Old Ram Obsession
Publication: Outdoor Canada
2nd Vanessa Harrop
Title: Full Circle in the Arctic
Publication: North American Outdoorsman
3rd T.J. Schwanky
Title: So You Want to Hunt Sheep
Publication: North American Deer Hunter n
5. FISHING FEATURE
1st Jeff Helsdon
Title: A 500-Year Fishing Tradition Provides New Thrills for Anglers
Publication: North American Outdoorsman
2nd Ken Bailey
Title: Against the Wind
Publication: Outdoor Canada
3rd Gord Pyzer
Title: Dutch Masters
Publication: Outdoor Canada
6. OTHER FEATURE
1st Lowell Strauss
Title: Bounty in the Boreal
Publication: Hooked Magazine
2nd Jon Robert Remus
Title: Capture Outdoor Experiences
Publication: The Outdoor Guide
3rd Lowell Strauss
Title: Shooting and Eye Health
Publication: MDT Blog e
7. PHOTOGRAPHY - FISH, WILDLIFE AND WILD SPACES
1st Vanessa Harrop
Title: Just Chillin
Publication: North American Bow Hunter
2nd Mark Raycroft
Title: Big Bull Moose in Canadian Wilderness Scene
Publication: Outdoor Canada
3rd Mark Raycroft
Title: The Next Generation Arrives
Publication: Outdoor Canada
8. PHOTOGRAPHY - OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
1st James Smedley
Title: Family Hike
Publication: Algoma Country 2023 Travel Guide
2nd Tom Armstrong
Title: The Work Begins
Publication: Ontario Out of Doors
3rd Vanessa Harrop
Title: A New Day Dawns
Publication: North American Outdoorsman
9. PODCAST
1st Brad Fenson
Title: Episode 53: New Hunter – Year 1 – Isaac Haines
Publication: Harvest Your Own
2nd Brad Fenson
Title: Episode 54: Cathy Wolf – Behind the She Alpha Wolf
Publication: Harvest Your Own
3rd Dave Mercer
Title: Justin Hamner and Jake’s Take on MERCER-154
Publication: Mercer – The Awkwardly Honest Fishing Podcast
10. THE FUTURE OF HUNTING IN CANADA AWARD sponsored by Delta Waterfowl
1st James Smedley
Title: Turked for Lillian – a Work in Progress
Publication: The Outdoors Guide
2nd Craig Mitchell
Title: Ontario’s Wild Turkey Success
Publication: Project Upland
3rd Ken Bailey
Title: It’s All About Fit
Publication: Conservation
11. THE DUCKS UNLIMITED CANADA AWARD IN CONSERVATION Sponsored by Benelli
1st Craig Mitchell
Title: Ontario’s Wile Turkey Success
Publication: Project Upland
2nd Brad Fenson
Title: The Stomach to Hunt Giraffe
Publication: The Sportsmen’s Advocate
3rd Brad Fenson
Title: Bighorn Sheep Portecting Alberta’s Official Mammal from M. Ovi
Publication: Conservation
PAST AWARDS WINNERS
2023 OWC Communications Awards
2022 OWC Communications Awards
2021 OWC Communications Awards
2020 OWC Communications Awards
2019 OWC Communications Awards
2018 OWC Communications Awards
Pete McGillen Award
The Pete McGillen Award is presented annually (when warranted) to a member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association of Canada who has, over the years, best reflected the aims and objectives of the organization. The award honors the memory of one of Canada's most outstanding outdoor writers.
Leo (Pete) McGillen (1908 - 1973) was one of the most productive and active outdoor writers in Canada. He was the first full-time Outdoors Editor of The Toronto Telegram, the first such position of its kind on a daily newspaper in Canada. He also served as the City Editor for The Peterborough Examiner for 11 years. He broadcast a weekly outdoors show, "Outdoors with Pete McGillen", over CFRB radio in Toronto and was a regular contributor to the CBC Sportsmen's Show on radio. According to a Canadian Press survey of the day, he was "the most widely quoted outdoor writer in Canada." Named to the Fishing Hall of Fame in Chicago in 1954, he was also inducted into the Canadian Sportsmen's Hall of Fame and the Peterborough Sports Hall of Fame. He was a director of the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, and a life member of five and honorary member of nine fish and game clubs in Ontario. McGillen was a director of the Outdoor Writers Association of America and the president of the OWC in 1960. He published a collection of his newspaper and radio writings, Outdoors with Pete McGillen, in 1955 (Ryerson Press). His writings and broadcasts covered the full spectrum of outdoor experiences, from hunting and fishing to nature appreciation, conservation and the value of national parks for all to enjoy.
The Pete McGillen award recognizes members who, during their professional career, have met the following criteria:
- Stimulated interest and appreciation of the outdoors;.
- Stimulated high standards of craftsmanship among professionals concerned with the portrayal of outdoor life.
Past Pete McGillen Award Recipients
1974 - Ernie Taylor
1975 - Berndt Berglund
1976 - Jack Davis
1977 - John Power
1978 - Sheila Kaighin
1979 - Jack Davis
1981 - Leo Prince
1983 - Michael Bolton
1984 - George R. Cooke
1985 - Burton J. Myers
1986 - W.A. MacDonald
1987 - Robert A. Rife
1988 - Art Briggs-Jude
1989 - Bob Keir
1990 - Dave Sutherland
1991 - Robert H. Jones
1992 - Helen Mason
1993 - Ernie Fedoruk
1994 - Jack Simpson
1995 - Roger Fortier
1996 - Teddi Brown
1997 - Bill Thompson
1999 - Dr. Robert O. Bailey
2002 - Marty Roberts
2003 - Dr. Hugh Best
2004 - Lloyd Fridenburg
2007 - Susan Kane-Doyle
2009 - Shirley Teasdale
2010 - Don Meredith
2012 - Tom Doyle
2013 - John Kerr
2014 - Ken Bailey
2015 - T.J. Schwanky
2017 - Duane S. Radford
2019 - Brad Fenson
2023 - Michael Snook
2024 - Ken Bailey
