The Nineteenth Annual Hamilton Literary Awards

This special event was held at Theater Aquarius in the Norman and Louise Haac Studio Theatre.  It is a cozy venue and the Theater Aquarius is easy to get to.

At 6:30 p.m., the evening began with people greeting each other and partaking of the delicious refreshments provided. Henry Strong and Warren Stirtzinger, both well known in Hamilton, played their music in the background adding to the sense of well being.

Here is a picture of Henry and Warren.

Warren (left) Henry (right)

More of a pose now - the other was a snap shot

I know both of these men from my club as they perform there every Thursday night and we have become quite friendly.  My friend Ed took a picture of the three of us together which I will post when I received it.
 

A suberb entertainer - Sara Weber had us chuckling away with her account of her childhood in Alabama and her move to Canada.  It was fantastic and something new for us this year.

Sarah Weber - Banter and Bluegrass

Robert Howard, a book editor at the Spectator, our local paper, was the Master of Ceremonies. 

Ron Howard - Master of Ceremonies

Opening remarks were also given by Stephanie Vegh, the Executive Director of the Hamilton Arts Council and by Stephen Near, Projects Manager. 

The sponors of this event were Upper James Toyota, Wolsak & Wynn,  A Different drummer books, Seraphim Editions, Bryan Prince Bookseller, Judy Marsales, The Bookworm, Reliable Life Insurance Company, Epic Books and Line Art Consulting.

Without the hard work of the Literary Arts Committee, Hamilton Arts Council and these sponors, the awards night could not have been held.

The winners of the awards are as follows:

Seraphim Editions Award for Individual Poem  - Marilyn Gear Pilling for her poem "Arancia Rossa"  It was presented by John Terpstra but the poet was out of the country at this time.

Epic Books Awards for Short Story Fiction -  Amy Kenny for her story of "Chocolate Season".  Colette Kendall presented this award to her.

Line Art Consulting Award for Short Article Non-Fiction - J.S. Porter for his article called "Duras"  Rose Johnson  presented this.

Reliable Life Insurance Award for Children and Young Adult Fiction -  Deborah Ellis for her story "True Blue".  Presentked by Ron Ulrich.

Bryan Prince Bookseller Award for Poetry Book - Amanda Jernigan for her book Groundwork.  Presented by Barbara Milne.

Judy Marsales Real Estate Brokerage Award for Nonfiction Book - J.S.Porter, for his book "Lightness and Soul".

The Bookworm Award for Fiction Book - Ross Penny and although he was not able to be there that evening, it was accepted on his behalf .  Paul Takala presented the award.

Ron Howard brought the evening to an end with his closing remarks.

All in all, a great evening.  One not to be missed next year!

Some other shots:

Carmelita and I

Ed and Carmelita  - Ed was a nominee

 I took lots of shots but these are the only ones that turned out well enough to put on the blog.  The lighting in there was quite dim and I do not have a powerful camera.

Thanks for dropping by and come again when you have the time and the inclination.