Rockford Mayor Thomas P. McNamara officially commended and congratulated the Voyager staff on earning a First Place award from the Kettle Moraine Press Association. In a letter to the Voyager students, Mayor McNamara wrote, “This recognition shows the skill and tenacity you have shown in effectively managing a news operation during a global pandemic that has turned your school year upside down. You’ve done this, and done exceptionally well, while being away often from your fellow students, teachers, staff, and classroom spaces.”

The mayor gave each newspaper student a City of Rockford Challenge Coin, a present given to City of Rockford employees and residents who have gone above and beyond to move our city forward.

“Journalism plays a key role in a healthy and well-functioning society,” the mayor wrote, “As we continue to face down the global pandemic, journalists both locally and across our country and the world are playing a vital role on the front lines keeping us together while we are apart. YOU are doing that at Guilford and it’s clearly having a positive impact.”