By Marcy Shortuse • Photo by Dusty Hopkins
The Boca Beacon and Gasparilla Magazine
staff traveled to the Vinoy Renaissance Resort
Hotel in St. Petersburg for the 2019 Florida
Media Conference and came back with 11
awards in total.
More than 1,000 Florida newspapers
submitted entries to the contest. More than 80
Florida magazines competed.
During the presentation of the Florida
Magazine Association awards – also known as
the “Charlie Awards” – Gasparilla Magazine
Editor, Marcy Shortuse, took home a
second-place award for “Best Writing – Feature
Headline” category and a third place in the
“Best Writing – Service Feature” category.
Publisher, Dusty Hopkins, took home a
third-place award in the “Best Photography –
Single Image” division.
Art Director, Christine Cunningham, took
home a third place in the “Best Design – Use of
Photography” division and a third place in the
“Best Advertisement – Self-Promotional”
division.
During the presentation of the Florida Press
Association awards, Shortuse took home three
first- place trophies – one in the “Serious
Column” category, one in the “General News
Story” division and one in the “Spot News
Photo” division. She also received a secondplace
award for “Best Obituary.”
Shortuse also took home a second- place win
in tandem with Hopkins for the “Photo Series in
One Issue” category, and with writer, Susan
Erwin, in the “In-depth Reporting” category.
Erwin took home a second-place prize in the
“Health, Medical and Science Reporting”
category, and in the “Education” division.
Boca Beacon columnist, Delores Savas, took
home a third place in the “First Amendment
Defense” category.
September/October 2019 GASPARILLA ISLAND 77