08/09/2025
Ojai Valley News | Ventura County Sun Publisher Laura Rearwin Ward recently won a 2025 Golden Dozen award from the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors for her March 15, 2024 editorial comment, “Losing generational Shade.” It can be read at tinyurl.com/5yejmu5h.
Rearwin Ward’s editorial was written in response to the county of Ventura’s misapplication of herbicides in county parks, resulting in the death of more than 400 county-managed trees, including nearly 90 at Ojai’s Soule Park.
ISWNE received 93 Golden Quill entries from 43 individuals this year. The 12 best are gathered together as the “Golden Dozen.” According to Executive Director Chad Stebbins, ISWNE records show that it’s been 17 years since a Golden Dozen winner has come from California — R. Scott Moxley of Santa Ana in 2008. Rearwin Ward is among the five Californians to have won the prize since the contest began in 1961.
Judge Dana Hess commented on Rearwin Ward’s winning commentary in ISWNE’s publication, “Grassroots Editor,” for Summer 2025: “This forceful editorial delineates all the mistakes that led to the destruction of 400 trees on public property. The editorial is long, but helps the readers along by including subheads. Providing an historic overview of the problem, the editorial also offers a way forward for county officials whose inattention to detail led to the poisoning of the trees in the first place. Readers are well served by this kind of editorial writing.”
Rearwin Ward said: “The ISWNE group provides me with support through the news community all year round. I have benefited greatly from the connection to a committed group of newspaper owners, editors and publishers who also write editorial comment for their outlets.”
