The Youngstown Press Club recognizes excellent work in journalism, media and communications through awards that honor those with distinguished careers in the media through it's Hall of Fame, those who are currently doing exemplary work in the media through the Excellence in Media Award, those who have defended the freedoms in the First Amendment through the First Amendment Award, and press club members who have made significant contributions to the club through the Medal of Merit.
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Media & Communications PioneersThe Youngstown Press Club is proud to introduce a new Hall of Fame category: MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS PIONEERS. This category honors historical figures who helped shape the media and communications landscape of the Mahoning Valley—individuals whose early contributions laid the foundation for the region’s journalistic and storytelling traditions.
We invite our members to submit nominations for these trailblazers whose vision, innovation and dedication left a lasting impact on how news and information are shared in our valley. |
Hall of Fame
The Youngstown Press Club established this award to commemorate those members of our community who have had long and distinguished careers in media. This award will be given to people nearing the end or at the end of their careers.
Hall of Fame Criteria:
- Nomination must be made by a member in good standing of the Youngstown Press Club.
- Nominee does not have to be a member of the Youngstown Press Club in order to be nominated, but nominee must join in order for his or her nomination to proceed to the YPC Awards selection commmittee for consideration.
- Members of the YPC Awards selection committee may not be nominated or nominate anyone.
- Nominee must have a minimum of 20 years professional media experience including journalism, public relations, advertising, writing, etc.
- Nominee must have a connection to the Mahoning Valley and have made a substantial contribution to the field of journalism, communication and media markets.
- The Club may induct up to five people into the Hall of Fame, no more than two posthumous, plus up to three Media and Communication Pioneers.
Excellence in Media Award
The Excellence in Media Award may be given in any category (journalism, PR, advertising, communications, etc.).
The Excellence in Media Award was established to honor those who are currently doing exemplary work in one of the mass communication fields.
The Excellence in Media Award was established to honor those who are currently doing exemplary work in one of the mass communication fields.
2025 Recipient of the Excellence in Media Award: Sydney Canty
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A Detroit native, Sydney Canty received her bachelor's degree in journalism from Wayne State University in 2019 and joined the WFMJ-TV news team in 2020.
She was recently promoted to co-anchor of WFMJ's 11 p.m. news. Canty records, writes and edits content for several of the station's newscasts and has demonstrated a knack for obtaining exclusive interviews and reporting impactful stories. She has received honors, including several Emmy nominations and a recent Emmy award for her investigative story on human trafficking, as well as the Mahoning Valley Young Professionals 25 Under 35 Award. |
Sydney Canty
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2025 Recipient of the Excellence in Media Award: Margie LenhartHaving received a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Slippery Rock University, Margie Lenhart, of New Castle, Pa., is an on-air morning show talent on Willie 95.1 radio.
She and her husband, John Thomas, have created a show that includes local news, weather, sports, music, trivia, listener engagement and support of local charities and non-profit organizations. . Besides Willie 95.1, Lenhart's nearly 30-year career has included on-air work at radio stations WPIC, Lite Rock 102.9 (now Y-103), WRRO, Oldies 93 WBBG, Mix 96, Mix 98.9 and Froggy 95.1. She owns Margie Voiceovers at margievoiceovers.com and has voiced commercials, audiobooks, explainer videos, narrations and more. 2025 Recipient of the Excellence in Media Award: Chelsea Simeon |
Margie Lenhart
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Chelsea Simeon is a digital executive producer overseeing web content on WKBN.com and WYTV.com and social media.
A Brookfield native and a Youngstown State University journalism graduate, she began her career as a print journalist at the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram. There, she won first place Ohio Associated Press awards for enterprise writing and children's issues reporting in 2013 and a first-place children's issues and public service reporting award from the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists in 2014. After Simeon joined WKBN in 2015, she and her co-worker, Jordan Unger, won a first place Ohio AP award for best digital project for reporting on how local communities spent federal Covid 19 relief money. |
Chelsea Simeon
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2024 Recipient of the Excellence in Media Award: Madison Tromler
Madison Tromler is a journalist who started working in Youngstown in 2020 after graduating from Kent State University. Tromler was born and raised in Northeast Ohio and is from North Ridgeville, a city near Cleveland. Tromler was hired as a reporter for WFMJ and then eight months into her career, she was promoted to WFMJ's evening news anchor. Along with anchoring the 6 o'clock news, she writes, shoots and edits reports for the newscast. Prior to graduation, Tromler's first time working in a professional newsroom was during an internship for the Chronicle-Telegram in Elyria. She then worked as a part-time assignment editor for WKYC in Cleveland. |
Madison Tromler
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Excellence in Media Award criteria:
- Nomination must be made by a member in good standing of the Youngstown Press Club.
- Nominee does not have to be a member of the Youngstown Press Club in order to be nominated, but nominee must join in order for his or her nomination to proceed to the YPC Awards selection commmittee for consideration.
- Award can go to an individual or an organization.
- Members of the YPC Awards selection committee may not be nominated or nominate anyone.
- Excellence in this award category should focus on one field of mass communication. Nominations can focus on excellence as it relates to a one-time project or excellence as shown by a body of work.
- Work must have been done in the Mahoning Valley media market.
- This award will only be given when candidates merit recognition.
First Amendment Award
The First Amendment Award was established to honor those who have engaged in behavior in defense of the freedoms protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The award honors a person or organization who has taken a stand with the risk of personal or professional harm. It was created to honor those who have staunchly defended the freedoms protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The nominee must have a connection to the Mahoning Valley region. This award is given in instances where the actions of the awardee are exceptional.
2024 Recipient of the First Amendment Award: Lisa Abraham
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Lisa Abraham, began her career at the Tribune Chronicle in Warren, and went on to work for the Toledo Blade, the Akron Beacon Journal and the Columbus Dispatch.
For 20 years, Abraham covered state and local politics, earning numerous honors for her defense of the First Amendment, including the Society of Professional Journalists’ national First Amendment Award and the Ohio Associated Press’s First Amendment Award. In 1994, while at the Tribune Chronicle, Abraham was jailed for 22 days for refusing to testify before a Trumbull County grand jury investigating a corruption scheme in the county engineer’s office. Believing that journalists should not be forced to become an investigative arm of the government, Abraham refused to testify and was jailed for her actions. She has spoken nationally on the topic of reporters’ First Amendment rights, including appearances at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., and the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada. She currently serves as a senior writer for Kent State University’s Division of University Communications and Marketing. |
Lisa Abraham
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The Vindicator Printing Company
2021 Recipient of the First Amendment Award:
The Vindicator Printing Company
The Vindicator Printing Company, along with the Brown Family, provided a family-run newspaper to the Mahoning Valley for 150 years. The paper began in 1869 when it launched as The Mahoning Vindicator. It became the Youngstown Vindicator shortly after.
Its reporting on the mafia, political corruption, and big business matters garnered the paper a reputation of fearlessness. In 1984, the paper became The Vindicator. The paper provided a heritage of reporting to uncover corruption and to be the watchdog for a community, the importance of good story-telling, and the celebration of the past while emphasizing the importance for future First Amendment rights through journalistic freedom and longevity.
The Vindicator Printing Company
The Vindicator Printing Company, along with the Brown Family, provided a family-run newspaper to the Mahoning Valley for 150 years. The paper began in 1869 when it launched as The Mahoning Vindicator. It became the Youngstown Vindicator shortly after.
Its reporting on the mafia, political corruption, and big business matters garnered the paper a reputation of fearlessness. In 1984, the paper became The Vindicator. The paper provided a heritage of reporting to uncover corruption and to be the watchdog for a community, the importance of good story-telling, and the celebration of the past while emphasizing the importance for future First Amendment rights through journalistic freedom and longevity.
First Amendment Award criteria:
Click here for the 2026 Nomination Form.
- Nomination may be made by anyone.
- Nominee does not have to be a member of the Youngstown Press Club in order to be nominated, but nominee must join in order for his or her nomination to proceed to the YPC Awards selection commmittee for consideration.
- Award can go to an individual or an organization.
- Members of the YPC Awards selection committee may not be nominated or nominate anyone.
- This Award is given to honor a person or organization that has taken a stand with the risk of personal or professional harm. The nominator must make this case in the nomination materials.
- The winner must have a connection to the Mahoning Valley region.
- This award will only be given in instances where the actions of the awardee are exceptional.
Click here for the 2026 Nomination Form.
Medal of Merit
The Medal of Merit is an internal award for a member of the Youngstown Press Club who made outstanding contributions to the club.
2025 Recipient of the Medal of Merit: Pete MillikenPeter H. Milliken was born in New York City and received his Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from New York University and his Master of Arts in Journalism from The Ohio State University.
He joined The Vindicator in 1981 and spent 36 years reporting on health and social services, the Mahoning County government and Mahoning County courts. When the Youngstown Press Club was re-established in 2018, he served on its board of governors. He has since assisted the club with communications, news releases and the media. Milliken has established a journalism scholarship in his name at the Youngstown State University Foundation that promotes the future of professional journalism and is awarded annually to a junior or senior journalism major. |
Pete Milliken
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2024 Recipient of the Medal of Merit: JoAnn Kolarik
In 2024 the Medal of Merit was awarded to JoAnn Kolarik, the first president of the re-established Youngstown Press Club from 2018 to 2021. She currently sits on the YPC Board of Governors. JoAnn is an account executive for WFMJ-TV, where she uses a palette of advertising elements and years of experience to help her clients achieve their business goals. She has served on the Panerathon Committee since its inception and serves on the public relations committee for Potential Development’s School for Students with Autism. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English and economics, and a master’s degree in English, all at Youngstown State University. |
JoAnn Kolarik
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Mary Beth Earnheardt
2023 Recipient of the Medal of Merit: Mary Beth Earnheardt
In 2023 the Medal of Merit was awarded to Mary Beth Earnheardt, a former club executive director, for her work in re-establishing the press club in 2018 and guiding it in the years that followed. Mary Beth Earnheardt re-established the press cub in 2018 and guided it in the years that followed. She was the club's first executive director and later served on the Board of Governors..
Earnheardt is the chairwoman of Youngstown State University's communication department and a professor in the Anderson Journalism Program.
She teaches communication law, journalism history and content creation and has published articles and book chapters on war reporting, political motives and the First Amendment.
Medal of Merit criteria:
Click here for the 2026 Nomination Form.
In 2023 the Medal of Merit was awarded to Mary Beth Earnheardt, a former club executive director, for her work in re-establishing the press club in 2018 and guiding it in the years that followed. Mary Beth Earnheardt re-established the press cub in 2018 and guided it in the years that followed. She was the club's first executive director and later served on the Board of Governors..
Earnheardt is the chairwoman of Youngstown State University's communication department and a professor in the Anderson Journalism Program.
She teaches communication law, journalism history and content creation and has published articles and book chapters on war reporting, political motives and the First Amendment.
Medal of Merit criteria:
- Nomination must be made by a standing committee chair or member of the Board of Governors.
- Nominee must be a member of the Youngstown Press Club.
- Members of the YPC Awards selection committee may not be nominated or nominate anyone.
- This Award is given to honor a person who has contributed to the Club.
Click here for the 2026 Nomination Form.
About YPC award nominations
All awards nominations are due by May 1 of the given year. A separate form is required for each nomination. Letters of support and documentation in support of the nomination should be attached, with the form, and emailed to the Youngstown Press Club at [email protected]m. Questions should be directed to [email protected].
Awards will be presented annually at the Hall of Fame and Awards Dinner in September.
Note these changes for 2026 Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame is now worded: “Nominee must have a connection to the Mahoning Valley and have made a substantial contribution to the field of journalism, communication and media markets.”
Nominees for Hall of Fame no longer are limited to those who have made the majority of their notable contributions in the Mahoning Valley media market.
In addition to up to 5 inductees, with no more than 2 being posthumous, the YPC Hall of Fame will induct up to 3 MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION PIONEERS. These inductees will add a historical perspective to our exemplary Hall of Fame.
Nominations will be the same as other Hall of Fame nominations
Awards will be presented annually at the Hall of Fame and Awards Dinner in September.
Note these changes for 2026 Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame is now worded: “Nominee must have a connection to the Mahoning Valley and have made a substantial contribution to the field of journalism, communication and media markets.”
Nominees for Hall of Fame no longer are limited to those who have made the majority of their notable contributions in the Mahoning Valley media market.
In addition to up to 5 inductees, with no more than 2 being posthumous, the YPC Hall of Fame will induct up to 3 MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION PIONEERS. These inductees will add a historical perspective to our exemplary Hall of Fame.
Nominations will be the same as other Hall of Fame nominations
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