Gazette journalist Bonnie Collings was awarded Victorian Country Press Association cadet of the year at the annual awards presentation on Friday night.
Bonnie was one of five finalists named for the award.
The folio of work submitted by Bonnie included: "Repair our Road" covering the impact of a two-year road closure on the Poowong East community; "It takes over everything - shining a light on gambling harm" which was an emotional and confronting interview with a gambling "survivor;" and, "Bravely breaking down the stigma" which was part of The Gazette's written and podcast series with Vietnam veterans and captured the lifetime impact of the war on local couple Hans and Maggie Rehorn.
The award was presented at the annual VCPA conference and awards, held in conjunction with Country Press NSW at Yarrawonga.
A former Marist-Sion College student, Bonnie completed a Bachelor of Communication (Journalism) with distinction at Deakin University.
In accepting her award, Bonnie spoke about the privilege of people trusting journalists to share their stories and the power of journalism in giving people a voice when they feel they are not being heard.
The Gazette was finalist in three other categories - best digital presence (highly commended); best editorial campaign (commended) for its "My Service, My Story" podcast series with Vietnam Veterans; and, best commercial feature (highly commended) for its 2025 football and netball season preview.