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Award-Winning Essays

Carol Lynn Pearson received First Prize for her letter to the editor, "We Can Change History for Gay LDS."

2008 Affirmation Writing Awards Contest Winners

by Olin Thomas
October 2008

Because this is an election year and given the increasing popularity of public debate on major issues, the Affirmation Writing Awards were reinstated for 2008 as a contest with a particular emphasis on letters to the editor, public forum letters, opinion editorials and similar efforts to affect public opinion on matters of concern to gay & lesbian Mormons.

An Honorable Mention is awarded to Lavina Fielding Anderson for her article "Against Proposition 8", published in By Common Consent, the newsletter of the Mormon Alliance in July of 2008.

Third Place and an award of $200 goes to Paula Goodfellow for her public forum letter "LDS and Same-Sex Law", published July 24, 2008 in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Second Place and an award of $300 is presented to Robert Parker for his commentary "LDS Church on Wrong Side of Gay Marriage Issue," published June 28, 2008 in the East Valley Tribune in Scottsdale, Arizona.

First prize is awarded to Carol Lynn Pearson for her opinion letter "We Can Change History for Gay LDS," published August 17, 2008 in the Salt Lake Tribune. First prize receives an award of $500.

It is our hope to publish all these letters on our web site for you to read. This contest was not conceived until March of this year and thus we did not have a full year to publicize and promote it. We intend on continuing the contest for 2009 and encourage everyone to consider the power of the pen and use that power to positively influence our society.