Bigfork Eagle reporter Sally Finneran was recently honored as the Media Personality of the year by Special Olympics Montana.

On an annual basis, Special Olympics Montana takes the time to celebrate and honor the heroes and stars of its organization, through their Distinguished Service Awards. This year’s the Distinguished Service Awards Banquet was held in Great Falls on Saturday, September 19, in conjunction with the organization’s annual Fall Leadership Conference.

The Distinguished Service Awards are the most prestigious awards given by Special Olympics Montana. Nominations are received from Special Olympics Montana’s statewide network of volunteers, coaches, parents, and athletes. Then a selection committee is appointed to review the submissions and is charged with the difficult task of selecting a winner in each category.

Finneran wrote several stories in 2015 about both the Bigfork Blaze Special Olympics team and Project Unify efforts in Bigfork and Swan River Schools.

Special Olympics Montana’s 2015 Distinguished Service Awards winners are:

·    Athlete of the Year - Skylehr Stiles (Belgrade, MT)

·    Hall of Fame - John Parkes (Bozeman, MT)

·    Spirit of Special Olympics – Police Officer Jason Parce (Kalispell, MT)

·    Project UNIFY Program of the Year - Missoula County Public Schools (Missoula, MT)

·    Local Program of the Year - Bozeman Flames (Bozeman, MT)

·    Youth Volunteer of the Year - Katey Deist (Kalispell, MT)

·    Adult Volunteer of the Year - Tiffani Coleman (Billings, MT)

·    Family of the Year - Fauque/Racine Family (Choteau, MT)

·    Coach of the Year - Kim Farley (Billings, MT)

·    Business of the Year - MacKenzie River Pizza Co. (Statewide)

·    Organization of the Year - The Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation (Missoula, MT)

·    Media Personality of the Year - Sally Finneran (Bigfork Eagle, Bigfork, MT)

·    Media Partner of the Year - Montana Television Network (Statewide)

·    Outstanding Employee Service Award – Terri Sappington (Great Falls, MT)