The Honourable Clyde Jackman, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, has extended congratulations to the six recipients of this year�s Manning Awards, presented by the Historic Sites Association (HSA) of Newfoundland and Labrador to recognize excellence in the public presentation of historic places.

Manning Awards were presented in five categories: community, regional, provincial, national, and international. Recipients included the Burnside Heritage Foundation�s archeology project, the Labradoria Clay Mural Project (Dorrie Brown), the Provincial Mariners� Memorial (Grand Bank Heritage Society), the Century Farm Project (Agricultural History Society of Newfoundland and Labrador), Newfoundland Quarterly (St. John�s) and the Amelia Earhart Memorial (Harbour Grace). A brief description of the winning projects is listed below.

Verne Somers, chair of board of directors of the Historic Sites Association, said all of this year�s Manning Award recipients were highly deserving of the honour.

"Through the Manning Awards, the Historic Sites Association is pleased to honour the hard work and enthusiasm of the projects executed by heritage workers and volunteers," Mr. Somers said. "Each group has been dedicated to creatively presenting a piece of their heritage."

Meanwhile, the Dr. Paul O�Neill Scholarship for excellence in Newfoundland and Labrador Studies was also presented during the 16^th annual Manning Awards ceremony, held at the Fairmont Newfoundland. Memorial University student Sarah Pitcher was named this year�s recipient.

Minister Jackman said the Provincial Government is committed to preserving Newfoundland and Labrador�s unique culture and heritage and has provided project assistance for a number of this year�s recipients. Since 2006, through various programs, the Provincial Government has contributed more than $75,000 to several of the 2008 Manning Award recipients.

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador is entering into its third year of a long-term cultural strategy, Creative Newfoundland and Labrador � The Blueprint for Development and Investment in Culture, which has included, to date, a $17.6 million commitment of new investment into arts, cultural and heritage initiatives.

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The Century Farm Project was implemented two years ago by the Agricultural History Society of Newfoundland and Labrador. It recognizes farms which have been continuously worked by the same family for 100 years or more, and are still actively farmed at present. To date, 15 Century Farms have been identified in this province.

The Mariners� Memorial, designed by sculptor Luben Boykov and landscape architect Frederick Hann, is located in Grand Bank and honours the memory of those lost at sea and pays tribute to the strength of those who were left behind. There are two main elements to the composition: a life-sized bronze female figure and a simulated water-and-beach-rocks shoreline containing the names of hundreds of seamen lost at sea.

Regional Category - Labradoria Clay Mural Project

The Labradoria Clay Mural Project, led by visual art teacher Dorrie Brown of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, enabled young people in Labrador to use their skills in research, sculpting, firing, and painting in the development of a series of clay tablets which depict a deep respect and love for their northern home and cultural traditions.

National Category - The Newfoundland Quarterly

Published in St. John�s, the Newfoundland Quarterly is the province�s oldest magazine and the second oldest magazine in Canada. Founder John J. Evans called it "a literary magazine of interest to Newfoundlanders at home and abroad," and from start to present it has included fiction, poetry, and articles on the history and culture of Newfoundland and Labrador.

International Category - Amelia Earhart Memorial, Harbour Grace.

Designed and sculpted by Lorne Rostotski, a bronze stature of the American aviatrix, the first women to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, is to be housed at a new Amelia Earhart Park in Harbour Grace.

2008 03 25                                                       9:30 a.m.