Mason PUD 3 is this year’s winner of the prestigious “Tom Hougan Award” from the Northwest Public Power Association (NWPPA) for overall excellence in communications.

L-R: Asia Cline, communications & community relations coordinator; Lynn Eaton, assistant public information & government relations manager; Joel Myer, public information & government relations manager; Justin Holzgrove, telecommunications & community relations manager; Annette Creekpaum, Mason PUD 3 manager.

Mason PUD 3 won eight awards in NWPPA’s 2019 “Excellence in Communications” competition. The awards were presented on September 17 at the Northwest Communications & Energy Innovations Conference (NIC).

Among utilities its size, PUD 3 won first place for its Annual Report, Internal Communications, Website, and Photography. The PUD picked up second-place awards for its Newsletter, Advertising Campaign, and Social Media. It won third place for Special Publication.

“This is a great honor,” said Joel Myer, PUD 3’s public information and government relations manager. “We never lose sight of the fact that our customers and community are the reason we strive for excellence.”

The “Tom Hougan Award” is presented for the best overall communication effort by a utility. In this year’s “Excellence in Communications” competition, PUD 3 had an average score of 45.8 out of 50 points, which included four first-place awards (one with a perfect score), three second-place awards, and one third-place award. It is the PUD’s first time winning the contest.

“We asked members to crush last year’s score with a record number of entries, and they came through. They topped the old record of 229 with 257 entries this year. That’s more than a 10% increase in entries,” said 2019 NIC Chair Jeff Marshall of Clearwater Power. “And the entries this year were top notch with 13 receiving perfect scores of 50 out of 50. Congratulations to everyone!”

Myer said that the competition allows the PUD 3 to benchmark its efforts against hundreds of other organizations. Winning awards in this area affirms the PUD’s efforts to focus its communications on the needs of its customers and community.

Now in its 26th year, the Excellence in Communication contest recognized the top communication efforts of member utilities from throughout NWPPA’s service territory, which includes eight western states and one Canadian province.

Mason PUD 3 provides electricity to nearly 34,000 customers in most of Mason County and small portions of Kitsap and Grays Harbor Counties. The PUD also operates a wholesale fiber optic telecommunications network, which supports the operation of its electric distribution services.