Department commander and Legionnaire editor win TALMA Contest awards

By Tim Engstrom
TALMA

INDIANAPOLIS — Minnesota Legionnaire Editor Tim Engstrom and Department of Minnesota Commander Jennifer Havlick won awards in The American Legion Media Association Contest.

The association is better known as TALMA.

The awards are for media created in 2022. This year received a record 103 entries.

mugshot of Jennifer Havlick
Jennifer Havlick

Havlick won in the Social Media category among departments and district. She regularly posted on Facebook in the mornings.

Engstrom won in the Publication category among departments and districts nationwide. The Minnesota Legionnaire is well-recognized within the national organization as a quality veteran publication today and in the past.

The Department of Minnesota website, which Engstrom maintains, won in the Website category among departments and districts nationwide. The website is mnlegion.org.

He also won in the category of Editorial/Info among departments and districts for a story he wrote about the efforts of veterans to pass a veterans omnibus bill, which happened in May, and the success was documented in the June 2022 issue.

Engstrom also won the Chairman’s Award for his coverage of the veterans omnibus bill. It is his second year in a row winning the Chairman’s Award.

mugshot of Tim Engstrom
Tim Engstrom

The award is presented by Dave Wallace, chairman of the National Media & Communications Committee, to any media entered in the contest at any level. The TALMA Contest also has post-level categories of big, medium and small.

Awards are entered between January and mid-April at legion.org/talma.

Any Legion member can join TALMA by paying dues of $15. Membership provides a press pass and access to media training and other resources.

A special awards luncheon is to be held during the 104th National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., to recognize contest winners on Aug. 28.

TALMA members also gather on Aug. 28 for the annual Media Training Workshop.

Another award regardless of category is the Innovation Award, and that went to Cory Brockmann of the Department of Oregon for his public relations efforts.