The Mabel Sterns Award - 1999

Celestial Observer of Amateur Observers' Society of New York in Floral Park, New York, edited by Peter A. Leavens.

Mr. Leavens began writing astronomy articles for Sky and Telescope in the summer of 1943. For over a decade, he edited the Celestial Observer. Last summer, he suffered a stroke after writing his last club newsletter. Peter is living in a nursing home. The following is excerpted from a letter from Susan Rose, President of the Amateur Observers' Society of New York:

On June 30, 1999, Peter reached the age of 87. I held his hand and told him of the prestigious honor you have seen fit to bestow upon him. His hand twitched. Whether that was a sign, I don¹t know, but it was the first such action I had seen from him in a long time.

Peter is a very passionate man. He attacks things he cares about with great fervor, which is why our newsletter has attained the stature it has. He would, no doubt, have given you a pep talk about the importance of the newsletter to the club membership. For those that cannot attend meetings, it is their lifeline to you. It should also make them want to be there and be a part of your organization. But, anything worth doing, is worth doing well. It is incumbent upon the editor to scrutinize the submittals for accurate content, spelling and punctuation. Whatever the condition of entries, they should emerge as pearls when the final printed word meets the page. Also, don¹t be afraid to admit your errors. When mistakes were found, Peter was very careful to meticulously point out the corrections in the next issue. For that, he achieved great credibility. For all his toughness at the typewriter, however, he¹s also a real softy, a teddy bear. I know that if he were with you, there would be a tear in his eye as he would receive the award because he is also quite sentimental.

It would be wonderful if I could tell you that he¹d be back in the saddle before long, but I doubt that to be true. We are saving all of his newsletters, however, so that he can catch up if that time does come. I know he will be very proud when he reads about this. It was just a year ago, on July 12, 1998, that Peter was stricken. He laid in a coma for a month from which the doctors did not expect him to emerge. He fooled them, though, so anything is possible.

On behalf of all the members of the Amateur Observers¹ Society, who have been the beneficiaries of Peter¹s fine work for many years, we thank you for your recognition and hope that some day, all of you will have a Peter A. Leavens as your newsletter editor.

You can be assured that the award will occupy a place of honor in his hospital room.

Susan Rose, President
Amateur Observers' Society of New York

(Editor's Note: On Friday, December 17, 1999,  Peter Leavens passed away at age 82.)

1999 First Runner-up:

The Hypoxic Observer of the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society in Colorado Springs, Colorado, edited by Deb Schermerhorn.

Our first runner up was The Hypoxic Observer, the newsletter of the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society. Deb Schermerhorn did a fine job with this newsletter, and our judges were impressed with the high quality of her editing.

Other Outstanding Entries

The following astronomical societies sent very impressive letters of recommendation for our judges. All were outstanding newsletter editors, and our judges commended them for dedication to astronomy and for outstanding achievements:

Atlanta Astronomy Club, Georgia, Editor: Peter Macumber
Baton Rouge Astronomical Society, Louisiana, Editor: Craig Brenden
Cape Fear Astronomical Society, North Carolina, Editor: Susan Buccini
Clarksville Astronomy Club, Tennessee, Editor: Jennifer Hartley
Eastbay Astronomical Society, California, Editor: Ellis Myers
Eastern Missouri Dark Sky Observers, Editor: Jerry Kelley
Nelville Public Museum Astronomical Society, Wisconsin, Editor Don DeWitt
Peoria Astronomical Society, Illinois, Editor-in-chief: John Barra
Raleigh Astronomical Society, North Carolina, Editor: Mark Lang
Roanoke Valley Astronomical Society, Virginia, Editor: Frank Baratta
Wabash Valley Astronomical Society, Indiana, Editor: Lisa Wieland