| June 2007 | |
10-year-old Schulenburg photographer beats elders in TGCPABy Beth Wiseman SCHULENBURG — Kade Vyvjala recently joined the ranks of award-winning sports photographers across the Gulf Coast. However, distinguishing Vyvjala from his camera-toting peers is the fact that he is only 10-years-old. When not doing homework, playing sports, or any of the other normal activities of a boy in fifth grade – Vyvjala can be found on the sidelines of Shorthorn football, baseball and basketball games, and Lady Horn softball and volleyball games. His second-place win at the Texas Gulf Coast Press Association convention was a joint effort with his father, Schulenburg Sticker managing editor Darrell Vyvjala. Father and son each submitted a sports action photo (Kade, football, and Darrell, volleyball) in the contest. “To my knowledge, in the 30 years we’ve been active in the association, no one as young as 10 has been a winner of anything other than a door prize at TGCPA,” Mary Judson, past director of TGCPA, publisher of the Port Aransas South Jetty, and assistant to the president of South Texas Press Association, said. Marshall Day, president of Texas Press Association and publisher of The Gatesville Messenger, said he had never heard of anything like this occurring in press competitions. Pauline Word, publications manager for the Texas Press Association, provided some background information. She said there was a teen-ager in Brackettville who won back-to-back TPA column writing awards in 2004 and 2005, and a second place in 2003 against writers three-times her age. Word said she is sure that there have probably been other kids who have won over time, especially if they are the sons or daughters of publishers. However, she said her guess is there have not been too many, if any, 10-year-old contest winners. Kade said he is “happy” about his win, but for the most part is quite modest about his accomplishment. He said that this (journalism/photojournalism) is the course he plans to take toward a career. Favorite sport to photograph? Kade says football. Person who has influenced him the most in his life? You guessed it – his dad. So, as Kade approaches his 11th birthday, the staff at the Sticker will watch, wait, and anticipate great things from him. However, “Dad” Darrell says he’s not ready to step aside just yet, though he is very proud of his son’s award. The Sticker competed in TGCPA’s large weekly division (newspapers with a circulation of over 2,500).
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