For the fourth straight year, the Lancaster New Era has been recognized as the most award-winning newspaper of its size by the state's premier journalism organization.

The New Era received the Sweepstakes Award for mid-sized daily newspapers after its staff won 15 awards, including four first-place honors, from the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association.

Mid-sized newspapers are those with circulation in the 35,000-to-49,999 range.

The Keystone Awards judges particularly recognized the New Era's sports coverage by staff writer Jeffrey Reinhart.

Judges also gave the newspaper high honors to writing about contemporary health trends by staff writer Mary Beth Schweigert and for editorials by New Era Editor Ernest Schreiber and Editorial Page Editor Jim Burchik.

The New Era also won three awards from the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors for reporting on agriculture, editorial writing and online coverage of President Bush's visit to West Hempfield Township in October.

Schreiber said the continuing string of awards, won by differing staff members each year, reflects the deep experience and leadership of the New Era's writers, photographer and editors.

"Most of our staff are lifelong county residents. Even the newcomers have been here 25 years," he said. "They know the nooks and crannies of this county. They know the people. They like writing about them."

Schreiber especially credited the paper's consistency in performance to the oversight of Managing Editor Peter Mekeel, News Editor Randy Montgomery and Assistant News Editor Jim Loose.

The awards will be presented tonight and Saturday at the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association's Press Conference in State College.

In the Keystone and AP contests:

• Sports writer Reinhart won two first-place Keystone Awards for his story "Leader of the Pack," a profile of a multi-sport high school athlete, and for his story "500," about a lacrosse player scoring a rare 500 points in his high school career.

Reinhart is a graduate of Northeastern University and has worked for the New Era since 1999. He lives in Douglasville, Berks County, with his wife, Rebecca, and their daughter.

• Schweigert won a first-place Keystone Award for health beat stories, with subjects that included natural childbirth, nurse uniform fashions and the state's child health insurance program. She also won a second-place Keystone award for a profile of a long-time city chef.

A Winchester, Va., native, Schweigert is a graduate of the College of William and Mary. She joined the New Era in 1998. Schweigert lives in East Hempfield Township with her husband, New Era Sports Editor Keith Schweigert, and their two children.

• Schreiber won a first-place Keystone Award for editorial writing. His subjects included calling for the resignation of the county commissioner chairman and criticizing a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the mother of a man justifiably shot by police.

A graduate of Millersville University and the University of Pennsylvania, Schreiber joined the New Era in 1974, becoming editor in 2000. He lives in Lancaster Township, with his wife, Jo-Ann, and their son.

• Burchick won a second-place Keystone Award for editorials highlighting the arrogance of a top state legislator and criticizing a proposal for a Lancaster City streetcar system. He also won a second-place AP award calling for reform of the state Legislature.

A Pittsburgh-area native and graduate of Kent State University in Ohio, Burchik joined the New Era in 1996. He has been editorial page editor since 2003. He lives in Mount Gretna, Lebanon County, with his wife, Mary. He has two grown children and three grandchildren.

Janet Kelley, Cindy Stauffer and other staff members won a second-place Keystone Award for their ongoing news coverage of the Haines family murders in Manheim Township.

• Kelley is a Penn State University graduate who joined the New Era in 1979 and covers crime and courts. She lives in Lancaster and has a daughter who is a student at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

• Stauffer, also a Penn State University graduate, has been a New Era staff member since 1982. She works as a general assignment reporter. She lives in Lititz with her husband, Tom, and their three children.

• Bernard Harris won a second-place Keystone Award in the news feature category for a profile of a retiring state Fish & Boat Commission officer investigating the death of a girl swept over a dam.

A Mary Washington College graduate, Harris has been a New Era staff writer since 1997. He lives in Lititz with his wife, Norma, and two sons.

Andrew Blackburn, Joel Lehman and other staff members won a second-place Keystone Award for online journalistic innovation for online coverage of President Bush's visit.

That visit, in which Bush spoke to about 400 people at the Jay Group headquarters, also earned a second-place AP award for online breaking news coverage for Blackburn and Tom Murse.

• Blackburn has a diploma in applied photography from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at the Rochester Institute of Technology and a bachelor's degree in communication arts from Gallaudet University. He has worked for the New Era since 2001 and lives in Manheim Township with his wife and stepdaughter.

• Lehman, a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University, has been with the New Era since 2007. He edits interactive online content for the newspaper. He lives in Lancaster with his wife Stephanie.

• Murse has been a staff writer since September 1997. A Penn State University graduate, he covers state government and politics. He lives in Manheim Township with his wife, Catherine, and their daughter.

Jane Holahan won a second-place Keystone Award in the business or consumer category for a story about the growth of the dinner theater business.

• Holahan writes about arts and entertainment for the New Era. A University of Pittsburgh graduate, she joined the newspaper in 1987. She lives in Lancaster City.

Margaret Gates won a second-place Keystone Award for page design. She designed pages around the themes of quilts, vintage vehicles and the Philadelphia Phillies.

• A graduate of Muhlenberg College, Gates joined the New Era in 1992 and is editor of the "Antiques and Collectibles" section and a copy editor. She lives in Lebanon with her husband and three sons.

Ryan Robinson won a second-place AP award for business writing for a four-day series on the future of farming in Lancaster County.

• Robinson is a Penn State University graduate who has covered agriculture and municipal government for the New Era since 1998. He lives in East Petersburg with his wife, Brenda, and their two children.

Jack Brubaker won an honorable mention from the Keystone judges for investigative reporting for a story about a local doctor who has been the subject of 20 malpractice lawsuits.

A native of Bird-in-Hand and graduate of Dickinson College, Brubaker writes "The Scribbler" column and news features. He and his wife, Chris, live in Manor Township.