The Tidings received two awards at the 2004 Catholic Press Association Convention held May 26-28 in Washington, D.C.

Columnist Cecilia Gonzalez-Andrieu received first place in the Best Regular Column: General Commentary category for her column, "De Todo Un Poco," which appears on alternate weeks. The award is based on three columns which appeared in the award eligibility period, the calendar year 2003; Gonzalez-Andrieu's columns included April 4 ("My abuelita's theology"), Aug. 1 ("Is that a plank in my eye?") and Nov. 21 ("The U.S.: A Christian Nation?").

"This lady is a columnist," the panel of judges declared in their comments. "Great worldview, fierce sense of justice and tremendous compassion."

Staff writer Ellie Hidalgo received third place in Best Reporting: Special Age Group (Young Adults) for her series of articles on El Salvador which appeared in the Aug. 1, Aug. 22 and Sept. 26 issues. The articles focused on how El Salvador --- after years of civil war and political turmoil --- is striving to build a new future, placing its hope in its youth.

"An impressive piece of work, reported in both El Salvador and Los Angeles," the judges said. "It reflects the paper's great commitment to young adults and immigrants."

The Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada presents awards annually in the areas of diocesan and national newspapers, magazines and books. Among the other awards, in the general excellence category for diocesan newspapers, The Southern Cross of San Diego ranked first in the medium circulation (17,001-40,000) category, and Catholic San Francisco was second among large circulation papers (40,001 and above).