Churchill Photo Contest Winners Make 'Impressions'

From the misty "Original Church on the Hill" to a tree reflected in Chalfant Run as it meanders through Bullock Pens Park, Churchill's amateur photographers captured the beauty of the borough they call home for the first Churchill Impressions photo contest.

Residents entered some 50 photos in the contest, which Bonnie Pantlik, a Churchill councilwoman, organized for the Churchill Recreation Board. The contest, inspired by a Murrysville community event, provided an opportunity for residents to share their talents and add to the borough’s historic collection of photos.

A ceremony was held earlier this month at the borough building to announce the winners and display the entries.

Kathy Yearick earned first prize for “Original Church on the Hill,” a misty image of old Beulah Presbyterian Church—the namesake of the borough. Michael Barsevich placed second for “Early Snow,” an artistic slow-shutter shot of wet snow falling on a young bare branch against fall colors lingering in the background.

Michael Hills took third prize for his photo of foliage reflected in Chalfant Run—“Bullock Pens Park in Fall."His 10-year-old son, Mitchell Hills, won the youth category prize for his “Tree in Creek.”

Pantlik said she was moved by a comment from police Chief Allen Park.

“He stopped in and walked through the exhibit and told me that over the course of many years of service here he has always appreciated the beauty of the place. But to see it all in one room, captured and reaffirmed by so many residents—and not just in their own backyards but throughout the borough—we were both just awed.”

Entries were accepted for six months from any resident who was a non-professional photographer. Three independent judges graded the blind blind entries for creativity, composition and conveying the beauty of Churchill.

The photos may still be viewed online at the contest website. Prints are on exhibition at the borough building through mid-April. Future artistic contests will be announced on the Churchill borough website, the Churchill Recreation Department’s Facebook page and the borough newsletter.

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