COMMUNITY RECOGNITION – JAMES RINKER – NH PRESS ASSOCIATION RECIPIENT
Mayor Kahn recognized James Rinker, NH Press Association Recipient. Mr. Rinker is a longtime resident of the Monadnock Region, born in Westmoreland and raised in Keene. He is a proud Keene High School graduate and chose to continue his studies at Keene State College. Mr. Rinker joined the Keene Sentinel in June 2021 as an intern and became a full-time newsroom member in January 2022. Starting as the paper’s first Digital Community Engagement Journalist, he stepped into his role as the Education and Business Reporter in April of 2024. Mr. Rinker was a 2023–2024 Complicating the Narrative Fellow through the Solutions Journalism Network, reporting on rural LGBTQ+ healthcare access and the politicization of gender affirming care in the state of New Hampshire. His work during the fellowship has since been recognized by the New Hampshire Press Association and the New England Newspaper and Press Association. Mayor Kahn stated that in the shadow of the Keene Sentinel’s 225th anniversary and the Pride Festival that just took place, this award was even more meaningful to link Mr. Rinker’s reporting awards to those two citywide celebrations. Most recently, said Mr. Rinker received the Dennis Joos Memorial Award from the New Hampshire Press Association. The award honors a New Hampshire journalist who makes a unique personal sacrifice in pursuit of covering an event or issue of significance. To readers, Mr. Rinker was honored for his work reporting on gender affirming care in the State through deeply personal columns and through news stories on State Page 4 of 83 09/19/2024 175 legislative efforts to affect Granite Staters in the trans and greater LGBTQ+ community. On September 21, Mr. Rinker would travel to Providence, RI, to accept an award from the New England Newspaper and Press Association for his reporting over the past year on LGBTQ rights, and the LGBTQ community and gender affirming care in New Hampshire.