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1960 Hellinger Award Winner- John Chekett
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| Checkett, right, with Jim Bishop at Bishop's Florida home. |
The inaugural winner of the Mark Hellinger Award at St. Bonaventure was John Checkett. A native of Long Island, New York, Chekett received a $500 purse and was offered a job at the New York Journal American; initially, being named a winner of the Mark Hellinger Award meant a financial reward as well as a job offer from one of the members of the Hellinger Award Committee.
Checkett was designated as the recipient of the award on March 10, 1960, although he didn't end up attending the formal institution of the Hellinger Award, which occurred on April 27, 1960 at Club 21 in New York City.
Checkett, who in addition to his excellent grades in Journalism minored in English and Philosophy and took an interest in Science and Classical Culture classes, was heavily involved in communication and writing as a student. He wrote articles for the Buffalo Courier-Express and the Olean Times-Herald, served as editor-in-chief of the Bona Venture and worked as an annoucer for the campus radio station. Extracurricular activites included being a part of a fraternity, a philosophical roundtable, a drama club, men's chorus and the chess team.
John Checkett was formally presented with the first Mark Hellinger Award at commencement on Sunday, June 5, 1960.