There were more than 450 entries for the 2006 contest - a 25% increase from 2005 - and it took the press' screening panel three months of careful reading, deliberation and discussion to narrow the field, first to twenty semi-finalists, and then to ten finalists. The latter (stripped of all identifying references) were then sent to the 2006 judge, Mary Jo Salter, who rang Ms Dawson with her decision on April 20th.
