Derek Neary
Northern News Services

FORT SIMPSON (Jul 27/98) - Fifteen thousand postcards with images that reflect distinct scenes in the Deh Cho area will soon hit the market.

Laurie Forrest, supervisor of the Visitor Information Centre, came up with the idea of promoting Fort Simpson on postcards. The cards will include a toll-free information number and the village's Web site, which contains a wealth of information about the community.

A contest, involving photo submissions by the public, was held last week to find the most captivating pictures for the postcards. A panel of judges from the community poured over the 100 entries last Wednesday to narrow the field down to the top six.

Ray Michaud, a former mayor of Fort Simpson, sent in the consensus best shot -- that of a drum dance at the village's drum circle.

"I loved it," Michaud said of the idea for the contest. With photography as a hobby, he helped his chances of winning by contributing close to 50 entries in the contest. Michaud, who travels a lot in his job, said he finds Fort Simpson "motivating" to photograph. As the winner, he received $100 in prize money and will get 20 free postcards.

Sean Whelly, the community business development officer, applied for project funding from the Department of Economic Development. He said the postcards should be available by late August.

"Even though it's a late start this summer, hopefully it's something that will take off next summer," Whelly said, adding that 2,500 of each of the six different post cards will be printed -- a supply that is expected to last for up to four years.

Whelly noted that the Fort Simpson Visitor Information Centre has been selling 1,000 aerial shots of Virginia Falls every summer. Now, they'll have pictures identifiable with Fort Simpson.