Submitted Photo Arkwright Town Supervisor Brian McAvoy, left, presented OBSERVER Reporter Braden Carmen, right, with an award citing “Excellence in Journalism” for an article in May regarding the death of a chicken caused by a dog in the Town of Arkwright.

ARKWRIGHT — After a violent encounter in the town ruffled feathers of more than just the victim of an attack from a dog that killed a chicken, Town Supervisor Brian McAvoy spoke to the importance of the chicken in towns like Arkwright all across the globe.

McAvoy then smiled, while many in the room laughed, as he continued with a presentation of a new award to conclude the recent Arkwright Town Board meeting.

“Atrocities against our feathered friends seem to be conveniently underreported,” McAvoy said. “Against this backdrop of apathy and indifference, one brave young reporter turned a chicken’s plight into front page news.”

Looking up from his prepared speech to make eye contact with said reporter, Braden Carmen of the OBSERVER, McAvoy then continued.

“On May 16, 2023, in a stop-the-press moment that would’ve made Woodward and Bernstein take notice, the world stood still, laser focused on the riveting story exposing fowl play in the otherwise peaceful town of Arkwright,” McAvoy said. “The sleepy town’s innocence may have been forever shattered by the plight of one chicken, but it was a story too important not to write.”

McAvoy concluded his presentation by stating, “Without further ado, on behalf of the residents of Arkwright, and in honor of chickens worldwide, we present Braden Carmen with the first ever Arkwright Town Award for Excellence in Journalism. Congratulations, Braden.”

The article which earned the town’s newest award, titled “‘Chicken dilemma’ debated in Arkwright” was not the first time Carmen has braved his lifelong fear of birds in the name of responsible journalism. He also wrote a feature story on Lucy the Goose in Silver Creek, then memorialized said goose after its death a few months later.

Carmen also took second place in the New York State Associated Press Association Awards in 2020 for his headline, “Playoffs taste like cooked ‘Duck’,” referring to a Buffalo Bills playoff clinching victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in December 2019.

Teary-eyed — mostly due to laughing so hard in the moment — Carmen told the Arkwright Town Board, “This is a better award than the AP gave me.”

On the wings of chickens, geese, and ducks, it appears Carmen’s career has soared to new heights.