Congratulations Renee and Melissa!

Edited to include another very important winner that I just learned about.

I would like to send a hearty congratulations to Renee of Womanist Musings and to Melissa of Shakesville.

Renee won in the won Best Political Blog and Best Feminist Blog: Oh Canada! Categories of the 2009 Canadian F-word Blog Awards. Melissa won in the Best International Feminist Blog Category.

Renee's writing has been an inspiration to me as she provides a stellar role model for how to be an ally. Each of her posts has an insight which I hadn't considered before, or which she's approaching from a different perspective. Her passion and drive shine through her words.

Melissa has created Shakesville, a vibrant, loving, happy community of people from many different backgrounds. I have learned so much in the year that I have been reading there. Every post is a call to be a better person, to lift up others, to make change in the world, one little teaspoonful at a time. Through Shakesville I've developed friendships that I might never have otherwise made. Being able to return to the website after a day spent in a sexist classroom or workplace is a breath of fresh air that often keeps me aloft when I'm too frustrated to do so myself.

Here's to many more years of fantastic blogging from Renee and Melissa (and all of the Shakesville contributors)! *raises glass*