Mike Latona

Staff Writer Mike Latona has been with the Courier since 1991, having earned numerous Catholic Press Association and New York Press Association awards for writing about the Catholic Church and a wide range of social-justice and human-interest issues. He has been the chief contact for Southern Tier coverage throughout his 32-year tenure; he also reports on western Monroe County.

He collaborated with Chief Photographer Jeff Witherow and Digital Content Producer Gina Capellazzi on the multimedia project “Opioids: Next Generation is Dying,” which won a prestigious EPPY award from Editor & Publisher magazine in 2019.

Mike is a former full-time sportswriter and part-time Catholic youth minister. In 2011 he co-wrote a book, A Coach and a Miracle, which recalls how Jason “J-Mac” McElwain — the autistic team basketball manager for Greece Athena High School — made worldwide headlines by scoring 20 points in the only varsity game he ever played.

Mike holds a bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. He and his wife, Paola, reside in the Town of Greece where they have three young-adult children — Andrew, Matthew and Catherine — and three cats. He loves golfing, bowling and following the Buffalo Bills, the Chicago Cubs and Syracuse basketball.