Activities
FDAAA Honors Members at Annual Meeting
Liz Krell, Chairman of the Board of Directors presented awards to those members that made outstanding contributions to the Association at the annual meeting held on April 22, 2009. In her remarks she noted that it was her honor on behalf of the FDAAA to recognize those that enabled our organization to thrive. She presented each recipient with a handsome engraved box bearing the FDAAA logo as a token of appreciation for their contributions.
The FDAAA Service Recognition Awards are presented to individuals "who serve in leadership positions of the Association and whose service has a demonstrably positive effect on the growth, operational success and public image of the organization." This year's recipients are Tony Celeste, Ballard Graham, Jerry Halperin and Jeff Springer.
Outgoing FDAAA President, Tony Celeste managed the newsletter, headed the Editorial Board, was Editor-in-Chief, Chair of the Communications Committee, was a member of the Awards Committee and since 2006 FDAAA President. He helped get the newsletter, annual directory and website up and running, helped to recruit members, helped with the strategic positioning of our Association for the future and hosted meetings of the Board and Committees at his Kendle offices. During Tony's presidency FDAAA's membership rolls increased by 23%, our operating budget increased and more funding and attention was sought from outside groups, support for the scholarship program at Temple University was continued, outreach efforts to members increased, and the Association worked with FDA to provide the expertise and institutional knowledge of our members to assist FDA in its mission.
Ballard Graham has been an active participant in FDAAA since its beginnings. He served on the Board of Directors since 2005 with great energy, providing sound advice and a useful perspective on behalf of our members from FDA's field force. He will be an excellent resource to the new effort by the Communications Committee to reach out to present and past FDA'ers outside of the DC area.
Since the start of the FDAAA, Jerry Halperin has been one of its earliest and ardent supporters. When Jerry was the President of FDLI he provided the platform to enable our Association to share the meeting venue and manpower support of that organization. His efforts led to a working partnership and a tradition of joint annual meetings. This relationship has evolved to enabling FDAAA members to be present at the FDLI plenary session thanks to the current FDLI President, Jim Kelly. Jerry served as FDAAA Treasurer and did an outstanding job keeping our fiscal house in order. As a member of the Board of Directors, Jerry consistently offers solid advice to keep our organization moving forward.
The FDAAA Secretary since 2005, Jeff Springer is effective, knowledgeable about the organization's operating charter, and provides wise counsel. Jeff is known for his quiet demeanor and the importance of his advice. When he speaks, everyone listens and benefits. Jeff's contributions go beyond operating as Secretary. His hard work enabled the organization to stay on track.
The FDAAA Volunteer of the Year Award was presented to Wayne Pines "for shaping the FDAAA luncheon and dinner speakers and annual meeting events that inform and educate FDAAA members, aiding the recruitment of new members, and engineering a successful transition in committee leadership and management."
Wayne's involvement with FDAAA began in the earliest days when a steering committee of alumni and FDA employees defined an organizational mission, designed an operating structure and came up with a governance scheme. Since then he chaired the Activities Committee and played a vital role in nearly all our member events. A long serving member of the Board of Directors, an active member on the Editorial Board and an effective representative for our Association with such groups as FDA, FDLI and The Alliance for a Stronger FDA, Wayne Pines also was instrumental along with others in persuading the FDA Policy Board to support a working partnership that was later formalized in a Memorandum of Understanding.
See FDAAA Awards for a complete listing of all award recipients.
In addition to awards presented by the Association there is an award presented by the FDA to alumni that have been away for at least five years and who have continued to serve the public health. FDAAA makes nominations that are considered by FDA. This year the FDA Awards Office notified Liz Krell that the two nominations submitted by the FDAAA were accepted and that she could announce that FDA's 2009 Distinguished Alumni Awards will be presented in June at the FDA Awards Ceremony to Bob Lake and Dan Michels. We at the FDAAA admire and appreciate their outstanding service to public health, to FDA and to our Association.