Jennifer Papich, WRPA Past President
Each year it saddens me when I see the extremely small numbers of nominations we have submitted for professional and spotlight awards because I know how fantastic you all are and I know the tremendous work we all do that deserves to be celebrated, recognized, and honored.
Facts that I know to be true:
- We all do amazing things that deserve to be in the spotlight.
- We all have programs, parks, or events that we are extremely proud of.
- We all have colleagues that are beyond remarkable and long overdue for professional accolades.
- Our Agencies are doing innovative and trend-setting work that is more than worthy of recognition.
I challenge each WRPA member or Agency to submit at least 1 award nomination for a program, project, or professional. We are all in the business of selling and promoting what we do to our citizens, elected officials, boards, commissions, and councils. Time to get recognized on the state level for your efforts and invite your officials to the awards banquet to share in the celebration.
Here is a helpful PDF highlighting all the awards you can submit for, the qualifications, and past recipients.
Awards Highlights
Here is the actual link to the awards page on the WRPA website.
Awards Program
If you have never submitted an award nomination before or having trouble thinking of what to nominate, here are some quick tips to get you started:
- Tell your story – the people that are scoring and evaluating these awards are your peers, what would you want to hear about, what would inspire you? Focus on the impacts this person or program has had on your community. Focus on the difference you are making.
Focus on Innovation – Who in your agency would you describe as innovative or inspirational? What things has your agency done in the past several years to survive and thrive in this pandemic that is extraordinarily innovative? What about innovative park or playground project design? - Show your worth – a little data never hurts – years of service, cost savings, increased engagement, dollars saved, improved satisfaction, lives impacted, and thwarted threats.
Each of us has people and programs that are worth celebrating, be proud of your accomplishments, and share your inspiration with others.
I look forward to seeing your nominations soon!!!