| The A. Stephen Weithman, Jr. Leadership Award The A. Stephen Weithman, Jr. Leadership Award was created to honor A. Stephen Weithman, Jr. for his long-term and outstanding leadership to the Missouri Chapter and Missouri’s aquatic resources. The recipient of this award is recognized for their leadership qualities which continue the leadership standards Steve established. In reading the nominations for this person, words like: Expert, Leader, Professional, Teacher, Service, Mentor, and Friend were used to describe this man. He has been a Life Member of the Parent Chapter of the American Fisheries Society (AFS) since 1987. He has been a member of the Oklahoma Chapter (1987-1990), Auburn Chapter (1990-1996), and Missouri Chapter (1997 to present). He served as president of the Auburn Chapter (1991-1992), and has served on committees within both the Southern (SD) and North Central (NCD) Divisions of the Society. He was a member and chair of the student affairs committee (SD), was a member of the warm-water streams committee (SD), and is currently a member of the NCD ictalurid technical committee and SD catfish management technical committee. He organized three AFS SD Student Colloquiums and served on the social committee for the 2000 AFS Annual Meeting in St. Louis, Local Arrangements Chair for the 1993 Southeastern, served as the Steering Committee Chair for the 2003 Midwest Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Fisheries Program Chair for the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies in 2005, and Social Committee Chair for the 2004 Missouri River Natural Resources Conference. It is well known that if you need something done, he is the man to have on your side. Everything he does is done with class, professionalism, and a little fun. When you ask him to get involved, you can rest easy and know that it will be done. The recipient willingly takes on difficult tasks and shows true leadership and professionalism representing the Missouri Chapter. Although he may not be aware of it, he serves as a professional mentor to many in Missouri and beyond. It’s not what he does to further the Chapters goals, rather it what he hasn’t done. He assists with the annual MO-AFS raffle and is a member of the MO-AFS Rivers & Streams sub-committee. He has served as President of the Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society. As president, he worked to increase student involvement through development of a student colloquium as well as networking and sharing information with chapters from both the North Central Division and the Southern Division of AFS. That work continues today. Due to our time constraints tonight, we do not have the time to list the accomplishments of this award winner. A recent example would include is his involvement organizing, coordinating and participating in the 1st Annual AFS-NCD Undergraduate Student Colloquium. Without his leadership, vision and follow through it would not have happened. For these and many other reasons For his dedication to Missouri’s aquatic resources, his desire to relay this understanding to the public, fellow professionals, future aquatic scientist and his commitment to the American Fisheries Society , please help me congratulate Dr. Vincent H. Travnicheck as he receives the A. Stephen Weithman, Jr. Leadership Award from the Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society.
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