by Steven Feldman
This year Floor Covering News established its Lifetime Achievement Award to recognize and celebrate those people who have not only made significant contributions to the floor covering industry, but more importantly, worked toward its betterment and made a difference over a sustained period of time. Simply stated, the intent is to recognize service and leadership that is of a scope and duration to be considered a lifetime achievement.
Carpet One president and co-founder Sandy Mishkin was a most deserving recipient of the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award as he exemplified all of the above criteria (FCNews, Jan. 25/Feb. 1). But now it is time to turn our attention to next year’s honoree, whomever he or she may be.
And this is where you come in. I’m sure all of you are aware of someone who is befitting of this award.
Well, don’t keep it a secret. I’m asking our readers to nominate someone who should be considered for the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award. And with the submission, I’d like some words—it could be a few sentences, it could be a paragraph—on why you feel this person is deserving of this prestigious honor.
We compiled our own list of worthy candidates over the last year before deciding on Mishkin after much consultation with knowledgeable industry observers. Heck, we could have looked no further than the World Floor Covering Association Hall of Fame roster to find suitable contenders. But there are so many more individuals who have made contributions to this industry, some of whom having done much of their work under the radar or behind the scenes.
What’s more, FCNews’ Lifetime Achievement Award is not politically motivated, nor is it a popularity contest, as is often the case with similar accolades in other industries. Every nominee will be considered on his or her own merits.
There are a few ground rules:
- Nominations for the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award must be submitted to me no later than Oct. 31, 2010. (I have my reservations about doing this seven months in advance, because procrastination is human nature for many. But don’t worry; I’ll be reminding you of this periodically. Reminding bordering on pestering.)
- Candidates may not nominate themselves. (I’m a firm believer in checking your ego at the door.)
- The candidate must be alive at the time of nomination.
- Nominators are asked to maintain the confidentiality of their nominee and refrain from informing the candidate about the nomination. (We’re big on surprises around here.) The 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented early next year (details to be announced), hope- fully with some drama attached. The look of astonishment on Mishkin’s face when he was presented with the award at Carpet One’s 25th anniversary gala was priceless.
- Nominations will be accepted via e-mail (preferred), mail or fax.
- There is no restriction on the number of candidates any person can nominate.
- There is no cost for placing a nomination.
You may be wondering exactly who makes the final decision on the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Here’s the process. FCNews will look at every candidate who is suggested, which will be added to the aforementioned list we began compiling last year. The FCNews staff will then pare down the names to a few and send that list to a jury of noted experts, who will then make their recommendations to FCNews for our final approval.
My contact information can be found on page 4, but to save time, my email is fcnsteve@yahoo.com. I want to hear from you.