2025 Commission Awards Banquet Honoring the 2024 Awards Recipients
Commission awards banquet set for Jan. 25, 2025
The annual Arizona Game and Fish Department Commission Awards Banquet will be held on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort, Grande Ballroom, 11111 N. 7th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85020. The event will honor the recipients of the 2024 Commission Awards that were selected at the Commission’s September 6, 2024 meeting (see award recipients below). The purpose of these awards is to recognize Arizonans who have contributed significantly to the conservation of the state’s wildlife, its outdoor heritage, and the mission of the Department.
The banquet will begin with a social hour at 4 p.m. followed by dinner at 6 p.m. The awards will be presented concurrently with dinner. We are looking forward to a great celebration of all our award recipients! The cost is $75 per person. All RSVP’s are due by Jan. 3, 2025.
Registration and Sponsorship Form
The Arizona Game and Fish Commission held its first awards banquet on Jan. 12, 1991. Since then, nearly more than 400 recipients have been recognized with Commission awards. The awards banquet gives the Commission an opportunity to recognize individuals, groups and organizations for their contributions to Arizona’s wildlife resources.
All of the costs associated with the awards banquet must be paid for by ticket sales and sponsorship donations, including the complimentary tickets for award recipients and their spouse or guest. Table Sponsorships for organizations are available in several categories and include logo advertisement in event program, sponsorship recognition during introductory presentation, and recognition in the event press release.
2024 award recipients
- Award of Excellence – Kohinoor Kar – ADOT
- Youth Conservationist of the Year – Ryder and Caydence Walton
- Media of the Year – The Williams Grand Canyon News
- Conservation Organization of the Year – Pete Cimellaro – AZ Big Game Super Raffle dba Conservation First
- Conservationist of the Year – Nate Rees – Trout Unlimited
- Natural Resource Professional of the Year – Cheryl Rodriguez
- Volunteer of the Year – Mark Venuti
- Educator of the Year – Jacob Swartwood
- Mentor of the Year – Marci Welton
- Advocate of the Year – State – Rep. Tim Dunn
- Advocate of the Year – Federal – Senator Mark Kelly
- Business Partner of the Year – Az Fly Shop – Chris Rich
- Buck Appleby Hunter Education Instructor of the Year – Denis Rusty McBride – Sprague’s Sports LLC
- Wildlife Habitat Steward of the Year – Terry Schmidt of Schmidt Ranch
- North American Model Commissioner’s Award – Jeff Gagnon
Past Award Recipients
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