WQA Recognizes 13 Recipients of Annual Awards
Winners of the prestigious Hall of Fame and Lifetime Membership awards—as well an Illinois company honored with the Excellence Award—are among 13 honorees announced during the 2022 WQA Convention & Exposition.
Hall of Fame
Richard Mest
President of Master Water Conditioning Corporation
Lifetime Member Award
Steve Ver Strat
Recently retired from Amway Corporation
Excellence Award, Manufacturer/Supplier Category
Antunes, a water treatment and commercial kitchen appliance manufacturer in Carol Stream, IL, who partners with the non-profit organization Splash to bring clean water to children around the world.
Key Award
Cindy Gresham
Recently retired as Business Development Manager with Thermax, Inc.
Ray Cross Award
Bob Maisner
Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Paragon Water
Regents Award
Mike Heatwole, MWS
Territory Sales Manager for Water-Right, Inc.
Award of Merit
Claudia Milliron
Market Research Manager at Kinetico Incorporated
Candice Wentling, MWS
Director of Certified Action
Honorary Membership Award
U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-WI
Next Gen award
Trent Jacobi
Senior Director — Water Treatment for GE Appliance, a Haier company
Ariane Paris
Founder and CEO
Ethical H2O in San Diego
Presidents’ Club
Roy Esparza, MWS, CI, CWR
Puronics Water Systems Inc.
Kelly Thompson, MWS, CI
Moti-Vitality
Professor Wilfried Brutsaert Awarded the Stockholm Water Prize 2022
Hydrologist Wilfried Brutsaert, also known as Mr. Evaporation, has been awarded the Stockholm Water Prize 2022 for his groundbreaking work to quantify environmental evaporation, helping to make accurate predictions of the impact that climate change has on local rainfall patterns and water sources. Brutsaert is Professor Emeritus of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University, USA.
Kazuo Yamamoto Awarded Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2020
Professor Kazuo Yamamoto developed the world’s first operationally viable submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR) prototype in 1988. For his pioneering invention that has since benefitted millions worldwide with enhanced public health and water security, he was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2020.
Named after Singapore’s first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, the Prize honors outstanding contributions by individuals or organizations towards solving the world’s water challenges by developing or applying innovative technologies, policies or programs which benefit humanity. The Prize, sponsored by Temasek Foundation, awards the winning recipient with a $300,000 cash prize, a certificate and a gold medallion.