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At the conclusion of the 2006 Toronado Barleywine Festival, our own Russ Wigglesworth was presented a special award on behalf of all BJCP members worldwide. Authorized in secret session by the BJCP Board, it took Russ completely by surprise.
Everyone present thought it was a most fitting way to honor a guy who has done so much for so many years.
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Russ has organized the judging at this big annual event for many years, so the presentation had to wait until all the judging was completed. At that time, just prior to the final round, two members of the Board, Dave Sapsis and Gordon Strong, announced the award.
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When Russ received the award from Dave, he seemed a bit shocked at first.
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But you could sure tell he was happy about it!
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In fact, "overwhelmed" might be the right word for it.
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But certainly no happier than our two Board members were to present it to him.
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The award is a beautiful crystal goblet with the inscription:
Russ Wigglesworth
For Distinguished Service
[the BJCP seal]
1990 - 2006
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Later in the day, we were able to get Russ over to the Anchor Brewery, where his new "mug" was filled with Liberty Ale, and he was able to relax a bit.
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A very classy award for a very classy guy
From all of us, Thanks, Russ !!!
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A quick note for newcomers:
It would be a massive understatement to say that Russ has has been a major factor in the BJCP's success since 1990. This is the guy who, until we implemented our new system, singlehandedly handled every competition registration, every exam record, every upgrade, every promotion, every search for lost points, every pin, every certificate, every point earned by every judge, and much, much more — far too much to list here. And despite the fact that we've been able to find (lots of) other people to handle parts of what he used to do by himself, he's still active and still helping us all.
