2005-2006 AFDO Award Winners
Achievement Award - Associate Award - Scholarship Award
Achievement Award
The AFDO Achievement Award is given to an individual who is in his or her first five years of service as an Inspector, Investigator, Milk Specialist, Radiological Health Inspector, Food Specialist, Consumer Protection Inspector, or similar regulatory position. He or she must be a field person; that is; a person who goes out of the office to make inspections a significant portion of his or her working time.
The award recipient must be employed by a Federal, State, County, or Municipal Regulatory Agency, which has at least one employee as a member of AFDO. The recipient does not have to be a member of AFDO.
Kim is a Certified Code Enforcement Officer and a Registered Sanitarian with the City of Lewiston Maine, has been with the city for three years. This position requires a highly skilled and motivated person to undertake inspection and enforcement activities primarily related to the following, Property Maintenance Code, licensing and inspections related to the Maine Food Code for Eating and Lodging Establishments, processing facilities grocery stores, and Environmental Health related issues.
Kim also works with the cities of Portland, South Portland, and Auburn Maine and also performs inspections for the Maine Dept of Health and Human services. Kim’s skills, and accomplishments, are too numerous to mention at this time and are recognized not only by her supervisor, at the City of Lewiston but also by the State of Maine Dept of Health and Human Services, Director of the Health Inspection program who nominated her for this award.
Associate Award
The AFDO Associate Award (Associate Member of the Year) if given each year at the Annual Conference to an Associate member who, through their long-term active membership in the Association, has been actively involved in committee work, development of model codes, and the promotion of the objectives of AFDO.
This year’s recipient was born in Texas during the 1950's. To be more precise, our recipient was born in Bolger, Texas and grew up in Hurst, Texas, attending Richland High School. At Richland High School she was a lieutenant with the high school drill team, the Rebels, and a member of the National Honor Society.
Our recipient attended Tarlatan State University, Stephenville, Texas. This college is also referred to as “Cowboy College” because they award numerous rodeo scholarships. Our recipient furthered her education graduating from the University Of Texas School Of Pharmacy, Austin, Texas. After graduation, she worked both retail and was a Pharmacist at Harris Hospital in Fort Worth.
Our recipient spent 10 years working with the Texas Department of Health and left that agency as the Director of the Drug and Medical Device Division in the Bureau of Food and Drug Safety. In that capacity she provided direction to all the Drugs, Medical Devices, and Cosmetics programs within the Bureau. While with the Texas Dept of Health she received the Texas Business Woman of the Year award.
Our recipient was also very active within AFDO during this time period serving first as a member and then as the Chair of the Drugs, Medical Devices, and Cosmetics Committee. She developed numerous training programs in those areas which proved very successful and were very much in demand. She also developed or participated in the development of numerous position papers on behalf of AFDO in a wide variety of areas including dietary supplements. As the Drug and Device Committee Chair, she worked closely with FDA to help develop the dietary supplement downlink training.
She also testified on numerous occasions including before congress on behalf of AFDO on numerous topics and was particularly effective in representing AFDO’s position with the respect to the hazards of ephedra alkaloids. However there was one occasion when she was once invited to be present on the U.S. Senate floor for the passage of legislation that she had provided extensive information she declined however, when she learned that she would be standing with one Ted Kennedy. A little too close for comfort I guess.
Always ready to support AFDO, she was the AFDO representative to the United States Pharmacopeia where she earned a reputation as a hard working and very dependable member. She continually looks for opportunities to support and promote AFDO.
By now I am sure you all know who our recipient is; In 2003 Cynthia left the Texas Dept of Health for employment with Abbott in Austin Texas. Because of her move to industry she resigned her position of Chair of the Drugs, Devices, and Cosmetics Committee but has continued as a contributing member of that committee. She is also a member of the AFDO Laboratory Science and Technology Committee.
In her current role, Cynthia has made numerous suggestions to improve conference programs; has made recommendations to increase industry membership; serves as an advocate for the development of training programs for regulated industry; and has proven very adept at providing the drug and device perspective on issues coming before AFDO. In 2004, Cynthia was selected as the Director, Quality Systems, Hospira (a spin-off of Abbott) in Chicago, Illinois where she is still currently employed.
Cynthia is married to Mark and has a daughter, Briana.
Scholarship Awards
In 1981, AFDO established a scholarship fund with the excess funds from the 75th Anniversary of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The “George M Burditt Scholarship’ and the “Betsy B Woodward Scholarship”, both in the amount of $ 1,500.00 each will be awarded annually to a worthy recipient who is in their third or fourth year of college. The recipients should have demonstrated a desire to serve in an career of research, regulatory work, quality control, or teaching in an area related to some aspect of foods, drugs, or consumer protection; should have demonstrated leadership capabilities; and must have at least a grade point average of 3.0 during the first two years of undergraduate study on a scale of 4.0
This year we received eleven applications.
Our first recipient is Hung Ngo, who is attending Everett Community in Everett, Washington. Hung was born and raised in Vietnam and moved to the United States when he was eleven years old. The first few years were the most difficult years of his life. Learning English being able to adapt and blend in with other Americans. He managed to overcome all of that and remembering his youth and having no medical help in his home town. Hung was determined to be in the medical profession. He entered Everett Community College with a major in Arts, Science, and Pharmacy eventually leading to a Doctorate in Pharmacy; he comes highly recommended by his instructors and currently has a 3.14 GPA.
Our second recipient is Mandy Mayeaux who is attending Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with a major and expected degree in Food Science. Mandy has been on the Dean’s list every semester and has a 3.57 GPA. Mandy also comes highly recommended by her professors, and her accomplishments at Louisiana State and in the community are too numerous to mention at this time.
