It's Your Heritage

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Annually, since 2004, your association has inducted selected nominees into the Commercial Diving Hall of Fame. These individuals derive from nominated individuals from many different professions and represent men and women who have made a recognized and lasting contribution to commercial diving during their lifetime.

As background, in 2004, a decision was taken by the Board of Directors to establish the Hall of Fame and that the first group of inductees would be those individuals who had previously been awarded either the John B. Galletti Memorial Award (established in 1978), or the Tom Devine Memorial Award (established in 1995). That initial group of inductees numbered 33 individuals plus one additional dedicated Hall of Fame selectee to represent 2005. Of the initial group of inductees, 26 were prior John B. Galletti awardees and seven were Tom Devine awardees.

With the passage of time submittal of nominations to the selection committee has slowed. This may be due to a lack of understanding of what the Hall is intended to represent, or simply due to the fact that as our community continues to grow the contributions of individuals become less evident. Or; it may be that some of the individuals who deserve recognition are from small nations where the commercial diving community is not as well recognized as perhaps it is in other parts of the globe.

Whatever the reasons, the fact is that many persons from our global community have dedicated their lives to commercial diving. These may be men and women who have themselves been commercial divers; developers of equipment, contributors to the medical sciences used to keep us safe from the rigors of diving, safety professionals who recognize and alert us to on-the-job hazards, individuals who establish companies to employ commercial divers or others who produce improved tools for our use underwater. These types of persons are all important to our community and based on their level of contribution worthy of being considered for the award.

As we solicit nominees for the 2011 Hall of Fame, please use care and consideration in making your recommendations. Because an individual is a friend, a co-worker or simply a "name" that you would like to nominate, ask yourself if that person has met the criteria of having made a recognized and lasting contribution to commercial diving during their lifetime. If so, use care in filling out the nominating form and complete supporting information. If not, then keep it in mind for the future. Remember - this is your heritage! Keep it alive and meaningful.

Here's a listing of prior awardees:
Note: Postumous Awards are noted by the letter "P"

John B. Galletti Memorial Award
Capt. George Bond (P) - 1978
Cdr. Jackie Warner (P) - 1979
Dr. Chris Lambertsen - 1980
Hugh (Dan Wilson) - 1981
Bev Morgan - 1982
D. Michael Hughes - 1983
Dick Evens (P) - 1984
George W. Samson (P) - 1985
Jim Joiner - 1986
Henri Delauze - 1987
Phil Nuytten - 1988
Murray Black (P) - 1989
Lad Handelman - 1990
Dr. Joseph McInnis - 1991
Herbert G. Newbury (P) - 1992
John T. Johnson - 1993
Jack D. Smith, Jr. - 1994
Andre Galerne - 1995
Joe Savoie (P) - 1997
Ellis R. Cross (P) - 1996
Steve Helburn - 1998
Bill Dore - 1999 
Bob Kirby - 2000 
Ross Saxon - 2001 
Conway Whitey Grubbs (P) -2002 
R. H. (Dutchy) Holland - 2003

Tom Devine Memorial Award
Ms. Bernice McKenzie (P) - 1995
Juan R. Crofton - 1996
Mike McGovern - 1997
Fred Aichele - 1999
Rick Jager - 2000
Jon Hazelbaker - 2001
Jim Caldwell - 2002

Hall of Fame
Bob Barth - 2005
Rodney Cruze - 2006
Dick Long - 2006
Torrence Parker - 2006
Jack Reedy - 2006
Walter (Whitey) Stephens - 2007
Wilber (Jerry) O'Neill - 2007
Dr. Jeff Zhang - 2008
Dr. Robert Workman (P) - 2008
John Manlove - 2008
Norman Ketchman - 2008
Lazaro Del Castillo - 2008
Dr. Joseph Serio - 2009
Leonard Greenstone - 2009
Robert W. Honaker - 2009
Bud Mills - 2010
Bob Ratclff - 2010
Ben Miller - 2011
Tom Angel - 2011
Joe Sanford (P) - 2011

As you can see, there are a great many notables identified above. If you'll look at this listing it becomes evident that the entire spectrum of application associated with commercial diving is represented as are our friends from other nations. In preparing to make your nomination please give it careful thought to ensure that your submittal gives the committee all the information necessary to make an informed and intelligent selection decision.

If you've any questions please don't hesitate to contact the ADCI office at (281) 893-8388 or info@adc-int.org.

Respecfully,
Ross Saxon, Ph.D.
Chairman
Hall of Fame Selection Committee
281-881-3182 or
rsaxon@cusp-inc.com