Gold Medal of Achievement
The American Orchid Society’s highest honor for distinguished work in orchid culture, in scientific research on orchids or for outstanding service, has been conferred upon these individuals.
- Blanche Ames (May 9, 1924)
- Oakes Ames (May 9, 1924)
- Guerney J. Wilson (May 9, 1924)
- Alfred J. Loveless (June 4, 1925)
- Elinor A. Linder (October 16, 1930)
- Edwin H. Lincoln (April 29, 1932)
- Sir Jeremiah Colman (May 5, 1933)
- Oliver Lines (December 5, 1945)
- Helen H. Adams (March 11, 1947)
- Joseph Urmston (March 23, 1949)
- Dr. Lewis Knudson (December 14, 1949)
- Dr. Ernest N. Cory (December 14, 1949)
- L. Sherman Adams (March 12, 1951)
- Edwin J. Fancourt (December 16, 1953)
- Herbert C. Shipman (September 14, 1957)
- Frank J. Lind (April 17, 1958)
- Prof. Hans Burgeff (May 6, 1960)
- Rodney Wilcox Jones (May 6, 1960)
- Dr. R.E. Holttum (September 21, 1963)
- Dr. Charles Schweinfurth (September 11, 1964)
- Dr. Harold E. Anthony (April 14, 1966)
- Lewis C. Vaughn (October 20, 1967)
- Gordon W. Dillon (April 20, 1968)
- Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing (August 29, 1969)
- Dr. O. Wesley Davidson (September 19, 1971)
- Varina W. Vaughn (October 5, 1973)
- Edmund A. Staub (April 30, 1977)
- Gordon W. Dillon (September 23, 1977)
- Rebecca Tyson Northen (March 24, 1979)
- Dr. Gustav A. L. Mehlquist (September 28, 1979)
- Dr. O. Wesley Davidson (September 27, 1980)
- Merritt W. Huntington (October 14, 1983)
- Raymond McCullough (October 26, 1985)
- Dr. David Brown (October 26, 1985)
- Ernest Hetherington (April 7, 1990)
- Dr. Carl L. Withner (June 16, 1990)
- Dr. Haruyuki Kamemoto (September 6, 1990)
- Mary Noble McQuerry (April 11, 1991)
- Dr. Donald E. Wimber (October 11, 1991)
- Herbert Hager (March 13, 1992)
- Donna Craig (March 13, 1992)
- Joyce Stewart (May 1, 1993)
- Marion R. Sheehan (April 29, 1995)
- Dr. Thomas J. Sheehan (April 29, 1995)
- Charles Marden Fitch (September 30, 1995)
- Dr. Carlyle A. Luer (April 13, 1996)
- Harold Phillips Jesup (November 16, 1996)
- Ann Lauer Jesup (November 16, 1996)
- Robert M. Scully Sr. (April 13, 1997, posthumously)
- Donald Herman (October 24, 1998)
- Dr. Yoneo Sagawa (May 1, 1999)
- Merritt W. Huntington (March 3, 2001)
- Lee S. Cooke (March 3, 2001)
- Dr. Robert Dressler (November 2, 2001)
- Peter R. Furniss (April 13, 2002)
- Leo Holguin (June 12, 2002)
- Richard Clark (July 13, 2002)
- Milton Carpenter (April 24, 2004)
- Dr. Kiat Tan (January 14, 2005)
- Dr. Phillip Cribb (March 10, 2005)
- Roger Brown (April 7, 2006)
- Albert Cameron Burrage (May 16, 2007, posthumously)
- George W. Butterworth Sr. (May 16, 2007, posthumously)
- John E. Lager (May 16, 2007, posthumously)
- Ben Kodoma (July 24, 2007)
- Mrs. William K. du Pont (September 28, 2007, posthumously)
- Ned Nash (August 4, 2007)
- Tom Sheehan (October 23, 2009)
- Howard Bronstein (November 16, 2012)
- Harold Koopowitz (November 15, 2013)
- Carlos Fighetti (November 2, 2014)
Silver Medal of Achievement
Since April 1972, the Silver Medal has been awarded to an individual in recognition of distinguished single-project contributions for outstanding service to the AOS or the orchid community. Prior to that time, the Society’s Silver Medals were utilized as plant, art or exhibition awards.
- Rapee Sagarik (January 25, 1978)
- Dr. Pierre Joubert (October 24, 1981)
- W. W. Goodale Moir (August 18, 1982)
- Beauford B. Fisher (October 14, 1983)
- Katherine McNulty (March 16, 1984)
- Gary Kraus, MD (March 16, 1984)
- Robert M. Scully Jr. (March 16, 1984)
- G.C.K. and Eleanor Dunsterville (February 12, 1987)
- Dr. Leslie A. Garay (February 12, 1987)
- Masatoshi Miyamoto (August 26, 1988)
- Oscar M. Kirsch (August 26, 1988)
- Dr. James R. Fisher (March 4, 1989)
- Dr. David Bishop (March 21, 1989)
- Benjamin Kodama (September 8, 1990)
- J. Milton Warne (September 8, 1990)
- Roy T. Fukumura (September 8, 1990)
- Terry Williams (April 13, 1996)
- Howard Bronstein (May 9, 1998)
- judywhite (October 24, 1998)
- Carol Holdren (April 28, 2001)
- Greg Allikas (October 19, 2002)
- Keith Andrew (March 14, 2003)
- Frank Slaughter, Jr., PhD (October 25, 2003)
- William Ames Rhodehamel (October 9, 2004)
- William H. Riley, PhD (October 21, 2007)
- Kenneth P. Jacobsen, PhD (March 2008)
- Taylor Slaughter (March 22, 2013)
- Frank Slaughter (March 22, 2013)
- Aileen Garrison (November 16, 2013)
- Jose Izquierdo-Rivera (November 16, 2013)
- William Bannon (May 2, 2014)
- Patricia J. Harding (May 2, 2014)
- Alan Koch (May 2, 2014)
- Thomas Mirenda (May 2, 2014)
- Greg Filter (November 2, 2014)
- Chris Rehmann (April 16, 2016)
- James Folsom (October 2016)
- Robert Fuchs (May 2017)
- Kenneth A. Roberts (October 2017)
- Doris Asher (October 2017)
- John Ingram (October 2017)
- Marian Sheehan (October 2017)
- Lois Holmes (October 2017)
- Jeanne Buchanan (October 2019)
- Jean Allen-Ikeson (March 2020)
- Sandra Tillisch-Svoboda (October 2021)
- Will Riley (April 2023)
- George Hatfield (April 2023)
Achievement Award
Awarded to an individual or organization in recognition of contributions in any facet of orchidology, including philanthropy and public relations (promotion of orchids or the AOS). This award was retired in 2016.
- Vaughn-Jordan Foundation (October 1994)
- Stewart Orchids (April 1995)
- Mickey A. Nax (April 1995)
- Marie and Jim Riopelle (April 1995)
- Sherlie Gade (September 1995)
- Makoto Hanajima (April 1996)
- Alan Moon (November 1996)
- William E. Merritt (November 1996)
- Dr. Benjamin C. Berliner (March 1999)
- Vaughn-Jordan Foundation (October 1994)
- Stewart Orchids (April 1995)
- Mickey A. Nax (April 1995)
- Marie and Jim Riopelle (April 1995)
- Sherlie Gade (September 1995)
- Makoto Hanajima (April 1996)
- Alan Moon (November 1996)
- William E. Merritt (November 1996)
- Dr. Benjamin C. Berliner (March 1999)
Certificate of Meritorious Achievement in Orchid Education
The Certificate of Meritorious Achievement in Orchid Education is presented to an individual or individuals for long-standing endeavors in the field of orchid education.
- Dr. Thomas and Mrs. Marion Sheehan (October 13, 1991)
- Rebecca Tyson Northen (April 29, 1999)
- Sue and Terry Bottom (January, 2019)
- Barbara Schmidt (March 2020)
- Charles and Susan Wilson (October 2021)
- Eron Borne (April 2023)
The Thomas Sheehan Award for Outstanding Service by an AOS Volunteer.
Named in honor of Dr. Tom Sheehan—dedicated professor and tireless AOS volunteer, judge and international ambassador—this award recognizes and applauds a member who has demonstrated sustained and exemplary volunteer service that leaves a lasting positive impact on the AOS. Having quietly cultivated a proven history of commitment to the AOS, award winners possess a record of advancing its mission through unique volunteer contributions and extraordinary support of its programs and events. Current officers and trustees will not be considered for this award.
- Aileen Garrison (March 2018)
- Taylor Slaughter (April 2023)
Ambassador Award
The Ambassador Award is granted in recognition of a lifetime of exceptional volunteer service to the nonprofit organization as an ambassador for the Society, carrying out the goals and aims of the AOS to the orchid world.
- Donna Craig (November 3, 2001)
- Gail Furniss (October 9, 2004)
- Peter R. Furniss (October 9, 2004)
- Milton Carpenter (April 8, 2006)
- Greg Allikas (October 18, 2008)
- Kathy Figiel (October 18, 2008)
- Wayne Marine (August 2017)
- Thomas Mirenda (October 2021)
President's Award
The President's Award is granted to someone whom the president of the AOS feels has made an outstanding contribution to the Society.
- Arlene Maguire (October 21, 2007)
- Greg Filter (November 16, 2013)
- Gail Furniss (May 2, 2014)
- Ron McHatton (May 2, 2014)
- Robert Hamilton (May 3, 2015)
- Lou Lodyga (April, 2016)
- James Folsom (October 2016)
- Robert Fuchs (May 2017)
- Japan Grand Prix International Orchid Festival (February 2018)
- Charles B. Thornton, Jr. (March 2018)
- David H. Murdoch (March 2018)
- Sandra Tillisch Svoboda (March 2019)
- Nancy Mountford (October 2019)
- Jay Balchan (October 2019)
- Greg Filter (October 2019)
- Anthony Tanner (October 2019)
- William (Bill) Bodei (October 2020)
- George Hatfield (WOC) (April 2022)
- Will Riley (WOC) (April 2022)
- Bonnie Riley (AOS Centennial Banquet) (April 2022)
- Dr. Jean Hollebone (Governance) (April 2022)
- Cheryl Erins (Secretary, AOS Ambassador) (April 2022)
- Jean Allen-Ikeson (Editorial Support) (April 2022)
- Chris Morales (AOS Auction) (April 2022)
- Alex Rodriguez (AOS Auction) (April 2022)
AOS Fellow
Fellows of the AOS may be elected by trustees in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the scientific, horticultural or educational advancement of the Orchidaceae.
- Dr. Alec M. Pridgeon (October 1991)
- Dr. Gustav A. L. Mehlquist (October 1992)
- Dr. Robert L. Dressler (October 1992)
- Dr. Yoneo Sagawa (October 1994)
- Dr. Gustavo A. Romero (November 1996)
- Dr. Calaway H. Dodson (October 1997)
- Professor Nean Lee (March 2007)
- Dr. Wen-Huei Chen (March 2007)
- Leonid Averyanov (November 2013)
- Leon Glicenstein (November 2013)
- Dr. Joseph Arditti (April 2023)
- Dr. Franco Pupulin (April 2023)
AOS Award for Excellence in Hybridizing
This award honors an individual’s lifelong commitment to hybridizing.
- Ching-Hsien Jian (March 2007)
- Yung-Yu Lin (March 2007)
- William W. Wilson, MD (May 2007)
- Norito Hasegawa, MD (March 2008)
- Amado Vazquez (March 2008)
- Patricia L. Rowland (October 2009)
- Loren Batchman (Spring 2010)
- Koichi Ejiri (February 2011)
- Milton Carpenter (November 2013)
- Gene Crocker (November 2013)
- HP Norton (May 2014)
- Robert Fuchs (November 2014)
- Hadley Cash (May 2015)
- Theresa Hill (May 2015)
- John Leathers (May 2015)
- Roy Tokunaga (May 2015)
- Gary Gallup (October 2015)
- Fred Clarke (October 2016)
- James and Lauris Rose (October 2016)
- Frank Smith (May 2017)
- Martin Motes (May 2017)
- Claude Hamilton (May 2017)
- Anita Aldrich (October 2017)
- George Hatfield (March 2019)
- Jim Roberts (October 2019)
- Graham Wood (October 2020)
- Eric Goo (March 2020)
- James McCully (October 2021)
- Terry Root (October 2021)
- Glen Barfield (April 2023)
- Peter T. Lin (April 2023)
- Allen Black (April 2023)
Distinguished Affiliated Societies Service Award
The DASSA award recognizes long-term service to the AOS and to the members of the affiliated societies.
- Atlanta Orchid Society (October 2001)
- Florida West Coast Orchid Society (October 2001)
- Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society (October 2001)
- South Florida Orchid Society (October 2001)
- Houston Orchid Society (April 2002)
- Oregon Orchid Society (October 2002)
- Denver Orchid Society (October 2004)
- West Shore Orchid Society (October 2005)
- Boca Raton Orchid Society (October 2005)
- Shreveport Orchid Society (October 2007)
- Tampa Orchid Club (January 2008)
- Orchid Society of Western Pennsylvania (November 2013)
- Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society (October 2019)
- East Everglades Orchid Society (March 2020)
- The Orchid Society of Greater Kansas City (October 2021)
- The St. Croix Orchid Society (October 2021)
- The San Francisco Orchid Society (October 2021)
- The Southeastern Pennsylvania Orchid Society (October 2021)
- The Southern Ontario Orchid Society (October 2021)
- The Tampa Bay Orchid Society (October 2021)
The Certificate of Recognition for Advancement of Research
Established in 2022. (First awarded in 2023.)
- Dr. Joseph Arditti (April 2023)
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