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2007 Recipients of Distinguished Awards

Most Valuable Volunteer Award

This award was established by the Conference’s Board of Directors and staff, to recognize volunteers for contributions made to the Conference or the actuarial consulting profession in general, during the past 12 to 24 months.

This year’s winner of the Most Valuable Volunteer Award is John H. Lowell. In the nomination, it was noted that “John contributes to the overall success of the Conference by volunteering on a consistent basis through serving in several capacities, including as a member of the EA Committee and serving as a presenter at multiple sessions at the Annual Meetings, EA Meetings and audiocasts. Amazingly, for the May audiocast, due to scheduling issues, John developed and presented the materials solo for the entire seventy-five minute audiocast, receiving positive reviews.“

Lifetime Achievement Award

This award was established by the Conference’s Board of Directors and staff, to recognize Conference members for their contributions made to the Conference, or the actuarial consulting profession in general, during their professional career.

This year’s winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award is Robert J. Myers. Mr. Myers is the author of more than 900 articles and five books on the Social Security program. He holds a Guinness Book of Records world record for testifying before Congress 175 times during his tenures as Social Security Chief Actuary from 1947-1970 and as Social Security Deputy Commissioner from 1981-1982. He is a founding member of the National Academy of Social Insurance. He is an acknowledged world-class expert on the Social Security program and is considered by many to be one of the elder statesmen of the program.

Please join the Conference in congratulating Bob on this well deserved honor.

John Hanson Memorial Prize Winner

The John Hanson Memorial Prize is considered on an annual basis and when awarded is for the best paper on an employee benefits topic. A long-time Treasurer of the Conference, Mr. Hanson’s papers on pension funding and accounting set the standard for this important topic.

Thomas H. Shelby III presented the 2007 John Hanson Memorial Prize to Donald E. Fuerst for his paper entitled, “Risk Allocation in Retirement Plans: A Better Solution.”

[Click here for the full text of the winning paper.]
This article was originally published in the Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Volume 18, Number 1, Winter 2005, a Morgan Stanley Publication.

Wynn Kent Public Communication Award

To honor Irwin I. "Wynn" Kent, President from 1989-1990 for the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, Mr. Kent’s son, Ken Kent -- Fellow and also a Past President of the Conference -- established, along with family and friends, an award in Mr. Kent’s name through The Actuarial Foundation.

The intent of this award is to recognize members of the actuarial profession who have contributed to the public’s understanding of financial risk and to encourage more actuaries to engage in these activities. Activities recognized by the Award include, but are not limited to: Literature, speeches, work with the media, and volunteering and representing the profession in areas outside the actuarial profession.

Mr. A. Haeworth Robertson was the winner of the 2007 Wynn Kent Public Communication Award for his many contributions in this area, including a commentary entitled, “Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds.”