Spokane, Washington, July 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Theodore W. Minah Distinguished Service Award is the highest honor given by the National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) in recognition of an individual's exemplary and enduring contributions to the association and the collegiate foodservice industry.
On Wednesday, July 13, during the NACUFS 2022 National Conference, Orlynn Rosaasen, NACUFS’ immediate past president, presented the 2022 Theodore W. Minah Distinguished Service Award to Dawn Aubrey, Compass Group, working on the campus of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.
“When I received a phone call from Orlynn Rosaasen, NACUFS immediate past president, I asked him to repeat what he said because I was stunned, overwhelmed, and amazed,” stated Dawn during her acceptance speech. “I am still overwhelmed. I am still amazed, and I am very honored.”
Dawn has over 30 years of experience overseeing multi-million dollar higher education programs and departments in contract-managed and self-operated institutions. For the past 25 years, she has been an active NACUFS member serving in various leadership positions, including the regional membership chair (2020, 2021), co-chair of the NACUFS Collegiate Dining Body of Knowledge™ Task Force (2018, 2019), co-facilitated the Foodservice Directors Symposium (2020, 2022), and serving as the President of the Association (2016). After her presidency, Dawn served on the nominating committee (2017), executive committee (2017), and the Board of Trustees (2017). She was previously honored by NACUFS with the Richard Lichtenfelt Award (2017).
Dawn’s work to push NACUFS forward during her presidency, her amenable can-do spirit, and her willingness to share her expertise with members of food service teams throughout the nation were highlighted within her nomination.
“In our current climate of supply chain and staffing challenges, it sometimes seems like a miracle when we successfully navigate daily operations, manage expectations, and make strides in pursuit of programmatic excellence. Before me today are the boldest and best ‘miracle workers’ of our industry, and I am awed and humbled by each of your successes and contributions.”
Albert Einstein once said, “there are two ways to live – you can live as if nothing is a miracle, or you can live as if everything is a miracle. “For me, I choose the latter,” Dawn said in closing. “It is my sincere hope you join Einstein and myself in the latter and remember, sometimes even a miracle needs a hand.”
Previous winners can be found at https://www.nacufs.org/MinahPastWinners.
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Dawn Aubrey
About NACUFS
The National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) was founded in 1958 by a group of college and university foodservice professionals from across the United States. Since its inception, NACUFS has focused on its mission to support and promote excellence in collegiate dining by providing members with the programs and resources they need to excel, from benchmarking and best practices to educational programming and professional networking.
NACUFS institutional members include private colleges to large public universities, and two-year colleges to four-year universities and span the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and beyond. Industry members include food and equipment manufacturers, distributors, brokers, foodservice support companies, councils, boards, trade associations, advisory commissions, and other professional groups. For more information, visit NACUFS.org.
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