Nominations Now Being Accepted for 2026 Sport Fisheries Achievement Award
Recognition for conservation, education, and sportsmanship
Shawn Kimbro, center, receives the 2025 Maryland Sport Fisheries Achievement Award, a celebration of conservation, education, and sportsmanship. Presenting the award are Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services Director Lynn Fegley and Scott Lenox, chair of the Sport Fisheries Advisory Commission. Maryland DNR photo.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Sport Fisheries Advisory Commission are seeking nominations for the annual Maryland Sport Fisheries Achievement Award, a celebration of conservation, education, and sportsmanship. This prestigious honor recognizes individuals who have worked to improve efforts in habitat management, conservation, education, research, or made other meaningful contributions that benefit fish and recreational fishing in Maryland.
Nominations for the Maryland Sport Fisheries Achievement Award are being accepted now through January 31, 2026. Recipients will receive a proclamation signed by the Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and the chair of the Sport Fisheries Advisory Commission.
Since the award was first created in 2019, recipients have included:
2020: Bernard ‘Lefty’ Kreh (posthumous), Dr. Kenneth Lewis
2021: Joe Brooks (posthumous), Robert Wall
2022 James ‘Jim’ Gracie (posthumous), Bruno Vasta
Nominations for the 2026 award can be made by completing an online form, which includes submitting a detailed essay describing the nominee’s contributions to Maryland recreational fisheries. Anyone with questions about the nominating process should contact Paul Genovese of DNR Fishing and Boating Services at [email protected] or 443-534-3627.