Dan Stoltz, Aquatennial Commodore, and Sonja Weiler, Aquatennial Vice Commodore of the Candidate Division, were honored at the Minnesota DECA State Career Development Conference last Tuesday.
The Minnesota chapter of DECA, an international association of marketing students that provides development opportunities for its members, held its State Career Development Conference last week in Minneapolis. Each year two prestigious awards are given at the conference, the Honorary Life Membership Award and the Outstanding Marketing Executive Award. This year, recipients of both awards went to two of AAO's Leadership.
The Lifetime Membership award is given in honor on one's, "dedication to vocational education and service to DECA." It is the highest award given by MN DECA. This year's recipient was Aquatennial Vice Commodore and Elk River High School DECA Advisor and Marketing Teacher, Sonja Weiler.
First joining DECA as an Anoka High School student, DECA continues to be a major part of Sonja's life. When asked what DECA has meant to her, Sonja stated, "DECA can be transformative for students. It allows me to have students experience the real world."
Sonja first joined the AAO as Aquatennial Captain for the 2013 Ambassador Family. She currently leads the Ambassador Candidate Program, which boasted a record 56 candidates in 2016.
The Outstanding Marketing Executive of the Year Award is given in recognition of "guidance, inspiration & support to the future leaders in marketing & distribution." Past recipients include Carl Pohlad, Rudy Perpich, Leeann Chin, Hubert H. Humphrey, and Kirby Puckett. The 2017 recipient was Aquatennial Commodore and SPIRE Credit Union CEO, Dan Stoltz.
Reflecting on the conference, Stoltz had this to say, "Sonja and I coincidently won prestigious awards - a proud moment for Aqua! We are both humbled and honored, for sure."
Dan is currently serving as Commodore of the Aquatennial Ambassador Crew; representing the Aquatennial festival and City of Minneapolis across North America at festivals and other community events.
Please join the AAO in congratulating Sonja and Dan on their well-deserved recognitions!