2025 VWEA Awards

Enslow-Hedgepeth Award

This award is presented to an Association member who, during the past year or recent years, has made outstanding contributions to VWEA through services to the Association, made outstanding technical or other contributions to the field of wastewater treatment or water pollution control, or made a major contribution in the improvement or control of water quality or the environment.

Robert Forgione

Bob’s involvement with VWEA has covered decades.  He was instrumental in the creation of the Work for Water Committee and can still be seen at career fairs educating students about opportunities in water.   He has been an active member of the Utility Management Committee, serving as chair and has recently led the Asset Management Focus Group.   Bob is also active on the VWEA Operations & Maintenance Committee and is an advocate for the development of quality training for O&M staff. Other involvement includes chairing the Northern VA Utility Management Committee and serving as a member of the WARN Committee. Bob retired from UOSA as Director of Operations and Maintenance.  He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering and a Master’s Degree in Environmental Science.

VWEA Outstanding Young Professional

The Outstanding Young Professional Award recognizes a young VWEA professional, 35 years old or younger at the time of nomination, who, through individual effort, has made significant contributions to VWEA in the form of activities, including volunteer work, committee work, leadership activities and/or conference paper presentations.

Trey Harksen

Trey has been a dedicated volunteer since entering the water industry.   His engagement has centered around the Young Professional Committee, Sustainable Utilities Committee, and WaterJAM.   Trey is currently the Water Reuse focus group lead for the Sustainable Utilities Committee and coordinated the committee workshop at WaterJAM in 2024.  He has served as vice chair of Central VA YPs and is currently the statewide YP Committee Chair.  He has spearheaded the development of Virginia's Inagural YP Summit that is scheduled to be held this October in Richmond.   Trey has also been involved with YP Programming at WaterJAM.   You can also find him volunteering at service projects or engaging other YPs in the association.

WEF William D. Hatfield Award

The WEF Hatfield Award recognizes operators of wastewater treatment plants for outstanding performance and professionalism.

Steven Dunn

Steven is currently serving as Superintendent of the Lynchburg Regional Water Resource Recovery Facility. Steve holds a Class I Wastewater Operators license, and a Class I Water Operators license in the state of Virginia. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Christopher Newport University. He has enjoyed a lifetime of working in the Water/Wastewater industry since 1984.

WEF Arthur Sidney Bedell Award

Established in 1948, the Bedell Award acknowledges extraordinary personal service to a member association.

Phill Yi

Phill’s involvement in VWEA has been impactful throughout his career.  Phil started out his engagement as YP chair for Northern VA and as the YP Representative for the VWEA Board. Phill served as Chair of the VWEA Education Committee, led the WaterJAM Technical Program Committee and then Chaired WaterJAM.  Phil served as an officer on VWEA’s Board, serving as President from 2019-2020.  Phill is a former recipient of the Outstanding Young Professional Award for both VWEA and WEF.

WEF Laboratory Analyst Award

The WEF Laboratory Analyst Award recognizes an individual for outstanding performance, professionalism, and contributions to the water quality analysis profession.

Mason Hopkins

Mason is a laboratory analyst II at the Henrico County Central Environmental Laboratory located at the county's Water Reclamation Facility where she has worked since 2022. Prior to her current role Mason attended Warren Wilson College where she received a B.S. in Biochemistry and spent her last year there working on method developments for future students to use in their own research. Currently Mason can be found running analyses that are vital to the plants operation and being an active member of the facilities Team Building Committee. When not at work you can find her training for bike races, coaching the local youth mountain bike team, or at the rock-climbing gym.

WEF George W. Burke, Jr. Safety Award

This award recognizes a municipal or industrial wastewater facility for establishing and maintaining an active and effective safety program.

AlexRenew

AlexRenew's 130+ employees manage wastewater for more than 300,000 people in Alexandria, Virginia and parts of Fairfax County, Virginia. AlexRenew currently maintains capital assets valued at approximately $1.2 billion and treats approximately 38 MGD (up to 116 MGD during wet weather) of wastewater. Each year, AlexRenew helps improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay by removing over 2,400 tons of nitrogen, 300 tons of phosphorus, and reducing bacteria to near zero levels.   AlexRenew is currently overseeing RiverRenew, the largest infrastructure project in the history of Alexandria. Once complete, it will prevent over 120 million gallons of combined sewage from entering Alexandria’s waterways each year.

A.H. Paessler Environmental Stewardship Award

This award recognizes a government employee’s service to the water environment field and to the Association.

Sam Hale

Sam has played a role in many of Southwest Virginia's wastewater operators Water Story, including mine when he hired me for an inspector job almost 20 years ago.  Sam has worked for DEQ’s Blue Ridge Regional Office for over thirty-four (34) years, dedicating the majority of his government career to assisting Virginia's municipalities/utilities and their certified Wastewater Operators. In addition to his career with DEQ, Sam has been an instructor with the Virginia Tech Wastewater Short School for over twenty (20) years, training 1000s of operators. Sam is first and foremost a Wastewater Operator who cares about the profession, industry, and protecting the public health and environment.

VWEA Public Official Award

This award recognizes an elected or appointed public official who has made significant contributions in the area of clean water legislation.

Virginia Senator Jeremy McPike

Senator McPike has demonstrated a commitment to public water and wastewater utilities over the last two legislative sessions, carrying forward PFAS legislation which focused on a path to PFAS source reduction rather than placing the onus on passive receivers, like our wastewater treatment facilities.   In 2025, his introduction of Senate Bill 1319 – PFAS Industrial Discharge Monitoring mandated that industrial facilities discharging into publicly owned treatment works had to monitor their discharges for PFAS and to report the results quarterly to the  publicly owned treatment works. The Bill was vetoed but the elements are in place to move the bill forward in the future.

Golden Manhole Award

This award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the advancement of wastewater collection systems, including design, education, training, certification, construction, operations, maintenance, and management.

Brent Werlein

Brent is the FOG, Hot Spot Cleaning, and Wet Well Cleaning program manager for Virginia Beach Public Utilities.  Brent has played a vital role in the City's reduction of capacity and maintenance-related sanitary sewer overflows. Brent has been a champion for the use of acoustic assessment tools, which enables the rapid screening of sewer lines for blockages and buildups, allowing maintenance staff to focus cleaning efforts where they are most needed.    Brent is an active member of the Collection Systems Committee and is often a speaker at local and national conferences.

Facility Maintenance Award

This award recognizes outstanding performance, professionalism, and dedication specific to the maintenance of wastewater treatment equipment and processes.

Pepper's Ferry Regional Wastewater Treatment Authority

In September 2024, historic levels of flooding inundated the New River Valley due to Hurricane Helene, with the New River reaching its second highest crest on record of 31.04 feet. The Authority’s Radford Pump Station (RPS) and New River Pump Station (NRPS) are both located along the banks of the New River, and as such were subject to catastrophic flooding from the river.

The flooding damaged effluent pumps, electrical motors, wastewater processing equipment, electrical and power control panels, and other wastewater handling systems at both pumping stations.   The O&M Staff immediately began working to keep facilities from flooding, dewatering flooded buildings and structures, and ultimately working to repair and/or replace equipment to allow the stations to resume their pumping operation with days of being flooded.

Stormwater Splash Award

The Splash Award recognizes dedication and service to the stormwater management field.

Michael Rolband

Mike is a Professional Engineer, Wetland Delineator, Wetland Scientist Emeritus and LEED Advanced Professional.  He pioneered the development and implementation of many of the techniques, policies, and tools currently used in stormwater management.  During his time at the Department of Environmental Quality,  Mike spearheaded the update to the Stormwater Management Handbook, which was first truly digital manual in the nation. He also participated in and/or led many stormwater initiatives at DEQ, such as updates to the Virginia Runoff Reduction Method, consolidation of the Erosion & Sediment Control and Stormwater Management regulations, streamlining of the permit review process, and helped increase staffing at DEQ.  Mike's career has spanned a lifetime of service to stormwater and water quality in Virginia. 

Collection Systems Awards
The award recognizes utilities that demonstrates quality collection system maintenance procedures through the efficient use of labor, materials, equipment, and innovative methods to keep its collection system in good working condition to minimize the environmental impact, public health hazards, and property damage that occur from sanitary sewer overflows during both wet weather and dry weather conditions.   The Collection System award recognizes excellence in two separate categories, Small Systems and Large Systems.

Small System (<500 miles of pipeline)

Virginia American Water

The Virginia American Water team from Woodbridge, VA maintains a collection system consisting of 225 miles of gravity sewer and 2 wastewater pump stations.  The system serves approximately 21,000 customers, and is supported and operated by a staff of 6 water and wastewater professionals.  In addition to outstanding system performance, Virginia American Water also stands out for their innovative use of technology and commitment to minimizing public health hazards, property damage, and the environmental impact of sanitary sewer overflows.

Large System (>500 miles of pipeline)

City of Virginia Beach

The City of Virginia Beach collection system consists of 1,500 miles of gravity sewer, 200 miles of sanitary force main, and over 400 wastewater pump stations.  The City serves approximately 385,000 customers and is supported and operated by a staff of over 180 dedicated water and wastewater professionals. The City and their Department of Public Utilities is committed to minimizing public health hazards, property damage, and the environmental impact of sanitary sewer overflows.

5-S (Select Society of Sanitary Sludge Shovelers)

As an honorary society, individuals are nominated and selected by society members for significant and repeated effort toward making VWEA a better Association. Activities may include technical presentations, serving as instructors at various workshops, serving as an officer or as the chair of a productive committee, or as an active committee member, and putting time and effort into VWEA, which the Selection Committee deems worthy of recognition.

Chris Pomeroy, AquaLaw

Jeff Coyne, Hazen and Sawyer

Matt Doyle, Fairfax County

• President-Elect – Ryan Radspinner, HRSD
• Vice President – Jeremy Harrison, Crowder Construction
• Young Professional Representative – Hunter Ritchie, Ritchie Environmental
• WEF Delegate – Martin Malone, Hazen and Sawyer

In accordance with Article III Section 6 of the VWEA Bylaws, the following Officers will advance to the successive positions:

• President – Bryce Carter, Combs and Associates
• Past President – Ryan Hendrix, Pepper’s Ferry Regional Wastewater Authority

The remaining incumbents will continue to fulfill their term:

• Secretary/Treasurer – Eddie Abisaab, HRSD (1 year remaining)
• WEF Delegate – Felicia Glapion, AlexRenew (1 year remaining)
• PWO Representative – Lacy Burnette, Western VA Water Authority (2 years remaining)
• Member Engagement Representative – Lyndsey Davis, Brown and Caldwell (2 years remaining)
• Outreach Representative - Shelbie Dashiel – Hazen and Sawyer (1 year remaining)

Call for Nominations

VWEA is currently accepting nominations for the Facility Safety Awards.   Wastewater treatment facilities are encouraged to apply for the award.  The deadline for application submissions is April 11, 2025.  Visit https://vwea.typeform.com/awards to submit your nomination. 

Purpose: The purpose of the VWEA Facility Safety Awards is to encourage members to engage in an

active and effective safety program in municipal and industrial wastewater treatment.

Benefits of applying

• Benchmarks your Wastewater Facility’s Safety Program

• Helps eliminate or reduce safety hazards

• Promotes facility Safety Awareness amongst staff

• Identifies Safety Program areas that may need improvement

• Reduces workplace accidents

• Mitigates noted Safety Inspection Violations

• Be recognized as a Safe Workplace by Peers

• Prepares your facility staff for a Virginia OSHA (VOSH) Inspection

Facility Inspection

Upon receipt of your application, the VWEA Safety Awards Champion will schedule a visit to your facility to review your overall safety program. Winning facilities will be recognized during WaterJAM each year.

Areas of Interest to the inspection team are, but not limited to:

• Evidence of a Good Safety Record

• Facility Written Safety Programs

• Maintenance of all Safety Equipment (Life Safety & Personal Protective Equipment PPE)

• A visual Inspection of the facility for Safety Compliance and Level of Security

• Any other information that would complement the facilities Safety Compliance and Level of Security.

• Safety Training Program & Documentation

• Maintenance of Treatment / Process Equipment

Click here to nominate.

• Enslow-Hedgepeth Award

  James Pyne, ODU

  • This award is presented to an Association member who, during the past year or recent years, has made outstanding contributions to VWEA through services to the Association, made outstanding technical or other contributions to the field of wastewater treatment or water pollution control, or made a major contribution in the improvement or control of water quality or the environment.
    

   

• VWEA Outstanding Young Professional

  Charlie Noakes, Henrico County

  • The Outstanding Young Professional Award recognizes a VWEA young professional, 35 years old or younger at the time of nomination, who, through individual effort, has made significant contributions to VWEA in the form of activities, including volunteer work, committee work, leadership activities and/or conference paper presentations.

   

• WEF William D. Hatfield Award

  Steve Wilcox, Arlington County

  • The WEF Hatfield Award recognizes operator at a treatment plant or outstanding performance and professionalism.

   

• WEF Arthur Sidney Bedell Award

  Larissa Hoyle, Jacobs

  • Established in 1948, the Bedell Award acknowledges extraordinary personal service to a member association.

   

• WEF Laboratory Analyst Award

  Megan Boggio, HRSD

  • The WEF Laboratory Analyst Award recognizes an individual for outstanding performance, professionalism, and contributions to the water quality analysis profession.
    

   

• A.H. Paessler Environmental Stewardship Award

  Allan Brockenbrough, DEQ (Retired)

  • This award recognizes a government employee’s service to the water environment field and to the Association.

   

• Golden Manhole Award

  Susan Hamilton, City of Richmond

  • This award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the advancement of wastewater collection systems, including design, education, training, certification, construction, operations, maintenance, and management.

   

• Facility Maintenance Award

  HRSD Atlantic Treatment Plant

  • This award recognizes outstanding performance, professionalism, and dedication specific to the maintenance of wastewater treatment equipment and processes.

   

• Stormwater Splash Award

  Scott Smith, City of Hampton

  • The Splash Award recognizes dedication and service to the stormwater management field

   

• VWEA Public Official Award

  Senator David Marsden 

  • This award recognizes an elected or appointed public official who has made significant contributions in the area of clean water legislation.
  
  
• WEF Delegate Service Award

  Lauren Zuravnsky, HRSD

  • The WEF Delegate Service Award recognizes outstanding service as a member of WEF House of Delegates

   

• 5-S (Select Society of Sanitary Sludge Shovelers)

  Kyle Logue, Gannett Fleming & Chris Wilson, Brown and Caldwell

  • As an honorary society, individuals are nominated and selected by society members for significant and repeated effort toward making VWEA a better Association. Activities may include technical presentations, serving as instructors at various workshops, serving as an officer or as the chair of a productive committee, or as an active committee member, and putting time and effort into VWEA, which the Selection Committee, deems worthy of recognition.

• President-Elect – Bryce Carter, Combs and Associates

• Vice President – Ryan Radspinner, HRSD

• Young Professional Representative – Hunter Ritchie, Ritchie Environmental

• Member Engagement Representative – Lyndsey Davis, Brown and Caldwell

• PWO Representative – Lacy Burnette, Western VA Water Authority

In accordance with Article III Section 6 of the VWEA Bylaws, the following Officers will advance to the successive positions:

• President – Ryan Hendrix, Pepper’s Ferry Regional Wastewater Authority

• Past President – Sarah Lothman, Burns and McDonnell

The remaining incumbents will continue to fulfill their term:

• Secretary/Treasurer – Eddie Abisaab, HRSD (2 years remaining)

• WEF Delegate – Felicia Glapion, AlexRenew (2 years remaining)

• WEF Delegate – Christopher Tabor, Hazen and Sawyer (1 year remaining)

Chris Yon, Town of Christiansburg WWTF

Johnathan Ballew, Town of Big Stone Gap

Bradley Ashworth, Town of Rocky Mount

Thomas D'Intino, Peppers Ferry RWTA

Scholarship winners pictured with Short School instructors

Lauren will be managing our awards and scholarship programs, as well as supporting our events and communications. She can be reached at lauren.thomas@vwea.org. Join us in welcoming Lauren to VWEA!

The following nominations have been put forth by the VWEA Board of Directors for the 2023-2024 business year.

• President-Elect – Ryan Hendrix, Pepper’s Ferry Regional Wastewater Authority

• Vice President – Bryce Carter, Combs and Associates

• Young Professional Representative – Sara Ferrance, Fairfax County

• WEF Delegate – Felicia Glapion, AlexRenew

• Secretary/Treasurer – Eddie Abisaab, HRSD

In accordance with Article III Section 6 of the VWEA Bylaws, the following Officers will advance to the successive positions:

• President – Sarah Lothman, Burns and McDonnell

• Past President – Matthew Harrison, Sherwood Logan and Associates

The remaining incumbents will continue to fulfill their term:

• PWO Representative – Lacy Burnette, Western VA Water Authority  (1 year remaining)

• Association Representative – Kimberlee Stubbs, Henrico County  (1 year remaining)

• WEF Delegate – Christopher Tabor, Hazen and Sawyer  (2 years remaining)

All VWEA members are invited to attend the Business Meeting held at the Virginia Beach Convention Center during WaterJAM. Please mark your calendar for Wednesday, September 13th at 3:00 pm and join us for an update on VWEA’s financial standing and the election of our incoming board members.

The award was established to recognize an outstanding Member Association that excels in
areas of membership retention, financial strength, new memberships, scholarship programs,
student achievement and support, technology transfers, and/or award programs.

WEF highlighted many of the accomplishments VWEA made during the year. Of particular note was
the work of the Joint VWEA/VA AWWA WARN Committee. The Committee established weekly COVID-19 webinars allowing state agencies to communicate directly with utilities, and provided the utilities an avenue to ask questions to state health officials and regulators at the onset of the pandemic.

The utilities also shared their own best practices and asked each other questions in the weekly
calls. The work of the committee is a great example of VWEA’s and VA AWWA’s abilities to
connect members for the greater good of our profession.

Additionally, during the pandemic, VWEA leaders carried on delivering benefits that our
members depend on. WaterJAM was converted to a virtual event, drawing 728 attendees.
Educational programing included 41 events and webinars, also switching to a virtual format
when the pandemic began, maintaining the execution of important training for members, no
matter what the obstacles were.

Thanks to our strong financial position, the Board was able to increase the number of
scholarships we provided to college students and operators-in-training. A record number of
students were supported in the past year just when members most needed that support.
VWEA also joined WEF in forming a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force. Formed
together with fellow water professionals at VA AWWA, the taskforce continues to evaluate ways
the Associations can ensure we meet the needs of ALL of our members.

VWEA is a small-staffed association and our accomplishments are a direct result of the wonderful
volunteers that work every day to enhance and preserve the water environment in Virginia!

VWEA is happy to announce the release of our brand new podcast titled “The Straight Flush”! This podcast is created by and for our membership, with the goal of providing a new digital communication platform, an increased access to information, and a place to memorialize the outstanding careers and experiences of water professionals in the wastewater and stormwater fields. The format of the podcast will include conversations between water professionals, as well as panel discussions that cover some of the latest industry topics.

We have released four initial episodes that you can currently access on these major podcast apps: Google Podcasts, Spotify, Audible/Amazon, iHeart Radio, and Pocket Casts. Note that we are awaiting approvals from Apple, and will be sure to notify you as soon as it is available on that platform. If you prefer to listen on an internet browser, you can find us here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1817695. We aim to release episodes monthly, or even more frequently depending on interest, so be sure to subscribe and/or follow us on your favorite podcast platform.

You and the VWEA Committees can help and participate in this exciting new platform by sending us ideas for episodes at podcast@vwea.org. Alternately you can contact the podcast co-producers Evan Bowles (ebowles@hazenandsawyer.com) or Ryan Hendrix (rhendrix@pfrwta.com). Thanks and we hope you enjoy “The Straight Flush”!

If this is your introduction to the world of podcasts, you can check out this website to get a crash course, and determine the best way for you to access our episodes!