ABC Awards History

Jennifer Renee Odom Spirit Award (Awarded at Nationals)
Candidates, either male or female, must be junior barefoot Skiers (16 years and under) who display a spirit of helpfulness, a positive attitude, enthusiasm, the ability to get along well with other skiers and officials, good sportsmanship, and a willingness to share positive experiences with peers. Candidates do not necessarily have to be champion skiers.

Jennifer Odom Spirit Award candidates will be nominated by the appointed officials at each of the five Regional Championships and submitted in writing with a skier’s biography to the ABC Awards Chairman. The recipient of the award will be announced and honored at the ABC Awards banquet on Saturday evening.

This memorial award is in honor of Jennifer Odom, a former junior girls National Barefoot Competitor, who was abducted in Pasco Country Florida in February of 1993 and later found murdered.  

Year	Name
1993	Jennifer Harris
1994	PJ Nassar
1995	Rachel George
1996	??
1997	Derek Koch
1998	Toby George
1999	Matt Wright
2000	Jared Lee
2001	Mark Williamson
2002	Royal Wiseman
2003	Nolan Lough
2004	Andrew Martin
2005	Haley Thomas
2006	Wilson Schkade
2007	Shannon Heller
2008	Allie Jameson
2009	John Pressendo
2010	Taylor True
2011	Kailey Koehler
2012	Lisa Pressendo
2013	Chandler Cargile
2014	Brody Meskers
2015	Alex Youngblood
2016	Stefan Lippelgoos
2017	Brice Storman
2018	Megan Adams & Lexi McCauley
2019	Brett Swanbom
2020	Martin Cyr
2021	Cameron Patton
2022	Noah Kinnaman
2023	Mackenzy Koehn

Banana George Blair Barefooter of the Year (Awarded at Nationals)

This award is given annually to a person or organization in recognition of accomplishments, contributions, and service to the sport of barefoot-waterskiing both on and or off the water over the past year. The award recipient represents a true ambassador to our sport – someone who has distinguished himself/herself above and beyond all others in serving the sport. The nominee must be a current ABC member, with preference given to US citizenship. Nominations should convey specific examples of how the nominee personifies the criteria and spirit of the award such as: How has the nominee contributed time, resources, and abilities to the sport of barefooting consistent with the title “Barefooter of the Year.” (Inception 1992)  

Year	Name
1992	George Blair
1993	Sam Spano
1994	Oscar Foot Mann
1995	Jennifer Calleri
1996	Keith St. Onge
1997	Dawn Farrell
1998	Brent Benoist
1999	Brian Heeney
2000	John Kretchman
2001	Tad Honsinger
2002	Tim Pellaton
2003	Derek Koch
2004	Rachel George
2005	Mike Salber
2006	Doug Jordan
2007	Joe Lovato
2008	Kevin Towers
2009	Judy Myers
2010	Brad Pegg
2011	Stuart Parsons
2012	Cody Ebbert
2013	Mike Holt
2014	None
2015	World Barefoot Center
2016	Cody Heller
2017	Joe Knapp
2018	Mark Shank
2019	Mikey Caruso
2020	Betsy Gilman
2021	Sean Qualey
2022	Megan Adams
2023	John Garrity

Stew McDonald Long Time Service Award (Awarded at Nationals)
This award is given annually to recognize the person(s) who has contributed to the sport of barefooting for at least ten years. The award recipient is someone who has distinguished himself/herself above and beyond all other individuals in serving the sport. The nominee should be a current ABC member, with preference given to US citizenship.

Nominations should convey specific examples of how the nominee personifies the criteria and spirit of the award such as: How has the nominee contributed time, resources, and abilities to the sport of barefooting consistent with the title “Long Time Service Award.” How has the nominee avidly supported ABC tournaments and other programs as a participant, administrator, official, or fund-raiser? (Inception 1994)  

Year	Name
1994	Stew MacDonald
1995	Mike Seipel
1996	Sam Spano
1997	Ed Finley
1998	Don Mixon Sr.
1999	Joel Brookshire
2000	Jim Boyette
2001	Joe Knapp
2002	Oscar ‘Foot’ Mann
2003	Doug and Pat Koch
2004	Andrea Eggert
2005	Banana George Blair
2006	Brian Heeney
2007	Jan Cummings
2008	Dale Stevens
2009	Dan Cummings
2010	Jimmy Tauras
2011	Lee Stone
2012	Jerry Kanawyer
2013	Gary “Swampy” Bouchard
2014	Paul Adams
2015	John Boyd
2016	Mike Molepske  &  Betsy Gilman
2017	Jim Forster
2018	Doug Jordan
2019	Blake Ehlers
2020	Rich Kaufman
2021	Andrew Martin
2022	Mike Schoenke
2023	William Farrell

Award of Distinction (Awarded at Nationals)

This award recognizing outstanding achievement in the sport. On the water or off, these people have given all to barefoot water skiing and are deserving of special recognition.

Year	Name
2010	Brian Heeney
2013	Keith St. Onge
2014	Lee Stone
2015	None
2016	Jim Boyette
2017	The Heller Family
2018	None
2019	None
2020	None
2021	Paul Adams
2022	Lauren Ehlers
2023	John Cornish

Barefoot Community Champion Award (Awarded at Nationals)

Not every barefoot champion is a household name like Scarpa or St.Onge.  This award recognizes the people who are building the sport at the grassroots… one barefooter at a time.

Year	Name
2013	Morris Lovelady
2014	None
2015	None
2016	Max Adams
2017	Brent Payne
2018	None
2019	None
2020	Lance Smith
2021	Betsy Gilman
2022	Jimmy Tauras
2023	Sean Qualey

ABC Barb Knight Junior Girls Athletic Grant (Awarded at Nationals)

This grant is intended to assist junior girls with costs associated with the sport of barefoot water skiing, such as lessons, equipment, travel costs, tournament registration, etc.

Year	Name
2020	Megan Adams
2021	Claire Flowers
2023	Mackenzy Koehn

ABC Jim Boyette Award (Awarded at Nationals)

Jim Boyette made it a priority to attend the U.S. Barefoot Nationals. He competed in 41 of the 42 nationals held during his lifetime, an ever-present force of the Greatest Generation.  This award honors Jim’s legacy by recognizing the oldest competitor at the Barefoot Nationals each year.

Year	Name
2021	Sharon Carlson
2022	Sharon Carlson
2023	Sharon Carlson

ABC Athlete of the Year (Awarded in January)

Consider this barefooting’s MVP award. The ABC Athlete of the Year Award is given in recognition of outstanding athletic accomplishments and sportsmanship on the water.  While participation in all parts of barefooting is recognized, the criteria of this award is based upon athletic performance— Barefooters who have distinguished themselves on a national and/or international stage. The recipients can be nominated by anyone and are voted on by the ABC Board of Directors.  The award is given out at the USA Water Ski & Wake Sports Annual Awards Banquet in January.

Year	ABC Female Athlete of the Year	Year	Male Athlete of the Year
1999	Lorraine Piskura	1999	Keith St. Onge
2000	Rachel George	2000	Ron Scarpa
2001	Rachel George	2001	Keith St. Onge
2002	Andrea Eggert	2002	William Farrell
2003	Dawn Farrell	2003	Al Morrison
2004	Theresa Hoffman	2004	Keith St. Onge
2005	Rachel George-Normand	2005	Ron Scarpa
2006	Jody Sherwood	2006	Keith St. Onge
2007	Elaine Heller	2007	Kevin Towers
2009	Elaine Heller	2009	Keith St. Onge
2010	Elaine Heller	2010	Adin Daneker
2011	Elaine Heller	2011	Broderick Meskers
2012	Teri Larson-Jones	2012	Johnathan Martines
2013	Lauren St.Onge	2013	Keith St. Onge
2014	Kailey Koehler	2014	Cody Heller
2015	Shannon Heller	2015	Landen Ehlers
2016	Lexi McCauley	2016	Jackson Gerard
2017	Lexi McCauley	2017	Jackson Gerard
2018	Rachel Normand	2018	Keith St. Onge
2019	Lexi McCauley	2019	Jackson Gerard
2020	Megan Adams	2020	Jerry Kanawyer
2021	Lauren Ehlers	2021	Brody Meskers
2022	Teri Larson Jones	2022	Noah Kinnaman
2023	Megan Adams	2023	Brody Meskers

ABC Volunteer of the Year (Awarded in January) 

Year	Name
2016	Paul Adams
2017	Lauren St. Onge
2018	Tina McCauley
2019	Ben Groen
2020	None
2021	Ashleigh Stebbeings
2022	John & Ginette Garrity
2023	Brian & Linda Heeney

ABC Coach of the Year / Team of the Year (Awarded in January)

Year	Name
2015	Cody Heller
2016 (Team)	USA Junior Barefoot Team
2017	Landen Ehlers
2018	Jason Lee / USA Junior Barefoot Team
2019	Jimmy Tauras
2020	None
2021	Ben Groen
2022	Ashleigh Stebbeings Groen
2023	2023 USA Junior Barefoot Team

ABC Rising Super Star (Awarded in January) 

Year	Name
2015	Jackson Gerard
2016	Sammi Eaton
2017	Brett Swanbom
2018	Ryleigh Stenson
2019	Megan Adams
2020	None
2021	Noah Kinnaman
2022	Faith Dix
2023	Amara Bruns

Last Updated ( June 2023 ) – Not all honors are awarded every year!