Awards and Recognitions

Reflect on the valuable relationships you have with people in our profession. Do you work alongside a colleague who consistently demonstrates that client-centered and occupation-based knack? Do you have a mentor who is always there for you? Do you partner with a Fieldwork Educator who promotes interprofessional collaboration? Do you witness the energetic, diverse, and professional connection between an OT and OTA? 

Please take this opportunity to recognize an incredible practitioner for the difference they make. 

Submit nominations for the following awards, below. Nominations are due September 1. Recipients will be announced at the annual conference that is typically held in October. 

Please contact [email protected] for questions. 

Award Nomination Form

Marjorie Ball Award of Merit

This award is presented to an outstanding OT/OTR whose contributions have made a difference in the field of occupational therapy and specifically to the profession within Colorado. This is the highest honor that can be awarded by the Occupational Therapy Association of Colorado. Speaking at the annual State Conference the year following receipt of the award honors Marjorie Ball Award recipients. 

Marjorie Ball was the head of Colorado State University's Department of Occupational Therapy for twenty-one years. She was instrumental in developing the OT program into one of the largest of its type in the country. Her career also included work at Missouri's Firmin Desloge Hospital and Miriam Convalescent Hospital. She served for several years as chief of occupational therapy at Bushnell General Hospital, Brigham City, Utah, and at Wakeman Convalescent Hospital, Camp Atterbur, Indiana. She spent a sabbatical year lecturing and working in l'Ecole d'Ergotherapie, Hôpital des Enfants Malades, in Paris, and at La Clinique de Recuperation Fonctionelle, Les Charmilles, in Valenton, France.

To honor her contributions to the field, OTAC established an annual lectureship award in her name. The following people have received the Marjorie Ball Lectureship, the highest award an OTR can receive in the state of Colorado.

2018 Marjorie Ball Award of Merit Recipient

Patty Stutz-Tanenbaum, MS, OTR, FAOTA, has spent over 30 years nurturing and empowering occupational therapy students during the fieldwork portion of their OT journeys at CSU and beyond. Along with many service awards, Patty joined the American Occupational Therapy Association Roster of Fellows in 2011. She was instrumental in the creation and development of the AOTA Fieldwork Educator Certificate Program and has taught over 20 workshops across the United States. She as contributed to scholarship through numerous publications in journals and books related to fieldwork education and professional development.  Her career is also marked by extensive participation in local, state, and national, and international associations and organizations. What is not duly evident in the black and white list of accomplishments set to paper is the tremendous care, compassion, and dedication that fuels these achievements and her presence in the OT community. We are grateful to have Patty as part of our Colorado OT community.

1968 - Alberta Harrah 

1969 - Chloe Nelson 

1970 - Not Awarded 

1971 - Ellie Gilfoyle 

1975 - Ann Grady 

1976 - Wanda Mayberry 

1978 - Doris Shriver 

1980 - Bobbie Smith 

1981 - Pat Christ 

1985 - Agatha Jackson 

1986 - Bill Lofton

1987 - Mary Hillary

1988 - Karen Spencer 

1989 - Susan Johnson 

1990 - Barbara Strewler

1991 - Joanie McMullen 

1992 - Patrice O'Reilly

1993 - Wanda Mayberry 

1995 - Constance Mullens 

1996 - Rosalie Lewin 

1997 - Anne Fisher 

1998 - Lois Hickman 

1999 - Cynthia Cano 

2000 - Wanda Mayberry

2001 - Anita Bundy

2002 - Pam DiPasquale-Lehnerz

2003 - Dottie Davis

2004 - Lucy Jane Miller

2005 - Susan Zekert

2006 - Becky Robler 

2007 - Terry Hawkins 

2008 - Susan Woodmansee

2009 - Janice Hinds

2010 - Not awarded

2011 - Not awarded

2012 -  Not awarded

2013 - Pat McKenna

2014 - Karen Atler

2015 - Audrey Aguilar
2016- Suzanne Holm
2017 - Terri Cassidy 
2018 - Patty Stutz-Tanenbaum


Agatha Jackson COTA Award of Excellence 

This award was established to honor Agatha Jackson, a vital member of our OT community since 1960. Our purpose in nominating (Certified) Occupational Therapy Assistants is to recognize the many contributions that OTAs/COTAs make to the profession in the areas of practice, education, and community service. Speaking at the annual State Conference the year following receipt of the award honors Agatha Jackson Award recipients.

 

2018 Agatha Jackson COTA Award of Excellence Recipient

There is a reason why the recipient of this award is known to many as "Patty Fantastic." Patty Fantauzzo, COTA/L, has paved the way in the field of client advocacy, strong management, and clinical knowledge in her 25 years as a COTA/L. She began her work in a level 1 trauma hospital, spent 10 years at the mayo clinic in Arizona and specialized in hand therapy. She began her time in Colorado in hand therapy in 2006, then progressed to program management here she began to grow a particular affinity toward the geriatric population, and even more specifically with addressing those with cognitive impairments. It was in 2014 when Patty took on the role of therapy manager at Julia Temple Healthcare Center, a dementia-specialized long term care center in desperate need of a strong leader at the time, that her value and "true calling" became more apparent than ever before. Patty immediately took on the challenge and is now in the works of constructing a "dementia-friendly environment" via grant funding and starting a separate outpatient program for Julia Temple. Patty's contagious energy influences everyone who has the privilege to meet and work with her. It is not simply one person doing everything, but rather spreading her knowledge, her love for the residents, and her passion for this profession so that it carries on even when she is no longer in the room. 

1986 - Lorraine Holden

1988 - Lynn Hoppe 

1989 - Susan Johnson 

1992 - Genita Maun

1993 - Helen Wetzel 

1994 - Shirley Marino 

1995 - Pat Webb 

1998 - Christine Newell

2003 - Melissa Riehl

2004 - Barbara Lanning 

2005 - Laura Carver 

2006 - Gerald Valdez

2007 - Stephanie Rae Dionisio

2008 - Will O’Hearn

2009 - Bill Tiffany

2010 - Shannon Michel

2011 - Craig Dauer

2012 - Not Awarded

2013 - Not Awarded

2014 - Not Awarded
2017 - Linda Wilks
2018 - Patty Fantauzzo

 

 

 

Dottie Davis Service Awards 

This award was established to honor Dottie Davis, a valuable and influential member of our OT community since 1946. Service awards are presented to acknowledge individuals who have worked hard for the profession and the state association, OTAC. 

OT-OTA Partnership Award

This award recognizes an effective partnership between an OT and an OTA (OTR and COTA). This partnership must advance the OT profession, exemplify teamwork, and promote quality client service.

Recognition Awards 

2012 - Pueblo Community College faculty
2018- Dr. Barbara Hooper
2018 - Jeni Finnigan
2018 - Melissa Sixta
2018 - Mandy Chamberlin

Recognition Awards acknowledge an individual’s or an organization’s hard work, support for, and dedication to the field of occupational therapy.