AGEM calls for nominations for 6th Annual Memorial Awards

The Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM) on Tuesday issued a Call for Nominations for the Jens Halle Memorial Award Honoring Excellence in Commercial Gaming Professionalism and the Peter Mead Memorial Award Honoring Excellence in Gaming Media & Communications.

Nomination submissions of 300-700 original words identifying current gaming professionals must be received via email at [email protected] by August 31, 2021. Award winners will be announced at G2E in Las Vegas in October.

AGEM previously announced the creation of this unique awards program six years ago to acknowledge the lasting impacts on gaming by two distinctive industry veterans following their unexpected deaths in 2015.

Halle, a longtime Bally and Novomatic executive in Europe whose career ended as CEO of Merkur Gaming based in Florida, died suddenly on May 20, 2015 at the age of 57. Mead, the founder and publisher of Casino Enterprise Management magazine, died suddenly in Las Vegas on June 24, 2015 at the age of 54.

Len Ainsworth in 2016, Rick Meitzler in 2017, Gavin Isaacs in 2018, Tom Nieman in 2019 and the late Robert “Bob” McMonigle in 2020 have been the initial recipients of the Jens Halle award. Howard Stutz in 2016, Roger Gros in 2017, Frank Legato in 2018, the late Dave Palermo in 2019 and David Orrick in 2020 have been the initial recipients of the Peter Mead award.

Nomination submissions must meet specific criteria that aim to capture the attributes displayed by Halle and Mead during their storied careers. For the Jens Halle Memorial Award, “Nominees must have experience working in the global gaming supplier sector for a minimum of 10 years and possess the following traits and qualities that Jens displayed throughout his working life: Professionalism, business success, international scope, attention to detail and timely follow-up; a willingness to ‘go the extra mile,’ both figuratively and literally; a sense of humanity in an oft-times cutthroat business; a recognition of the importance of a handshake and a fair deal for all; and a dedication to the health of the industry as a whole.”

In the case of Peter Mead Memorial Award, "Nominees must have experience working in the mainstream media, gaming trade press or individual gaming company PR/communications for a minimum of 10 years and possess the following traits and qualities that Peter displayed throughout his working life: Quality reporting and communication with an emphasis on personal contact to generate ideas and gather information; taking risks and questioning the status quo; challenging the industry to consider new ideas; and identifying trusted partners to improve the overall product.”