The Georg Zell Spirit of NACE award recognizes NACE members whose commitment and compassion towards humanitarianism makes a profound and recognizable impact. These individuals represent the "Spirit of NACE". This award is named in memory of NACE member George Zell, who passed away in 2000. George was the quintessential NACE member, dedicated to his chapter and the national organization through leadership.

• Serving local and/or national boards and/or committees
• Lifetime volunteerism and humanitarianism in their community (industry and/or personal)
• Mentoring and passion for the catering profession

Number of awards

Minimum points required to be considered will be 85.  A score of 85 does not guarantee an award, but does guarantee close consideration of the outstanding qualities of the submission.  Due to the vast number of deserving members, should there be more than one outstanding entry, up to 3 awards may be given out in a particular year.  Where points and quality submissions are lacking, no awards will be presented.

Judges

The panel of judges will be made of 10 or more members, at least 5 of whom will be NACE national current or past board members and can be a previous George Zell award winner. At least 5 of whom will not have served on the NACE national board, but will have been members in good standing for a minimum of 5 years and can be a previous George Zell award winner. As selected by the awards committee chair.

Judges will be made aware that if they have a personal or business relationship with a nominee, they will be required to recues themselves from the judging, at which time an appropriate replacement judge will be found.

Who is eligible?

• Only NACE members in good standing
• Candidates who are current NACE national board members in the year that the award is presented are not eligible. *Anyone serving as a NACE national board member during the submission process is not eligible. 
• Chapter have to nominate this person, not a self-nominating award. (Nominations committee must provide a signed verification form)
• Previous George Zell award recipients are not eligible.

Award description These comments are for informational purposes only. This information is required. - 50 word max.

• Should this person win this award, please provide us with comments you would like to share with the audience about this person.
• Please provide us with what information should be listed on the award plate.
• A photo of the nominee (in a .jpeg format). Awards submitted without a photo will not be judged.

Section 1: Elements Statement (maximum 70 points). 2,000 word text only description of the nominee's involvement, volunteerism, and humanitarianism in relation to:

• Serving local NACE chapter and NACE national boards and committees 30 points, as detailed.
  • Local Board committee chairs held, 1 point per year; maximum 10 points
  • Local Elected Offices held, 1 point per year; maximum 5 points.
  • National Committee or Sub-Committee Chair: 1 point per position, per year, maximum 10 points.
  • National Board Member or Elected CPC Term: 1 point per year, maximum 5 points. Note: CPC Chair gets credit for only one of the two, since service to the board is a function of that position
• Chapter Impact: A statement describing what way(s) the nominee has had significant impact on chapter success, in ways unrelated to holding office or committee positions. 5 points maximum
• National Impact: A statement describing what way(s) the nominee has had significant impact on chapter success and/or NACE national success, in ways unrelated to holding national office or committee positions. 5 points maximum
• Speaker or Presenter at Leadership Conferences/Summits and/or NACE National Conferences. 1 point per instance; maximum 5 points.
• Lifetime volunteerism and humanitarianism in nominee's community (industry and/or personal contributions) 10 points
• Demonstrated mentoring and passion for the catering and events profession 15 points

 Section 2: Supporting Material (maximum 30 points;, as detailed below).

• Major local or national honors or awards received by the nominee: May be business, industry or community service 2 points per instance; maximum of 10 points
• Public press coverage including NACE newsletters, etc. (scanned and uploaded) 1 point per item; maximum 10 points
• Information supporting the nominee's activities, letters from the beneficiary or related parties, photos, 2 points per item; 10 points maximum