Balling Award
In order to give proper recognition to members who have provided outstanding service to The Augustan Society, Inc., whose recognition through the Fellowship system may be felt insufficient, the Society has established the Balling Award, named for the late Cdr. George R. Balling, OAE, the first recipient.
The Balling Award is granted annually to the member who has made the greatest contribution to the Society in the previous year. Consideration is given to points earned within the Fellowship program, but other matters may be considered as well. Thus the award is not automatic, and may not be granted every year.
A member who has been granted the Balling Award five times, and is again felt to have made the largest contribution, is instead granted the Metzler Award, and is ineligible for both awards thereafter. To date, only one person — Dame Evelyn herself — has been granted that award.
Neither award was granted from 2003 to 2006 due to the general inactivity of the Society. From 2007 thorough 2013, these awards were made part of the Fellowship program, but no grants were awarded during that period. The Board decided to resume granting these awards beginning in 2014.
Procedure
After 31 January of each year (by which time all reports from the previous calendar year should have been submitted), Headquarters Staff will tally the scores earned under the Fellowship points system, and compare them to the scores of a year earlier.
From the above, Headquarters Staff will select a small number of candidates who have earned the most points in the previous calendar year.
Headquarters Staff may also nominate other members who have performed outstanding service to the Society in ways that are not sufficiently recognized through the Fellowship system.
During the month of January, Directors may also nominate members they feel worthy of such recognition. These nominations should be submitted directly to Headquarters with an explanation of why they are felt worthy (they should not be introduced at a Board meeting).
Those who are not members in good standing will be deleted from the list of nominations, and the list submitted to the Board at the next available regular meeting (generally this will be in February).
The Board will then decide if any members warrant the award, and if so, they will elect one member to the honor. They are not constrained to select someone from the list of nominees, but they are constrained to name only members in good standing. The one exception is that the award may be granted posthumously, provided the individual was a member in good standing at the time of his death.
Headquarters Staff will prepare a suitable certificate of award, and send it to the individual along with a letter of congratulation from the Chairman if available, or from the President.
Should the member attend that year's Annual Convention, the insignia of the honor will be presented at that time (gratis). If the member fails to attend, they may thereafter purchase the insignia.
The insignia is a lapel pin blazoned: On an oval Or gutté de sang an eagle displayed Sable.
It has been suggested that a permanent plaque be designed to list all recipients, and that it be placed on display at Headquarters.
