AVIXA Hands Out 2021 AV Professional Awards
During an awards ceremony on Oct . 28 th at InfoComm 2021 in Florida , the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association ( AVIXA ) announced the winners of the 2021 AV Professional Awards .
The AVIXA Awards recognize outstanding AV professionals for their contributions to the industry . Members of the pro AV industry nominate individuals for the Adele De Berri Pioneers of AV , CTS Holder of the Year , Educator of the Year , Event Design Professional of the Year , Mackey Baron Distinguished Achievement , Women in AV , and Young AV Professional awards . The Harald Thiel Volunteer of the Year Award is bestowed by AVIXA staff .
Cory Schaeffer of QSC won the Adele De Berri Pioneers of AV Award . Schaeffer co-founded Listen Technologies in 1998 and was instrumental in growing the company into a leading brand of assistive listening systems . She holds two patents for her contributions to the ListenPoint product line , which changed the concept of a “ complete audio infrastructure ” system for small to mid-sized rooms .
The Event Design Professional of the Year Award went to Matt Wellin of AV Chicago . Wellin ’ s AV career has spanned more than two decades . Today , as a project manager at AV Chicago , he led the 2021 Chicago Neighborhood Development Awards , a hybrid event hosted for 50 local attendees and livestreamed to thousands . In this project , Wellin focused on the clients ’ desire to not only expand viewership through streaming technologies but to bring a sense of community by organizing live remote watch parties at award-winning locations .
The Mackey Baron Distinguished Achievement Award went , posthumously , to Fred Bargetzi of Crestron Electronics . Bargetzi , a 30-year Crestron veteran , was instrumental in guiding the evolution of the pro AV industry into the world of digital transformation and IoT through his leadership and technology invention .
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