BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University’s Grounds Crew Manager Eric Nelson was named the winner of the University’s Max. L. Starkey Service Award at the Fall Breakfast in the Young Main Lounge of Memorial Center on Friday.
The Starkey Award, established in 2001, is presented to a member of the University staff nominated by his or her peers for extraordinary service to the University. The award is named in honor of the late Max Starkey, a 1957 Illinois Wesleyan graduate who was University comptroller from 1957 to 1996.
President Richard F. Wilson announced Nelson as the winner, calling the award “well-deserved.” He added that staff members like Nelson “make IWU such a thriving institution.”
Nelson has served the University since 1981, and manages six crew members who care for the award-winning IWU campus. The campus has been honored with beautification awards from the City of Bloomington, including a 2008 award for grounds around The Ames Library. Nelson called the award an honor. “It’s great to be recognized by the city, and know we have a team that gets the job done,” he said at the time. “I am very blessed to work with a staff which is very talented.”