Calhoun Receives Prestigious Rural Water Star Award

National Rural Water Association is pleased to announce that Dwight Calhoun, National Director from the State of West Virginia was honored for his years of dedication to the rural water family with the prestigious Rural Water Star Award which was presented to him at the NRWA National Conference in Dallas, Texas on September 27, 2006.

The award is presented to individuals who have gone above and beyond the everyday call of service and dedication; people to whom rural water is more than just a job, more than just a means to an end.

Calhoun spent over 31 years working for the United States Department of Agriculture in the area of finance and management of agriculture and community based programs administered under the authorization of Farmers Homes Administration (FmHA) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).  This includes two periods of six months each in the position of Acting Administrator and one period of Acting Under Secretary for Small Community and Rural Development.  He served in the positions of Loan Officer Division Director and Assistant Administrator of the Agency’s nationwide Water and Waste Water loan and grant program of r a period of 18 years and then retired from FmHA as Deputy Director for Management in 1987.

Calhoun has received many awards and honors including: NRWA "Man of the Year" – 1981, WVRWA "Calvin Smith" Award 1997 & 2002, Presidential Distinguished Executive Award – FmHA, Presidential Meritorious Executive Award – FmHA.  He is also involved in many community activities: Main Street United Methodist Church, Member and Pastor Parish Relations Committee, Kiwanis Club of Petersburg, Member, Board of Directors, and Past President, Grant County Development Authority - Vice President, West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council - Vice Chairman, West Virginia Legislature, Citizen Member of Joint Committee on Government Operations

The NRWA Awards in Excellence program was established to recognize the outstanding efforts of the Member State Affiliates, their staff, and special members of the rural water industry. 

The National Rural Water Association is a non-profit federation of State Rural Water Associations.  Its mission: to provide state associations with support services to meet the needs of their membership.  NRWA is America’s largest utility association with over 25,735 members.

Historically, NRWA’s state associations have trained over 55,000 water and wastewater system personnel each year for two decades.  They also provide over 100,000 on-site technical assistance visits a year.

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Dwight Calhoun, National Director from the State of West Virginia was honored for his years of dedication to the rural water family with the prestigious Rural Water Star Award