Rockford, Illinois Resident Wins National Award ACA Names Tom Lindblade ‘Instructor of the Year’
Celebrating its 130th year as a nonprofit, member-supported canoeing and kayaking organization, the American Canoe Association this week recognized the contributions of Tom Lindblade in awarding him its annual “Excellence in Instruction” award.
Nominated by fellow instructors and ACA members, the award recognizes outstanding contributions in the field of paddlesport instruction.
“Tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I will understand,” is the mantra invoked by Tom Lindblade, who has spent his entire professional career in experiential education. His passion for teaching paddle sports, especially canoeing, has been a major focus of that career.
Mr. Lindblade has been a counselor and experiential educator for over 40 years. He has led experiential adventure field study programs that have taken students to 51 countries and many wilderness areas of North America; many of these programs involved paddlesports.
An outstanding mentor of many ACA-Certified Instructors, he makes people want to learn good canoeing form and methods (important both for their enjoyment and in keeping them safe on the water); he draws people into the learning process, and makes them feel empowered by the process.
“The American Canoe Association is proud to support the work of more than 4,500 instructors around the world,” said Martin A. Bartels, Executive Director of the ACA. “We are incredibly grateful for the extraordinary examples of leadership set by people like Tom Lindblade. His work not only encourages and empowers people who want to explore the outdoors, it increases paddler safety and draws attention to the need to protect our recreational waterways.”
The ACA National Office Staff
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