The American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado (ACEC Colorado) honored Elizabeth Stolfus, PE, FACEC with the Orley O. Phillips Award, Chris Howes and Katie Wolf with the 2024 President’s Award and Zach Stone, PE with the George Washington Award, during the 2024 Annual Meeting and Honor Awards Luncheon at the Denver Marriott Westminster.
The Orley O. Phillips Award is presented annually to an ACEC Colorado member who is nominated by the Past Presidents’ Council and is someone who has made a significant contribution to the profession, ACEC Colorado and its programs. Stolfus is the president and founder of Stolfus & Associates (Greenwood Village), a transportation engineering and planning consulting firm, and has been active at the state and national levels of ACEC for over 20 years. She has served as ACEC Colorado President, National Director, and National ACEC/PAC Champion. She has also served as a Board Member of the National ACEC Research Institute, a member of the Planning Cabinet, a Women In Leadership Steering Committee member, and a Trustee of the ACEC Life/Health Trust. During her acceptance speech, she shared how she first became involved with ACEC Colorado, with an overall message encouraging the next generation of engineering leaders to choose to become involved and give back to the consulting engineering industry.
The President’s Award is bestowed at the discretion of the most recent ACEC Colorado president, and was awarded this year to Howes and Wolf, LLC (Denver), ACEC Colorado’s contract lobbying team, who have guided the Council through an exceptionally busy legislative session. Howes and Wolf have provided significant contributions since 2022 to elevate the awareness of consulting engineers at the state capitol. Among state legislators, ACEC Colorado has grown in its role as a trusted source for unbiased information and opinions on all things related to the built and natural environment. Howes and Wolf advocate for ACEC Colorado year round at interim committees and stakeholder meetings, allowing the Council to gain a seat at the table in shaping bills before they are introduced.
The George Washington Award is given ad hoc to an ACEC Colorado member for outstanding service to the community, the progress of Colorado and the advancement of the public image of consulting engineering as a profession. It is symbolized by U.S. President George Washington and presented to someone who has exhibited leadership and has impacted public policy and general societal issues. Stone is the Colorado area manager for STV (Denver, Colo.), a transportation and social infrastructure firm, and has been a leader over the past few years in building ACEC Colorado’s advocacy and government affairs program. He served for two years as the Government Affairs Committee chair and is now the board liaison to that committee, as well as the ACEC Colorado South Area director on the board. Stone is dedicated to volunteering to testify on behalf of the Council, presents at special interest committee meetings to provide an overview of bills being tracked by ACEC Colorado, as well as taking input from those subject matter experts in ACEC Colorado’s membership.
