Santo J. Aurelio Award for Altruism

Mr. Irv Starkman, RPR, FAPR, is the most recent Santo J. Aurelio Award recipient.

NCRF’s most prestigious award, the Santo J. Aurelio Award for Altruism, is given to a working court reporter with over 25 years of experience who has given back to the profession, and to the community, with no expectation of any reward.   

The 2012 recipient, Irv Starkman, exemplifies those characteristics.

On a personal level, Irv has...

• been among the first to embrace the “new” technology of CAT and realtime;
• been a member of NCRA and his state association for decades;
• served as a Chief Examiner for NCRA’s tests;
• organized campaigns for NCRA presidential candidates, even MC’ing at several conventions;
• given numerous seminars at national, state and local conventions and conferences, and at bar associations and law schools;
• served at every level on his state association board.

Irv can’t say, “No.”  He has volunteered countless hours on NCRA and NCRF committees and task forces.  He has been a mentor to many over the years, spending hours of personal time counseling new reporters and has shown by example what commitment to a cause means.  He is passionate about everything and imbues those around him with that passion to do good on behalf of the profession.

Irv is the consummate fundraiser and there’s just about nothing that he won’t do to help raise money for a favored organization.  As one colleague states, "Irv put the word "fun" in fundraising.  If you get a call from him, you’ll give.  It’s not strong-arming. It’s a love and respect for Irv's passion, dedication, and pure altruism.

In the truest altruistic spirit, this year’s recipient feels a personal stewardship over the well-being of our profession.  There is not space to list all of Irv's accomplishments, but I think you can see why he deserves NCRF’s highest honor.

Past Award Winners

1999 - Frank O. Nelson, RPR, CLVS
2000 - Robert H. Clark, RPR (Posthumously)
2001 - Shirley Houston, RPR, CLVS, FAPR
2002 - Harry J. and Florence M. Foster
2003 - Nancy Patterson, RPR, CRI
2004 - Glyn Earl Poage, RDR, RMR, RPR, CRR
2005 - Judith G. Werlinger, RMR, CRR, CMRS, FAPR
2006 - Barbara Johnson, RPR, CPE, FAPR
2007 - Heywood "Woody" Waga, RMR, CRR, FAPR
2008 - Jan Garnett Lopez, RPR
2009 - James Bouley, RDR, FAPR
2010 - June Otte, RPR
2011 - Karen Yates, RPR, CRR, CBC, CCP, FAPR
2012 - Irv Starkman, RPR, FAPR

About the Award

In 1996, Mrs. Josephine C. Aurelio gave NCRF a generous donation to honor her husband's lifetime of altruistic endeavors. NCRF established the Santo J. Aurelio Award for Altruism, and each year, beginning in 1999 at NCRA's Centennial Convention, one altruistic person devoted to the court reporting profession will receive this honor.

                                                                         Updated 2/7/2013