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SLI gives two awards to honor individuals for their work on behalf of the Society.
The Board of Directors votes the awards, which are not necessarily given every year.
The Service Award is the oldest honor bestowed on Society members. It was first given in 1947 and on 60 occasions since. The Service Award was the Society’s highest award for many years and was designated for an individual who has given unselfishly of time, service, and support of the Society over and above the duties of an office held or committee duties performed.
The Board created the Distinguished Merit Award in 1987. The award was first granted in 1988 and 20 times since. The award is for a living individual, group, or organization that has advanced Louisiana irises in some outstanding manner, such as service, promotion, writing, presenting programs, teaching judges training schools, hybridizing, growing, and other valuable contributions. Society membership is not required.
The three most recent recipients of the Distinguished Merit Award are Bobbie Hutchins and Stan Schikowitz of Mooringsport, LA (2019), a joint award; Robert Treadway of Carlisle, AR (2021); and Joseph Musacchia of Gray, LA (2022).
The Mary Swords Debaillon Medal is the highest award exclusively for a Louisiana iris. It is given by the Society annually but is awarded and presented by the American Iris Society through its official judging system. Only registered and introduced Louisiana irises are eligible, and the winner must have worked through AIS’s complex, multi-year judging system.
The Mary Swords Debaillon Award was established by the Society and first given in 1948. The “Award” was converted to a “Medal” in 1985-87, consistent with comparable AIS Medals for other classes of irises.
The award honors Mary Swords Debaillon, an early collector of Louisiana irises in South Louisiana who did much to preserve and promote the irises from 1920 – 1940. Caroline Dormon designed the bronze medal given to the hybridizer of the winner each year.
The Mary Swords Debaillon Medal stands at the top of the AIS awards system for Louisiana irises, and the winner becomes eligible for the Dykes Medal, the highest award for irises in any class. (A Louisiana iris has never won the Dykes).
About 350 accredited judges are sent a ballot each year with all eligible irises in all classes, and awards are based on the voting results. Irises are first eligible for Honorable Mention (HR), then an Award of Merit (AM), and eventually, those winning at these levels are eligible for the Debaillon. AIS publishes the voting results, and the tabulation is an interesting indicator of the popularity of irises at a given time.
The Society maintains several separate awards for Louisiana irises.
The Society conducts an annual “popularity poll” through its magazine Fleur de Lis, with the winner given the Charles W. Arny Award. An iris may only win the award one time, however. The Fleur publishes the results.
The Caillet Cup is an SLI Convention award voted by members on garden tours. Participants vote for their favorite cultivar viewed in any of the gardens. The Caillet Cup was first awarded in 2001.
The Society traditionally sponsors an accredited iris show at most conventions and has created awards expressly for winning show irises.
In the long history of the Society, many individuals have participated actively and are no longer with us. Our community honors good friends and valued members who have passed. Many left a significant mark on the Society, and remembrances of them and their contributions are accessible from the button below.
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