NSGIC Awards in Focus: Ted Koch

Wisconsin State Cartographer Ted Koch was presented with the prestigious NSGIC Lifetime Service Award last week at the NSGIC Conference in Colorado. You may have read our recent post about the other service awards presented. Ted's is one of only three Lifetime Service Awards ever presented by NSGIC. It deserves a post all of its own.

This is in addition, by the way, to a well-written recent post on the Wisconsin Mapping Bulletin.

It seems worth our time to look at the full text of the award statement from the Conference. It was extracted from the nomination submitted by GIS professionals in Wisconsin.

Ted is a founding member of NSGIC, having joined in 1991 shortly after assuming the role of State Cartographer in Wisconsin. After 12 years of supporting NSGIC’s goals, Ted served on NSGIC Board of Directors from 2003 to 2005. Most recently, Ted served as Chair of the Conference Planning Committee in 2007. From his seemingly daily calls with Bill Burgess, to his able voice as the NSGIC representative on the National Digital Orthophoto Steering Committee, Ted’s dedication to NSGIC is unquestionable.

What has Ted done for NSGIC? You will recall it was Ted who at a NSGIC state caucus meeting in 2004 suggested we tackle federal policy issues. Among his ideas, he presented a concept he called “Imagery for the Nation.” Needless to say, IFTN has become a centerpiece of NSGIC’s advocacy agenda. Thanks to his original idea, we all have a new and exciting concept to rally around.

Despite this long list of honors and achievements, Ted is easily the most humble person I know. Not once have I heard him take credit for the original idea called Imagery for Nation, or for that matter, any other major initiative for which he deserves credit. That’s “classic Ted.” Selfless, devoted, and always looking out for the best interest of the team.

From cracks about his 1970’s vintage plaid pants at least year’s conference, to jabs about his golf game, Ted is a guy that takes it all in stride. He always has a smile on his face, and always puts his own needs behind others. Simply put, Ted is always there when you need him.

I doubt there are any NSGIC members who don't whole-heartedly agree with these sentiments. And we were all saddened to hear Ted announce his impending retirement as he accepted the award. It makes those of us in the younger ranks realize that we need to step forward and live-up to an impressive example of leadership.

There is no better metric of Ted Koch's leadership than the number of interested, active and effective young geospatial leaders he has mentored in Wisconsin. Over the last several years it has become clear that the folks from Wisconsin are going to play important roles in the future of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure.

That is a credit to Ted Koch. he will deny it, of course, but we know better.