The Ontario Auctioneer
Auctioneers Association of Ontario
AGM February 2024
AAO Annual General Meeting
Please be advised that the Annual General Meeting of the Auctioneers Association of Ontario will be
held at the Americana Conference Resort and Spa in Niagara Falls, ON. The date and time of the
AGM is February 9, 2024 to begin at 4 PM. Directional signage to AGM will be in the lobby of the
Americana.
AAO Awards
Lifetime Achievement Award
The AAO Lifetime Achievement Award is given each year to an individual, or individuals, in
recognition of significant and enduring contribution to the Association and the Auction Industry.
The Association would like to formally recognize those members who have rendered exceptional
services to the profession, whose achievements in their careers and/or whose contributions in the
community have earned them distinction and brought honour to the profession. Within this
community of professionals, there are a few exceptional individuals whose dedication, commitment
and extraordinary contribution include achievements of such significance across a broad range of
areas that the Association wishes to recognize these exceptional individuals by awarding them a
Lifetime achievement Award. The AAO is honoured to have the opportunity for its members to select
and recognize a person who has given outstanding support and service to the Association over the
years. Nominations should be submitted to the AAO secretary before February 20th of each year.
Documentation should accompany this nomination. All nominations can be sent to our secretary at
auctioneersontario@gmail.com
Selection Criteria
Nominees for the Lifetime Achievement Award should meet the following criteria:
– Demonstrated exceptional service/leadership over a significant period of time. This award is
for lifetime achievement rather than a single contribution.
– Promotes excellence within themselves, their community and the Association. Encourages
learning, passion, leadership, and enthusiasm within the Association and industry.
– Displayed a wisdom and depth of service/leadership that has made a significant difference to
individuals.
– Demonstrates the core values of the AAO.
Nomination Criteria
– The nominee need not necessarily be a practising auctioneer, nor a current member of the
AAO. The AAO may also choose to make the award posthumously if the circumstances are
appropriate.
– All submissions for this recognition are considered in confidence by the Committee, and
nominations will not be publicly disclosed. The President and members of the Board are not eligible
for this award while in office.
– Nominations for the Lifetime Achievement Award should be forwarded no later than January
8th , 2024, by email to the Secretary with a short explanation of the reason for nomination.
– All nominations will be assessed on their comparative merits by the standing Committee, who
will decide the eventual recipient(s) by majority vote. This is an important award but is necessarily
subjective. It should not be viewed to be in any way competitive.
Member of the Year Award
The Association would like to express its appreciation and recognize a member that exhibits a
prominent commitment to the AAO by their time, talent and resources invested, who has given
outstanding support and service to further the goals and objectives of the Association. Nominations
should be submitted to the AAO secretary by January 8th, 2024. Documentation should accompany
this nomination. All nominations can be sent to our secretary at auctioneersontario@gmail.com
Selection Criteria
Nominees for the Member of the Year Award should meet the following criteria:
– Demonstrated exceptional service and leadership over the past year.
– Promotes passion, leadership, enthusiasm and excellence within themselves and the
Association.
– Nominees cannot have won the award in the past two years.
Nomination Criteria
– All submissions for this award are considered in confidence by the Committee, and
nominations will not be publicly disclosed.
– All nominations will be assessed on their comparative merits by the standing Committee, who
will decide the recipient by majority vote. This is an esteemed award, but is necessarily subjective. It
should not be viewed to be in any way competitive.
– Nominations for the Member of the Year should be forwarded no later than January 8th, 2024,
by email to the Secretary with a short explanation of the reason for nomination.
Gerald Cryderman Memorial Award
Each year, AAO is pleased to offer this perpetual plaque to the member submitting the best “Sales
Bill” with the AAO logo on it. This year, it has been determined that the best website shall be also
considered as a submission for this award. The AAO logo must appear on the homepage of the
website or sales bill for consideration of the winner. Gerald Cryderman was a past–president of AAO
and knew the importance of quality advertising. Nominations for the Gerald Cryderman Memorial
Award should be forwarded no later than January 8th, 2024, by email to the Secretary with a short
explanation of reason for nomination. All nominations can be sent to our secretary at
auctioneersontario@gmail.com
Ruth Hart-Stephens Bursary
The Ruth Hart-Stephens Educational Bursary is presented annually to a deserving member in good
standing who has applied for continuing education and professional development in an auction or
auction-related field.
In 2003, the AAO founded an educational bursary aimed at promoting advanced professional
development and continuing education for established auctioneers. The bursary was renamed in
2008, to honour the late Ruth Hart-Stephens. Ruth’s untimely demise in December 2007, after 43
years in the auction business, left a gap in the auto auction world and the auction industry in general.
Under the leadership of Ruth and her son Brad Hart, Manheim’s Toronto Auto Auctions have been
staunch supporters of the AAO. Ruth believed 100% in the auction method of marketing, the need
for constant upgrading of professional knowledge and skills, and maximum effort in the auction ring.
The Ruth Hart-Stephens Educational Bursary is presented annually to a deserving member in good
standing who has applied for continuing education and professional development in an auction or
auction-related field. The Bursary is for higher-level, academic knowledge and/or skill based
education. The recipient of the Bursary is announced at the close of the convention at the
President’s Banquet. The Bursary award shall not exceed $1000.
Past recipients have used the Bursary to go towards various courses, including The CPPAG
(Canadian Personal Property Appraisers Group), CAI (Certified Auctioneers Institute, provided by
the NAA/National Auctioneers Association), BAS (Benefit Auctioneer Specialist by the NAA), extra
educational opportunities and classes provided by the Canadian Auction College and more. There
have been many recipients of this Bursary since its inception and there have been years where there
have been no applicants. The Board of Directors would be pleased to direct the allocated funds to a
deserving AAO member.
Applicants must be members in good standing and active in the auction industry. The Educational
Bursary application form must be completed in full – incomplete applications will not be accepted. All
funding from other sources must be declared on the application. The Bursary is not retroactive and
cannot be applied against courses already completed. The application, all written reports,
submissions and supporting documents become the property of the AAO.
If you would like to apply for the Ruth Hart-Stephens Educational Bursary, you may obtain an
application form from the Secretary/Treasurer at:
Secretary Treasurer AAO, 1 888 417 6530 • auctioneersontario@gmail.com REMEMBER:
SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS January 8th, 2024
Convention Details
Network, be enlightened, engage, reconnect, workshop, tradestables, speakers, banquet and a
live public auction with auctioneers competition. 2024 speakers include Anthony Leo, President
of Dragon’s Eye Consulting- Marketing and Digital Media. Bryce Murray from Murray &
Associates LLP . Steve Dainard from “The Mortgage Guy” will share on AI and Chatgbt.
Christopher Drost -Professional Photographer- workshop. Representatives from
Auctionflex/Hibid, Canbid/ Bidpath, SilentAuctionBiz, and more have been invited. Many
confirmations coming in including AuctionFlex.. Live Public Auction with Auctioneer Competition
on Saturday Feb 10th. The competitors will be showing their skills off in a beautiful hall to the
public.The auction should bring many bidders! It is our 40th Annual Convention and hope you
can attend!
Competition
The Auctioneer’s Association of Ontario invites all auctioneers to the:
2024 Ontario Auctioneer’s Competition
The competition will be held in conjunction with the Auctioneer’s Association of Ontario’s annual
convention hosted at the Americana Resort and Spa, from Friday February 9- Sunday Feb 11th
All Auctioneers in Ontario will be eligible to compete for the competition on Saturday February
10th,2024 . There will be two divisions, Champion and Novice.
Experienced Division Rewards include:
1st place will receive AAO Champion trophy, a gold ring and a $1000.00 cash prize.
2nd place will receive a plaque and $500.00 cash prize.
3rd place will receive a plaque and $300.00 cash prize.
Novice Division (two years or less experience) Rewards include:
1st place will receive a plaque and a free years membership to the AAO
2nd place will receive a plaque.
– If there are 5 competing Women, a Women’s Championship will be awarded. The Women’s
Champion will receive a trophy plus $500, Reserve will receive $250. This award is sponsored by
the Canadian Auction College.
Rules
– All contestants must be present at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, February 10th, 2024 at the
Americana Resort and Spa – 8444 Lundy’s Ln, Niagara Falls, ON L2H 1H4
– The competition will consist of 5 judges from different areas of the auction industry. The top
and bottom scores will be dropped, and placements will be based on the average of the 3 remaining
judge’s scores.
– First round contestants will sell 3 items consisting of 2 items supplied by the competitor
valuing over 50 dollars total. Auctioneers will sell their own supplied items.
– The top 4 contestants in each division will be brought back for the final round selling 2 items
that will be supplied by the Association. The winners will be announced at the end of the competition
and given free passes to our banquet on Saturday night where presentations will be made.
– Entry fee for the champions division is $150.00 payable to The Ontario Auctioneers
Association and free for the novice division.
– Former Champions in any given category are not eligible to compete in divisions they have
already won for five years.
– ALL Prize winners MUST attend the President’s Banquet to collect prizes.
Entries will be accepted up till February 3rd, 2024.
To make this a fair and impartial competition, no member of the Competition Committee will compete
in the competition. No competitor will be allowed to use the mic before the competition. Each
auctioneer will be invited to the mic for a pre-sale mic check.