June 30, 2009 - The recipient of the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Awards was presented today at the 2009 Canadian Baton Twirling Championships, being held in Edmonton, Alberta.

The CBTF Lifetime Achievement Award was created to recognize and honour special persons who have been an inspiration to the sport of the baton twirling. Their contributions to the CBTF have played significant roles in the development of baton twirling in Canada, or at the World Federation.

This year's Lifetime Achievement Award recipient is Wendy Cruickshank.

Wendy Cruickshank began her baton career in Medicine Hat, Alberta and continued twirling even when her family moved to Edmonton and Red Deer a few years later. When she retired as a competitive athlete, she assisted in the formation of the Red Deer Baton Club and later formed her own baton club. A very popular and well-liked coach, Wendy introduced Baton Twirling to small communities in and around Red Deer and, over the years, had several Alberta champions to her credit.

During her coaching career, she was "bitten by the judging bug" and actively did both roles for many years. After 20 years of coaching, her commitment to her children's activities did not allow her the time to do both. She chose to turn her focus to judging only. Wendy is certified in all five CBTF judging modules, is a Course Conductor for several CBTF courses and has judged all levels of competition including representing Canada at World Championships and International Cup competitions.

Wendy has never hesitated to volunteer her time and has held positions on local, provincial and national Technical Commitees and Boards of Directors from 1984 to 2006. She has been Competition Director for several local Red Deer and one provincial competition, judges at many competitions each year - including Canadian Championships - and is often called upon t oact as Head Judge. Her judging knowledge and extensive training are well known and well respected by all those in the judging community. She is especially known for her incredible memory skills and the athletes remember her for her huge smile as they twirl in front of her! She has excellent organizational skills and, in 2003 and 2005, coordinated the "At The Top" Technical Conferences held in Banff, Alberta. In 2007, proudly took on the role of Judges' Coordinator at the 2007 World Championships in Hamilton and did a fine job on behalf of her country.

She was elected CBTF Judges' Representative for the 2004-2006 term. During that time, she attended WBTF Judges Committee Meetings where she gained respect and admiration from the international baton community for her insightful contributions to the development of many projects - notably International Cup judging procedures and Short Program.

As a successful business woman and devoted mother of two boys, Wendy has stepped down from administration positions with CBTF however she continues to give back to our organization by contributing to and co-authoring the Level 3/Module 2 & 3 Combined course along with Tina Larson. She has dedicated countless hours to this massive project and is currently assisting Tina with the final touches to the course. Wendy fits the phrase, "if you want something done right, give it to a busy person". She is always willing to make time to help others in CBTF and all of us have benefitted from her dedication, her energy and vitality and her generous donations of volunteer time and expertise for over 30 years.

A list of all recipients for these awards is available.