In 1959, CCA instituted an award as a memorial to H.E. Klinefelter, a charter member of the organization. It is given to cooperative communicator members whose work is considered by their peers to be outstanding.
Awards - Klinefelter Award
Klinefelter Celebrates 60 From Baraboo to Kenya and Beyond
Fearless and unforgettable, she is an outstanding role model for all who believe in the power of cooperatives. Pam Karg has embraced the mission of telling the co-op story in writing, photos, videos and educational programs for people around the world. A gifted writer and communicator who knows the meaning of loyalty, honesty and service, she is a master at messaging and teaching.
Klinefelter Award
Pam grew up in suburban Milwaukee in a hard-working middle-class family. She graduated college in Denver and her first communication job was as a newspaper reporter. Her career as a reporter helped to sharpen her writing skills and taught her to ask the right questions to get to the heart of issues that were often unfamiliar. She also learned the great ability to capture photos that amplify key messages in her stories.
Pam joined CCA in 1985. During her tenure with CCA, she chaired the 1994 institute in Milwaukee, served on the board of directors and as president in 1997-98. She lent her expertise to numerous committees including the original InterNetwork Committee in 1997, which resulted in a revamped CCA website with numerous online resources. Pam was an early adopter of leveraging the power of Facebook as a communication and education tool. Since 2005, the world has been Pam’s classroom. She has very creatively shared the cooperative story through interpreters with students who struggle with literacy and financial knowledge.
Pam can make herself at home anywhere and has a real gift for genuinely connecting with people and finding common ground. Under a shade tree in Africa, she has used buckets and random objects to illustrate cooperative ownership and financial structure. She is a resourceful and powerful leader of great influence globally. Pam is always generous with her time, talent and finances, to unconditionally invest in others.
There is no doubt our world would be a better place if more of us embraced the opportunity to know and learn from one another the way Pam does. No less than a CCA Legend, it is an honor to have Pam Karg as the 60th recipient of our H.E. Klinefelter Award.