This award recognizes a nonmember of MSSFA who displays dedication and leadership while making outstanding contributions to Michigan’s anadromous fish sport fishery.  It is named after Dr. Howard Tanner, former Director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources whose courage, innovative thinking and gutsiness created the world’s greatest fresh water fishery by introducing Pacific salmon into the Great Lakes on April 2, 1966.

Since the inception of the award, it has recognized lawmakers whose dedication to protecting the Great Lakes is unequaled, scientists whose contributions to the understanding of anadromous fish provides us with the prescription for managing the resource, ecological educators whose understanding of the system allows us to make educated choices to protect the resource and angler/advocates whose passion for fishing and commitment to the stewardship of the resource has defined their careers.