Every year, the American Numismatic Association recognizes members who go above and beyond in their service and dedication to numismatics.

The following awards, typically presented at the ANA World’s Fair of Money, will instead be awarded during the association’s Service Awards Presentation, a new virtual event scheduled for Sept. 2 at 12 p.m. MT. The early August 2020 World’s Fair convention in Pittsburgh was canceled due to pandemic concerns.

Adna G. Wilde Jr. Award

The Adna G. Wilde Jr. Memorial Award for Exemplary Service recognizes ANA members who dedicate their time and resources to further the educational purposes of the Association and the hobby, and who set an example for others. This year’s recipient is Doug Davis.

Davis is the founder and president of the Numismatic Crime Information Center, based in Arlington, Texas. He established the NCIC with the Pantego Police Department (where he previously served as chief of police) in 1987. The NCIC’s goal is to assist law enforcement officers in the investigation of crimes against collectors and dealers. His work has led to the recovery of untold rare numismatic items, and he has recently taken on the battle against counterfeiting.

Davis has over 30 years of experience in law enforcement and the numismatic industry. In 1988, he was presented the Professional Numismatist Guild’s Sol Kaplan Award. Davis received an ANA Presidential Award in 2012. In 2019 Davis became the director of the Anti-Counterfeiting Task Force.

Medal of Merit

The Medal of Merit is bestowed on members who have dedicated years of service to numismatics. The medal is being presented to both Dr. Michael S. Fey and Thomas J. Uram this year.

Fey has held several leadership positions within the numismatic community: He has served the ANA as a member of the Consumer Protection Committee (2001 to 2005 and 2007 to 2008), Board of Governors (2005 to 2007), Mediation Committee (2007 to 2018) and, currently, the Advisory Council. He also has loaned Morgan silver dollars for display at the Money Museum (2017 to 2019) and has donated thousands of dollars’ worth of coins to the Association’s collection. He has taught classes as a senior instructor at Summer Seminar since 1998.

Fey has published a variety of works, including his books Top 100 Morgan Dollar Varieties: The VAM Keys and A Decade of Top 100 Insights. His writings have appeared in several newsletters, including Top 100 Insights and Top 100 Value Guide, as well as magazines such as COINage and The Numismatist. In addition, Fey developed a template for the ANA to use to persuade dealers and collectors to donate rare coins to the Money Museum for use in Summer Seminars.

In addition to the Medal of Merit, Fey has received the Glenn Smedley Memorial Award (2001), the National Silver Dollar Roundtable President’s Award (2002), the New Jersey Numismatic Society Charles F. Nettleship Award (2007) and the Numismatic News Ambassador Award (2010).

Thomas Uram has proven to be a dedicated promoter of numismatics and a stalwart supporter of the two organizations he is most closely associated with, the Pennsylvania Association of Numismatists and the ANA. He joined the ANA in 1974 as a young numismatist and became a life member in 1976. He served his first term as a club officer (secretary of the George Washington Numismatic Association) while he was still in high school. He has occupied many positions in the Association, including exhibit judge (2011), governor (2017 to 2019), Foundation Committee chair (2017 to 2019), board liaison to the Exhibits Committee (2017 to 2019), and Convention Committee chair (2019 to 2021).

Uram is part of numerous communities and clubs, including the Sphinx Society, North Hill Coin Club, South Hills Coin Club, Central States Numismatic Society, Florida United Numismatists, Chicago Coin Club and the Industry Council for Tangible Assets. Further, Uram has served on the United States Mint Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (Speaker of the House appointment) since 2012. Now in his second five-year term, he has chaired the organization since 2019.

Uram has published a handful of numismatic works, including two articles in The Numismatist: “Morse Code on Money” (May 2013), and “Under the Dome” (October 2015).

He has received various accolades for his numismatic accomplishments, including the ANA Presidential Award (2011), the Radford Stearns silver award (2014), the People’s Choice exhibit award (2015), Numismatic Ambassador (2017) and Glenn Smedley Memorial Award (2019).

Dealer of the Year

Harry J. Forman Dealer of the Year honors a professional numismatist who shows uncommon dedication to strengthening the hobby and the ANA, and displays exemplary ethical standards as a numismatic dealer.

This year’s recipient is Harlan J. Berk, who describes himself as a “dealer’s dealer” in ancient coins, having been in the business for 56 years. He specializes in Greek, Roman and Byzantine specimens, U.S. large cents and Prooflike dollars.

Berk has published three books: Roman Gold Coins of the Medieval World (1985), Successors of the Sestertius (1986) and 100 Greatest Ancient Coins, second edition (2019). In addition, more than 100 of his articles appear in the Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine and various Krause Publications periodicals (1964 to present). He has been a contributing editor for The Numismatist since the mid-1990s. Further, several of his lectures have been recorded, such as “The Art of Judging the Art of Ancient Coins” (1991), “Coins of Croesus” (1993) and “Theodotus Did Make the Dies for the Drachm of Clazomenae” (2011).

Berk has been a member of the Ancient Coin Club of Chicago since its founding in 2001 and has served as president of the Gemini Numismatic Auctions, LLC since 2005. In 1980, Berk gave 1,900 casts of ancient coins to the ANA’s Edward C. Rochette Money Museum. Since 2001, he has donated the coins that are distributed to collectors enrolled in the ANA’s David R. Cervin Ancient Coin Project. He has been part of the Professional Numismatists Guild for many years, taking on different roles including secretary (1995 to 1997), treasurer (1997 to 1999), vice president (1999 to 2001) and president (2001 to 2003).

During his time as president, he rewrote many PNG rules relating to board members and adopted the “Collectors’ Bill of Rights.”

Berk also co-founded History in Your Hands in 2016, a classroom-based program that teaches kids about coins, maps and antiquities.

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