Close Icon
Member Login

Industry Honors Excellence

Nominate an HME Leader for the Van Miller Homecare Champion award

Since 2011, the industry has recognized and honored an AAHomecare member for outstanding service to the HME community. This prominent award was renamed in 2016 to reflect the characteristics of an HME visionary, Van G. Miller, past CEO and founder of the VGM Group, as well as a previous Homecare Champion.  

Help us honor an outstanding HME leader as this year's champion, who will be recognized at Medtrade in Dallas (March 28-30.  Nominations are due Friday, February 24. Nomination forms are available in MS Word and PDF format.  Contact Gordon Barnes at gordonb@aahomecare.org if you need further assistance with the forms.

Characteristics considered for a Homecare Champion include an AAHomecare member who has made an exceptional contribution to the homecare sector throughout their career in one or more of the following ways: 

  • Longstanding record of service within the homecare community;
  • Embodiment of the spirit of caring and generosity which are the hallmarks of this profession;
  • Active membership and engagement in the American Association for Homecare.

2022 CHAMPION

Walsh Honored as Homecare Champion
VGM Chairman Jim Walsh is the 2022 Van Miller Homecare Champion.  As one of the original founders of VGM, Walsh recognized the need to support small businesses, providers, and vendors in the HME industry.  He was instrumental in bringing HME vendors to the table to work with smaller providers, allowing them access to larger contracts and more favorable pricing.  (Walsh, left; pictured with Van Miller)

Walsh spent most of his VGM career as General Counsel, where his background allowed him to spot and get ahead on regulatory and legislative issues that would impact the full scope of the HME sector.  Walsh was also instrumental in helping ensure that VGM and AAHomecare were aligned and working in concert on major policy priorities.

“Jim was a truly effective leader, and he excelled at bringing people together when our industry needed to lean on each other,” remarked AAHomecare’s Tom Ryan.  “He served as a mentor, sounding board and advisor to so many HME professionals through his career, including myself.”

Because Walsh was unable to attend Medtrade, Jeremy Stolz, president of VGM & Associates (at right w/ Ryan), accepted the award on his behalf.

Congratulations to 2022 Van Miller Homecare Champion Jim Walsh, and the five other distinguished nominees for this year’s award:

  • Greg Duckworth, Senior Vice President of Med-South Inc.
  • John Gallagher, Vice President, VGM Group
  • Zach Gantt, RRT, FAARC, President & CEO of Encore Healthcare
  • Gene Sego, President of Sego's Home Medical Equipment
  • Kam Yuricich, Executive Director of OAMES

Past Recipients of the Van Miller Homecare Champion Award

The following members of the HME Community have made incredible contributions to the industry, we are proud to recognize their service throughout the years:

  • Jim Walsh (2022)
  • Stephen Ackerman (2021)
  • Karyn Estrella (2019)
  • Regina Gillespie (2018)
  • Gary Sheehan (2017)
  • Missy Cross (2016)
  • Joey Tart and Billy Tart (2015)
  • Cara Bachenheimer and Joel Mills (2014)
  • Scott Meuser and Shelly Prial (2013)
  • Alan Landauer and Van Miller (2012)
  • Joseph Lewarski and Tom Ryan (2011)