Gartland/Blackwell Memorial Award
This annual award honors the memories of two individuals who have contributed to the success of CRA and whose memories will not be forgotten. James Gartland was the founder of the industry publication Rental Equipment Register (RER). Each year he would help recognize the "Rentalman of the Year" and the CRA continues that tradition by acknowledging men and women who embody the qualities Jim himself demonstrated - respect, vision and leadership.
Dale Blackwell served CRA as President and Executive Director. He was the owner of Aba Daba Rents. With Dale’s exceptional leadership, personal integrity and positive attitude CRA continues to be an influential organization in the rental industry. His positive personality perpetuated the rental industry and helped to promote the high professional standards found in the rental industry.
Dale Blackwell served CRA as President and Executive Director. He was the owner of Aba Daba Rents. With Dale’s exceptional leadership, personal integrity and positive attitude CRA continues to be an influential organization in the rental industry. His positive personality perpetuated the rental industry and helped to promote the high professional standards found in the rental industry.
The Rental Man of the Year Award was presented from 1964-1979.
Recipients were:
| 1964 - Joe Ewing | 1970 - Ross Neesley | 1976 - Ron Irvin |
| 1965 - Bob Irving | 1971 - Eilen & Harry Clason | 1977 - Ted - de Vries |
| 1966 - Jack Decker | 1972 - Bill Cushing | 1978 - Dale Muesborn |
| 1967 - Bob Grasse | 1973 - Jack Wanamaker | 1979 - Chuck Aarons |
| 1968 - Sam Greenburg | 1974 - Palmer Grasse | |
| 1969 - Bill Grasse | 1975 - Bill Berman |
The James Gartland Award was presented from 1980-2019.
Recipients were:
| 1980 - Joe Novak | 1993 - Linda Bradley | 2007 - Brian Maginnis |
| 1981 - Joe Doran | 1994 - Dale Blackwell | 2010 - Vicky Blackwell |
| 1982 - Howard Burnett | 1995 - Tim Novoselski | 2011 - Jim Woodward |
| 1983 - Joe Wiest | 1996 - Tony Beringer | 2012 - Jim Jenkins |
| 1984 - Dick Hill | 1997 - Bob DuBose | 2013 - Robert Pedersen |
| 1985 - Bud Loeber | 1998 - Dennis Turner | 2014 - David Dworschak |
| 1986 - June Harvey | 1999 - Irving Levine | 2015 - Patricia Sarris |
| 1987 - Tom Carolan | 2000 - Irwin R. Scott | 2016 - Richard Briggs |
| 1988 - Lynn Talbot | 2001 - Chuck Maltese | 2017 - Doug Strom |
| 1989 - Bob Phares | 2002 - Les Chayo | 2018 - Alex DuBose |
| 1990 - Bill Bryant | 2003 - Larry Pedersen | 2019 - Jeff Roberts |
| 1991 - Paul Powers | 2004 - Russ Meek | |
| 1992 - Van Dossey | 2005 - Dennis Wells |
The James Gartland Award was change to The Gartland/Blackwell Memorial Award in 2021.
Recipients were:
| 2021 - Mitch Guiterrez | 2022 Glenn Phares | |