About this episode
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Talking Pools Podcast has officially opened nominations for the 2026 Talking Pools Podcast Mentor of the Year Award, an industry recognition created to celebrate the individuals who go beyond their daily work to teach, guide, and elevate others in the swimming pool and spa profession.
Nominations will be accepted from March 15 through May 15, 2026, inviting pool service technicians, builders, retailers, educators, manufacturers, and other professionals across the industry to submit the name of a mentor who helped shape their career.
The award was created by Talking Pools Podcast host and industry educator Rudy Stankowitz to shine a spotlight on the unsung leaders of the trade—those who invest their time and experience in helping others succeed.
“Every great pool professional started somewhere, and chances are someone helped them along the way,” said Stankowitz. “This award exists to recognize the people who take the time to teach judgment, protect standards, and build technicians who will carry the industry forward.”
Recognizing the Quiet Builders of the Industry
Unlike many awards that highlight business growth or product innovation, the Mentor of the Year Award focuses specifically on mentorship—the act of teaching, guiding, and developing professionals in the field.
Eligible nominees must be actively involved in the swimming pool industry or a closely related field, including service, construction, retail, manufacturing, education, or other supporting roles.
To maintain fairness and integrity, the award program does not allow self-nominations, family nominations, or nominations of Talking Pools Podcast hosts. Each submission must come from a professional working within the industry.
A Championship Recognition
The Mentor of the Year recipient will be presented with a custom championship belt, symbolizing the impact mentors have on shaping the next generation of professionals. The belt was designed by Wildcat Belts, the same manufacturer that produces championship titles for organizations like WWE and UFC.
The inaugural 2025 award attracted dozens of nominations from across the global pool industry, with finalists selected through a multi-stage anonymous review process to ensure a merit-based evaluation.
In keeping with the spirit of the award, the winner will not be asked to attend a formal ceremony. Instead, the Talking Pools Podcast team will deliver the championship belt in person, surprising the recipient at their workplace or job site while they are doing what mentors do best—helping others succeed.
How to Nominate a Mentor
Industry professionals can nominate their mentor by submitting the individual’s name along with a description of how that person helped them grow in their career or business.
Submissions can be made online at:
https://cpoclass.com/pool-news/mentor-award/
Alternatively, nominees can be submitted by visiting cpoclass.com and selecting the Talking Pools Podcast Mentor Award tab.
The Top 10 nominees will be announced later in 2026, with one individual ultimately earning the title of Talking Pools Podcast Mentor of the Year.
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Email us: [email protected]
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Talking Pools Podcast — 2026 Talking Pools Podcast Mentor Award. Machine-transcribed; use the interactive transcript above to jump the player to any line.
We can't tell if the chemistry is good by looking at it, it wasn't clear yesterday! From the last time, the saltwater pool is a chlorine pool! This is the Talking Pool's podcast with pool pros from every region in the country. If it happens in a pool, y'all hear about it here. Everything from tips and hacks to the latest tricks and trends. Breaking news? We lay it on the line, we tell it like it is because we think you deserve to know! So I want to take a minute before we get further into today's episode. I want to talk about something that is incredibly important to me.
And honestly, it should be important to everyone in this industry. Mentorship. Every single one of us learned this trade from somebody. Nobody just woke up one morning knowing how to balance water, diagnose equipment problems, or build a successful pool service business. Someone showed us. Someone took the time. Maybe they helped you through your first screen pool. Maybe they gave you advice that helped you turn your route into a real business. Whatever it was, somebody helped you get to where you are today. And now it's time to say thank you. Beginning March 15th, we are opening nominations for the Talking Pools Podcast 2026 Mentor of the Year award. This is your opportunity to recognize the person who made a difference in your career. All you need to do is send us their name. Tell us how they helped you in your business. What did they teach you? How did they guide you? Why do you believe they deserve to be recognized as the 2026 Talking Pools Podcast Mentor of the Year?
The mentor selected will receive the Talking Pools Podcast Mentor of the Year championship belt. Yes, an actual championship belt just as we had done last year because let's be honest. The people who dedicate their time to mentoring others in this industry deserve to be recognized like champions. We will be accepting nominations from March 15th through May 15th. So you've got two months to get us their name. Don't wait. If somebody helped shape your career, tell us about them now. You can submit their names by visiting cpoclass.com forward slash pool dash news forward slash mentor dash award. Or you can go to cpoclass.com and then just click on the Talking Pools Podcast Mentor Award tab. Probably the easier way cpoclass.com then click on the Talking Pools Podcast Mentor Award tab. Mentorship is one of the things that make the pool industry different from a lot of other industries.
People here still take the time to help each other succeed. So let's recognize the people who helped us along the way. Who is your mentor? Go nominate them today. I just wanted to say thank you for listening today. I'm hoping you enjoyed the episode as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you. Listen, it's been a couple of wacky crazy screwed up years from pandemic to pool again. I just want you to know that we are all in this together. If there's anything that we can do for you, send me an email at talkingpoolsatgmail.com. Again, that's talkingpoolsatgmail.com. We're here. This is your podcast. We are the Pool People's Podcast of the pool people for the pool people by the pool people's podcast. This one is about you. So thank you for tuning in and listening. Do me a favor, click subscribe before you go.
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