From Goldsby to Gold, Stafford Wood and Covalent Judged the Best at 2019 ADDYs

There were a lot of bright spots at the ADDY Awards this past Saturday, but the highlight of the evening came when Covalent founder Stafford Wood received the E.A “Pete” Goldsby Award. A lifetime achievement award, the Goldsby is the highest presented by the American Advertising Federation – Baton Rouge, and given to the person who has made the greatest overall contribution to the advertising profession and the city of Baton Rouge.

One look at Stafford’s track record of innovation and success is all it takes to see how well-deserved it is.

• When the world-wide web was in its infancy, Stafford introduced online advertising to the Advocate. In two years, she had generated sales of $1.2 million, and put both the paper and the city in the forefront of the interactive age.
• Seeing the power of social media long before it was socially acceptable, she not only brought Facebook to one of the world’s largest hotel chains, but created a comprehensive multimedia marketing plan of advertising, PR and digital media they adopted and executed on a global scale.
• She has received the Baton Rouge Women in Media Award of Excellence, the U.S. Chamber Blue Ribbon Small Business Award, and has been honored as a senior practitioner by the Southern Public Relations Federation.
• She has garnered countless Silver, Gold and Best-of-Show ADDY awards, Lantern Awards in Public Relations, Bulldog Awards for journalism, Vema Awards for multi-media arts, Stevie Awards for corporate communications, and a Golden Bridge Award for product development.
• And due to her efforts in building her profitable small business through the Great Recession, she was awarded the Junior Achievement/Business Report Young Businessperson of the Year.

Today, as president of Covalent Logic, she leads a team of more than 25 skilled professionals who bring full-service corporate communications, branding and web development for clients ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 (and two Fortune 5) companies. Her career has been defined by innovation, leadership and compassion. And her motivation has been to bring genuine results and long-lasting improvements to her clients, community and city.

Covalent Logic also won the coveted Judge's Award, which is work singled out from hundreds of selections and deemed by a Judge to be year’s best creative. They also took home three Gold and Silver ADDYs:

Judge’s Award:
“Dead Poet: Good Spirits”
Client: Dead Poet
Category: Integrated Brand Identity Campaign, Local or Regional/National 

Gold Award:
“Dead Poet: Good Spirits”
Client: Dead Poet
Category: Integrated Brand Identity Campaign, Local or Regional/National 

Silver Award:
“Dead Poet: Good Spirits”
Client: Dead Poet
Category: Illustration – Series 

Silver Award:
“United Utility Logo”
Client: Bernhard Capital Partners
Category: Logo Design

Each year, the AAF receives more than 35,000 entries nationally, and represents the most outstanding examples of creative excellence in areas that include print, broadcast, internet, illustration and design.