Here are the remarks by Mike Lewis upon receiving the NABE CHICAGO Lifetime Achievement Award.

Not long after I entered MIT in the early 70s, a fellow fraternity member, Sam, called me the luckiest person he knew. He was referring to my draft number, a very high 297 (his number was 11). I did not go to Vietnam, which was lucky for me. Sam went, made it back, and was my best friend for nearly 50 years. Luckier still for me.

My lucky streak continued over the years, building a family. My beautiful daughters Lisa and Lindsey, their husbands Kyle and Ron, and two grandchildren. Later in life, I found my soulmate Yelena—we met here at the Union League Club. Through her, I found another extended family and another two grandchildren, several of whom have joined us today. It’s a good life to be sure.

I also had the great luck to be able to do a job I love for five decades. After graduation, I spent a few years in the corporate world. Then, I risked it all to hang my own shingle as an economic consultant. It was a modest beginning. My first office was in a dilapidated 19th-century high-rise down the block from here. Smaller than this stage, only one bathroom nine floors away. That soon led to better things—first a better office. Incidentally, that first building itself is now very fashionable Printer’s Row apartments. Presumably with more bathrooms.

Most of all, my company, Free Market, Inc., boasts a forecasting track record, especially in the past five years, that I think is about the very best out there. We focus on the fundamentals and reject both “crisis” hysteria and baseless wishful thinking, and “transitory” hopes.

One of the by-products of my company is the annual forecasting contest, which we have been running for almost 40 years, and which we will hear more about shortly. The contest started as a marketing opportunity. And a tax deduction. It became a community, where industry veterans could meet up-and-comers, to exchange information and viewpoints. And of course, the contest comes with bragging rights.

As I finish up, I would like to thank NABE CHICAGO for this recognition. I accept it for myself, for the many capable and extraordinary people I have worked with over the years, and also for the important role played by INDEPENDENT economists in today’s financial industry. The industry has changed dramatically in the past decade. Regulatory restrictions on the use of soft dollars have been a major blow to basic research. The extended bull market has led many to question the value of managed investments. This, too, will pass, to coin a prediction. There will always be a NEED for independent economic analysis. If we are all lucky, there will be opportunity for it.

My thanks to you all, to my family, and to NABE CHICAGO!