Monday, June 30, 2008

Consumers Prefer Retail Jewelry Stores over Online Diamond Sales

Consumers Prefer Retail Jewelry Stores over Online Diamond Sales

Brick-and-mortar retailer Ganem Jewelers proves personal service prevails over lower online diamond prices.

Scottsdale, AZ (Vocus) January 6, 2010

According to Kenneth Gassman with the Jewelry Industry Research Institute, online jewelers capture only 5% of U. S. jewelry sales, with an estimated extended cap of 10%. Since the beginning of consumerism, product cost and service have defined the success of a business in the eyes of the purchasing public. However, when cost and service conflict, buyers find themselves in a dilemma, especially when it comes to buying a diamond—do they prefer buying it online to save on overhead, or over the counter in a brick-and-mortar store? According to Jason Ganem, co-owner of Ganem Jewelers (http://www. ganemjewelers. com) in Scottsdale and Ahwatukee, Arizona, when statistics are added to public opinion, over-the-counter purchases win the prize.

“The secret to our success is building lasting customer relationships,” states Ganem. “We focus on customer product education, service and satisfaction; and the relationships fall into place. Our customers are our extended family. That kind of relationship just isn’t possible with online sales, nor is the immediate tactile and visual shopping experience that a store like ours provides. Every one of our customers is considered a gift and we’re going to do everything we can to take good care of them. Trust is everything in our business, so we would never want to do anything to jeopardize that trust.” Jason and his brother, Curtis, opened their Scottsdale store in September 2008 amidst the current recession and boast strong sales in both stores.

“There will always be consumers looking for deals on the Internet and there will always be consumers who will insist on the hands-on approach of seeing, feeling, touching and ultimately purchasing their jewelry at a local jewelry store,” states Judah Gutwein, a retail jeweler operating from an e-commerce platform.

Two thousand years ago, shoppers searched the “agora” for their treasures—the established marketplace at the foot of the Acropolis in ancient Greece. Today, more than 95% of all retail purchases occur in a store, often in a mall reminiscent of the agora of yesteryear. In 1744, Ben Franklin offered non-store competition by publishing and distributing a catalogue of scientific and academic books, “Those persons who live remote, by sending their orders and money to said B. Franklin may depend on the same justice as if present.” He even offered a guarantee. 1872 saw the A. Montgomery Ward catalog shipped to farmers throughout the Midwest, and Sears and Roebuck soon followed with their famous catalogue in 1886. By the 1980’s, catalogue sales had garnished 3% of the total retail dollars spent in the U. S. Today, it’s the Internet that provides retail stores their prime competition.

Online jewelers, for instance, generate 80% of their sales from diamonds and diamond jewelry, with a higher average ticket than retail jewelers. Diamond and diamond jewelry sales for retail jewelry stores average 48% of their overall sales, according to Gassman. Online prices can vary greatly depending on the website and documentation used to identify a diamond’s quality. Most experts consider graded evaluations and certification from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and the American Gem Society (AGS) to be the most consistent and reliable throughout the industry.

The main criticism of store-based jewelers is their lack of substantial diamond inventories compared with online vendor inventories. The truth is, however, that a majority of online diamond merchants list and display inventories that remain in the physical possession of their wholesalers. They post them to their site via an electronic download, excluding them from personally viewing or quality controlling the stones. As a result, the same diamonds can often be seen on a variety of competing sites. This makes it possible for a single diamond to be “purchased” from two or more websites at the same time.

Many storefront jewelers, however, do carry substantial inventories that customers can see, touch and compare. In a recent interview with Jason Ganem, he stated, “We always have an extensive selection of loose diamonds and diamond jewelry on hand. Currently we have approximately 600 loose diamonds. So, whatever a customer wants, we have something to show them. We have 10 to 12 diamonds of a similar grade, weight, cut and clarity to show customers to most jewelers’ one or two. Customers enjoy seeing the diamonds under our microscope, which enables them to see the color and quality differences for themselves.” Storefront jewelers also offer “after sale” services, such as sizing, cleaning, tightening and upgrading that aren’t available with online sales.

A recent online survey asked if respondents would buy a diamond engagement ring on or offline. Ten out of 17 gave unequivocal support to an offline, brick-and-mortar store for their diamond purchase. The responses included the following: they are safer; you can personally examine the size and quality of the diamonds; when spending that much money, you want to see it before you buy it; how do you know you’re getting what you paid for; it’s hard to know the trustworthiness of online vendors; and how do you know if online vendors will honor their guarantee, if they have one. If there is dissatisfaction or problems with a diamond purchased online, returning it could be an additional hassle.

“We tested and rated all of the top 24 online diamond dealers and only found 6 companies that earned a perfect score,” states Robert Hensley, President of Diamond Helpers. “Then we eliminated the ones that received any poor consumer feedback, and now we are left with two companies that have truly proven over the years that they have the customer in mind. All the others don’t seem to hold to their word about refunds or service after the sale if you have a problem.”

“For many reasons, we believe that (diamond) shoppers worldwide will continue to do most of their shopping in bricks-and-mortar stores,” concludes Gassman. “Online commerce isn’t going to put store-based jewelers out of business, other than the weakest merchants who are already on Death Road.”

“There is just no substitute for seeing a diamond up close and personal,” says Ganem (http://www. ganemjewelers. com). “The best jewelers will show customers a variety of options in their price range and educate them on the 4C’s: cut, color, clarity and carat weight. Buying a diamond, loose or in a setting, is a substantial purchase and consumers deserve to feel comfortable and trusting of the person selling it to them.” As far as customers are concerned, their greatest joy could be as simple as walking out of the store with their diamond purchase in hand.

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Sunday, June 29, 2008

Brand New Ethical Way to Order Any Book

Brand New Ethical Way to Order Any Book

Bookatree. co. uk (http://www. bookatree. co. uk), an online book shop that plants new trees to replace the wood used in its products, it's purpose is to give everyone a cheap, fast, secured, easy and ethical way to order any book. Thanks to Bookatree. co. uk, readers can enjoy their favourite novel or study book while helping to combat deforestation and climate change without any cost or burden to the customer.

Liverpool, England (PRWeb UK) February 22, 2010

Aimed at buyers of a vast range of books for leisure, learning and business, Bookatree. co. uk (http://www. bookatree. co. uk) stocks about two million titles - including paperbacks, hardbacks, audio books, ebooks and maps - and adds thousands of new books to its catalogue monthly. Unlike other book retailers, Bookatree. co. uk commits 15% of the profit margin from each book sold towards planting trees near its customers' neighbourhoods. This environmentally sound practise is entirely free to the customer: it isn't passed on in the pricing of the books, which remains highly competitive. The tree planting project will be implemented quarterly in partnership with tree planting agencies, with trees being chosen to suit the local environment in which they're being planted as well as to maximise the absorption of CO2.

Information that can be found on Nasa website (http://climate. nasa. gov (http://climate. nasa. gov/)) indicates that global sea levels have been on a steady rise with global atmospheric CO2 reaching it climax since 650,000 years. (see: http://climate. nasa. gov/evidence/ (http://climate. nasa. gov/evidence/)) . Thus, the tree planting practice by bookatree is yet another passive but effective way to reducing personal greenhouse gas emissions which are majorly responsible for the rising sea levels and the overall change of the climate.

Together with competitive pricing and discounts, Bookatree. co. uk offers thousands of book pre-release, which are dispatched to customers the day before release. Fast UK and world-wide delivery is available, so overseas customers and expats can enjoy ordering their books ethically, knowing that trees will be planted as near as possible to them, wherever they may be, to offset the effects of their purchase.

According to Iyke Iwegbue, Manager at bookatree ; "We just delivered boxes of 1001 Natural Wonders: You Must See Before You Die (http://www. bookatree. co. uk/BookItem. aspx? item=9781844034123) (by Michael Bright), to customers in Wales, Honolulu, Osaka, Sydney, Pretoria, Copenhagen, and Toronto in just 5 working days".

George I. Michael of GreenBB Limited, the company behind Bookatree, says: "Bookatree. co. uk is the new way to shop for books in 2010 and beyond. It believes books are essential, and the fight against climate change and ozone depletion is also vital. Thus, committing 15% of it's profit margin towards tree planting, bookatree found a way to promote literacy and green space altogether".

Click here to follow bookatree on Twitter (http://twitter. com/bookatree)

Click here to find bookatree on facebook (http://www. facebook. com/pages/bookatree/215286903271)

NOTES FOR EDITORS
Bookatree. co. uk is owned by GreenBB Ltd, a company based in Liverpool and founded in 2008. An online retail, marketing and distribution company with a green ethos, GreenBB is focused on protecting the earth's most valuable resources. Its core business lies in literacy and education, entertainment, green technology and gadgets. The company runs three e-commerce websites - Ozonebasket. co. uk, Ozonebay. co. uk and Bookatree. co. uk - and 15% of the profit from each site is committed towards planting trees.

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Saturday, June 28, 2008

Winners Announced at the 3rd Annual Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards - Robert Zemeckis, Don Shay and Robert Abel Honored

Winners Announced at the 3rd Annual Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards - Robert Zemeckis, Don Shay and Robert Abel Honored

The best visual effects in 19 categories of film, television, commercials, music videos and games were honored at the 3rd Annual Visual Effects Society (VES) Awards. Robert Zemeckis received the VES Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Tom Hanks.

Hollywood, CA (PRWEB) February 18, 2005

The Visual Effects Society (VES), the entertainment industry’s only society of visual effects professionals, celebrated the best visual effects artistry in film, television, commercial, music videos and games at tonight’s 3rd Annual VES Awards recognizing outstanding visual effects in nineteen (19) categories. Robert Zemeckis was honored with the VES Lifetime Achievement Award for his enormous contributions to the visual effects industry and to filmmaking as a whole. The honor was presented to him by Academy Award® winning visual effects artist Ken Ralston and long-time friend and collaborator Tom Hanks. Robert Abel was honored posthumously with the Georges Melies Award for his contributions to the visual effects industry and Don Shay received the Board of Directors Award for illuminating the field of visual effects through his role as publisher of Cinefex. The ceremony was presided over by VES Executive Director Eric Roth.

Founded in 1997, the Visual Effects Society is an organization comprised of distinguished visual effects artists desiring to honor, advance and promote visual effects for its membership and the industry as a whole. The Society promotes continuous awareness about the visual effects industry, supports combined technology research and development, and designs and implements educational programs for its membership and the public interested in the production of visual effects. Society headquarters are located in Los Angeles, CA with approximately 1,100 global members.

Winners included the visual effects artists responsible for the work in "The Aviator", "The Day After Tomorrow", "Spider-Man 2", "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" and "The Incredibles", among many others. A full list of VES Awards winners is available online at http://www. vesawards. com (http://www. vesawards. com).

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Audio Qualifications Looming at AudioCourses. com

Audio Qualifications Looming at AudioCourses. com

AudioCourses. com Online Sound Engineering School is approaching the next deadline for the City & Guilds 1820 Part 3 exams. The 15 - week course is a mixture of audio recording/music technology theory and practical preparing students for two written exams that can be taken twice a year.

(PRWEB) November 21, 2004

The virtual school has already achieved a 100% pass rate in an earlier cohort this year and qualified many student from various parts of the world.

Students are brought together into an interactive dynamic learning environment in order to be waist deep in audio technology learning and virtual mixing desks! The AudioCourses. com students are a lively bunch of people thrown togther by circumstance and soon become great friends with their common interest of audio technology learning.

Audiocourses. com reaches out to provide audio and sound engineering education to students who would otherwise not be able to study these subjects in traditional institutions due to geographic isolation or simply work commitments.

The environment creates satisfied students: "I felt that I wanted for nothing and that the online format gave the complete learning experience." states graduate Alan Wright (http://www. audiocourses. com/article168.html (http://www. audiocourses. com/article168.html)).

Replacing the social gap online is all about encouraging “interaction” and regular contact with peers and instructors. This is not as hard as it sounds and in fact Audicourses. com holds its weekly “Live Workshops” to reinforce the sense of an audio community. The student feedback regarding these sessions is always excellent and it is uplifting to see such a great “buzz” week in week out. Imagine it, 10 people from 10 countries all online together and discussing vocal compression SEE (http://www. audiocourses. com/article-topic-23.html (http://www. audiocourses. com/article-topic-23.html)).

“We are leading the way in online sound engineering education by creating vibrant learning communities where the students get to meet and study with people form a variety of different cultures. This rich environment only empowers the learning potential for our students. We are satisfied our students really do become more employable after graduating with us”. States Director Chris Hambly of AudioCourses. com.

Visit http://www. audiocourses. com (http://www. audiocourses. com)

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Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Local Woman's Personal Tragedy Inspires Unique Collaboration for Mercy Heart Mini Marathon

Local Woman's Personal Tragedy Inspires Unique Collaboration for Mercy Heart Mini Marathon

When Suzanne Meyer’s mother died suddenly of a heart attack in November of last year, it was unexpected, a shock and a huge loss to the entire family. But rather than dwell on the loss, Suzanne decided she would make something positive come out of the experience as a life lesson for her children and a legacy for her mother. As part of that commitment, Suzanne has gathered a group of co-workers, friends and family to run in this weekend’s Mercy Heart Mini Marathon, including Suzanne’s 13 year-old son, Jason. Suzanne went beyond gathering a team of runners and sponsors for the marathon, and also helped the Mercy Heart Mini Marathon event organizers overcome a challenge unique to this year’s event by enlisting the services of her employer, CallCommand, a leading provider of voice communication solutions. CallCommand is donating its services to call all 9000 pre-registered runners to inform them about a change of location for the event starting line.

CINCINNATI, OH (PRWEB) March 23, 2006

When Suzanne Meyer’s mother died suddenly of a heart attack in November of last year, it was unexpected, a shock and a huge loss to the entire family. But rather than dwell on the loss, Suzanne decided she would make something positive come out of the experience as a life lesson for her children and a legacy for her mother. As part of that commitment, Suzanne has gathered a group of co-workers, friends and family to run in this weekend’s Mercy Heart Mini Marathon, including Suzanne’s 13-year-old son, Jason. “Bad things happen to everyone. We have to pick ourselves up. Children observe how their parents’ handle adversity and this is a great way to teach them how best to go on,” Meyer commented.

Suzanne will be joined by a friend who will be running with her mother as well as several family members and co-workers from her employer; Cincinnati-based CallCommand. CallCommand will also be matching Suzanne’s sponsors dollar for dollar.

In another twist to this story, Suzanne went beyond gathering a team of runners and sponsors for the marathon, and also helped the Mercy Heart Mini Marathon event organizers overcome a challenge unique to this year’s event by enlisting the services of her employer, CallCommand, a leading provider of voice communication solutions. CallCommand is donating its services to call all 9000 pre-registered runners to inform them about a change of location for the event starting line.

The Mercy Heart Mini Marathon organizers were faced with a real challenge this year as the race has been starting at the same location for the past 28 years. However, due to Fountain Square construction, the event will start in a new location and event day registration has been moved to the Cinergy Lobby at 4th and Main.

“People are so used to the race starting at 5th & Main and coming to the Convention Center to register on the morning of the event. We were concerned that many would show up to register there, and then have to run or walk a long way to the starting line.. We desperately needed a solution to reach all entrants with a message about the change of location. The real challenge was how to effectively reach everyone in a short time period. CallCommand has graciously donated it services offering us a simple and effective solution to quickly reach all of our entrants. CallCommand is sending out approximately 9000 calls for us to all registrants informing them of the changes and providing a number for them to call,” commented Doug Martin, Metro Director of the Cincinnati Division of the American Heart Association.

Suzanne has spent the past three months training for her first 5K and is excited to honor her mother and further a great cause at the same time. “I decided to push to do something out of my comfort zone; I wanted a challenging goal. To me the most important thing is just finishing and doing something to earn money for a good cause.”

Watch for Suzanne and her appropriately named team; “Hopeful Hearts”, this Sunday, March 26. 

About the American Heart Organization:

The American Heart Association is the largest voluntary health organization working to prevent, treat and defeat heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. These diseases devastate millions of people of all ages and kill more than 930,000 Americans each year. To fight them the association supports research, education and advocacy, and helps heart disease and stroke patients. Over 22.5 million association volunteers and supporters are at work in their communities helping their friends, neighbors and loved ones live longer, better lives.

For more information please visit www. americanheart. org

About CallCommand:

CallCommand is a leading provider of communication solutions for retailers, businesses and government agencies. Their patent pending technology decreases marketing and communication costs while simultaneously improving customer responsiveness. All CallCommand solutions are fully web-based and do not require hardware, software or telephony equipment.

For additional information please contact Lindsay Whitson: phone: 1-877-862-6662, or visit CallCommand’s web site at www. callcommand. com.

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Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Empowermyself. com: Star Riley Pimps 'We Good Entertainments' Website

Empowermyself. com: Star Riley Pimps 'We Good Entertainments' Website

The website belonging to We Good Entertainment's, whose CEO is hot south Florida recording artist known as Ball Greazy, is being redesigned by Empowermyself. com.

Hollywood, FL (PRWEB) March 15, 2008

Ball Greazy, in association with Miami-based We Good Entertainment, has just selected Empowermyself. com as the web consultation firm to pimp out their low ranking website.

The south Florida rising hip hop artist joins an increasing line of artists coming from the area that was previously known for low grade booty shake music i. e. 2live Crew and Luther Campbell.

With a revived scene bubbling in Florida, the Sunshine State is on track with the recent music domination by southern hip-hop artists mostly stemming from Atlanta, GA. With a hit song “Shone” under his belt Ball Greazy joins the Rising South Florida list along with Plies, Trina, Trick Daddy, Jackie-O, Brisco, Grind Mode, Sammy, Blood-Raw, USDA, Vido No-Shake, PICCALO, Iconz, T-Pain, Flo-Rida and Pit-Bull.

While Florida is moving to catch up the fact that most new artists do not see the benefit of having anything more than a Myspace page as a website speaks volumes for the lack of progress in Florida in relations to other Hip-Hop supporting states like Georgia or Texas.

Star Riley of Empowermyself. com announced, "With such a gap in the music business of the south there is a need to teach the local industry how to develop and capitalize on the advancements of the web 2.0 landscape. We Good Entertainment has done South Florida a solid by bringing these inadequacies to light. The goal fits in with Empowermyself. com’s niche model of education, training and an informed membership base, allowing room for the current drive into the entertainment corners of Florida helping its diverse set of entrepreneurs and entertainment business owners."

Empowermyself. com monthly membership access starts at $47 and up has just started limited access for free to provide internet related business information, tools and tips to help more local entrepreneurs and small business owners who want to advance themselves and their companies online success.

With a history of assisting others in the internet strategies of Small business Owners, entrepreneurs, Automotive Sales, Banking, Political, Social Services, Real Estate and now Empowermyself adds the Entertainment Industry. Empowermyself is re-launching for all small business owners on March 24, 2008.

About Empowermyself. com
Established in 1999 has recently implemented a more public business model. (Empowermyself URL: www. empowermyself. com)

For further Info Contact STAR RILEY 786-258-6168 or email: starriley99@gmail. com

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Sunday, June 22, 2008

The Kentucky Science and Technology Corp and the Kentucky Enterprise Fund (KEF) Invest in The Corporate Playbook, LLC

The Kentucky Science and Technology Corp and the Kentucky Enterprise Fund (KEF) Invest in The Corporate Playbook, LLC

The Kentucky Science and Technology Corp. has chosen The Corporate Playbook, LLC as it's most recent recipient of funding. The Kentucky Enterprise Fund (KEF) provides seed and early-stage capital to Kentucky based technology companies with high growth potential. Funded by the Kentucky Cabinet for Post-Secondary Education and managed by the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation, KEF has invested in over 50 Kentucky-based high tech companies since 2002.

Louisville, KY (PRWEB) September 10, 2009

The Kentucky Science and Technology Corp. has chosen The Corporate Playbook, LLC as it's most recent recipient of funding. The Kentucky Enterprise Fund (KEF) provides seed and early-stage capital to Kentucky based technology companies with high growth potential. Funded by the Kentucky Cabinet for Post-Secondary Education and managed by the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation, KEF has invested in over 50 Kentucky-based high tech companies since 2002.

Companies seeking capital go through a rigorous due diligence process and are judged in terms of industry fit, return on investment and economic development goals. The KEF investment will be added to an earlier round of capital raise led by regional business leaders including Kent Oyler (OPM), Vince Tyra (SouthfieldCapital), Mike Mountjoy (Mountjoy & Bressler), Phoebe Wood (Brown-Foreman), Barrett Nichols (BSG Financial), Dr. John Rhodes (Cardiologist/Entrepreneur), Ed Glasscock (Frost, Brown, Todd) and Joan Fiorito (TransWestern Publishing) amongst others. KSTC Director Sean O'Leary shares, "The technology and innovation being developed by TheCorporatePlaybook. com demonstrates that despite the difficult global economic challenges, entrepreneurship and innovation are alive and thriving in Kentucky."

The CorporatePlaybook offers a unique website, (www. thecorporateplaybook. com), which serves as a job board and career network for top companies seeking individuals with collegiate and professional athletic backgrounds for employment. With over 60,000 athlete resumes, 350 national corporate partners and over 600 universities represented nationally, TheCorporatePlaybook. com is committed to assisting current and alumni student athletes in their preparation and pursuit of a fulfilling, lucrative career that truly matches their skills and talents.

While ensuring athletes are provided resources to prepare for their transition from athletics to the workforce, it also provides a direct connection for companies seeking their unique skill sets. "In building a network of diverse, performance driven, college educated candidates; we have created an exceptional resource and an attractive demographic for company's staffing and branding initiatives nationally. We are proud to be a part of the KEF program and excited to get started with new initiatives supported through this funding," states CEO and Co-Founder Chad Smith.

(The Kentucky Enterprise Fund, $4.5M annually in seed capital funded through the Council on Postsecondary http://www. cpe. state. ky. us/index/index. asp (http://www. cpe. state. ky. us/index/index. asp) Education, focused on filling the gap between founder's and angel/venture capital. To learn more about the Kentucky Enterprise Fund please visit http://www. startupkentucky. com (http://www. startupkentucky. com)

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Friday, June 20, 2008

Hardware Zone Launches Pay Per Performance Advertising Services, to be Called 'clickTRUE'

Hardware Zone Launches Pay Per Performance Advertising Services, to be Called 'clickTRUE'

Hardware Zone Pte Ltd ("Hardware Zone"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SPH Magazines Pte Ltd, has renamed its Search Engine Marketing (SEM) unit as "clickTRUE". With this re-branding, it hopes to strengthen itself as a leading service provider of Pay Per Performance online advertising. It helps clients reach out to potential customers by placing their ads in search engine result pages. These ads work on a pay per click model -- advertisers only pay when their customers click on their ads and visit their website. In the US alone, revenue of SEM for the first nine months of 2007 was $15.2 billion, a 26 percent jump over the $12.1 billion amassed during the first nine months of 2006. This can be attributed to the massive volume of traffic on popular web portals. clickTRUE offers a whole slew of services that help advertisers capture the limitless market available on the internet. It gives the client's websites page one visibility on an impressive list of search engines which includes Yahoo!, Google, MSN Live Search, as well as Chinese search site Baidu. In addition, it offers ad placements on social networking sites Facebook and Friendster, as well as popular sites like YouTube and the Hardware Zone and SPH Magazines web properties. The new website will be launched in mid-February. It can be viewed at www. clicktrue. com. sg. clickTRUE boasts a strong portfolio of clients that includes Fujitsu, Nokia, Nikon, and HSBC, among many others. clickTRUE aims to service mainly media agencies, MNCs, mid-sized companies and SMEs.

Singapore (PRWEB) February 15, 2008

Hardware Zone Pte Ltd ("Hardware Zone"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SPH Magazines Pte Ltd, has renamed its Search Engine Marketing (SEM) unit as "clickTRUE". With this re-branding, it hopes to strengthen itself as a leading service provider of Pay Per Performance online advertising.

SEM is a rapidly growing industry. It helps clients reach out to potential customers by placing their ads in search engine result pages. These ads work on a pay per click model -- advertisers only pay when their customers click on their ads and visit their website. In the US alone, revenue of SEM for the first nine months of 2007 was $15.2 billion, a 26 percent jump over the $12.1 billion amassed during the first nine months of 2006.

ClickTRUE offers a whole slew of services that help advertisers capture the limitless market available on the internet. It gives the client's websites page one visibility on an impressive list of search engines which includes Yahoo!, Google, MSN Live Search, as well as Chinese search site Baidu. It also offers ad placements on social networking sites Facebook and Friendster, and others like YouTube, Hardware Zone and SPH Magazines web properties.

To deliver true value, a policy of neutrality will be adopted in online media and search engines for all clients. Consultancy and implementation services will also be provided. Clients will be given advice on how they could structure and optimise their websites, be provided with recommendations on the appropriate online media they should use and the advertising messages they could adopt, and given full campaign management support and results tracking analysis.

The new website will be launched in mid-February, and viewed at www. clicktrue. com. sg. clickTRUE boasts a strong portfolio of clients that includes Fujitsu, Nokia, Nikon, and HSBC, among many others. clickTRUE aims to service mainly media agencies, MNCs, mid-sized companies and SMEs.

The re-branding follows an exciting year of strong profits, increasing sales revenues, and rising popularity among advertisers. The SEM unit turned profitable within six months of conceptualization, achieving double digit growth quarter to quarter in 2007 alone. Marketers realised the advantage of SEM when they saw how effective their advertisements were in connecting with their target audiences.

"It has always been our strategy to harness the internet to reach out to advertisers and readers. This re-branding is a step forward to illustrate our commitment into the pay per TRUE performance arena," said Jackie Lee, CEO of Hardware Zone.

SPH Magazines' CEO, Mr Loh Yew Seng adds, "The SPH Magazines Group always believes that to live up to our vision to be a world class Publisher of Choice, we must always embark on new initiatives to meet the diverse needs and interests of our readers, viewers, advertisers and business partners. We hope that with the new offerings through clickTRUE, we can further amplify our connection with our users."

Issued by SPH Magazines Pte Ltd
Co. Regn No.: 196900476M

Media Contact:
Sim Yen Han
Deputy Manager
Corporate Communications
SPH Magazines Pte Ltd
Tel: +65-6319-5333
HP:+65-91004934
E-mail: yenhan@sph. com. sg

About SPH Magazines Pte Ltd
A leading publisher in Singapore and the region, SPH Magazines Pte Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of media giant Singapore Press Holdings Limited.

With a proven track record for sterling editorial content and award-winning designs, SPH Magazines raises the bar as a dynamic magazine publisher. In its stable are over 100 titles in English and Chinese, covering lifestyle, fashion, beauty, society, bridal, health, men's lifestyle, movies, automobile, parenting, décor, new media and business. All the newsstand publications, including flagship title Her World, and other well-known titles such as Female, Home and Décor, Nuyou, Torque, HWM and GameAxis are among the highest-circulating titles and best-read in their respective lifestyle category.

This magazines group can also boast about its 10 luxury titles including its flagships The Peak and ICON. At the turn of 2008, SPH Magazines acquired Asia-Pacific Boating, China Boating, Jet Asia-Pacific, Luxury Properties, AsiaSpa, Polo China and Action Asia under its wholly-owned Hong Kong incorporated company Blu Inc Media (HK) Limited. This suite of titles has effectively made SPH Magazines the leading luxury magazines publisher in the Asia-Pacific region.
SPH Magazines' established editorial units also provide excellent custom publishing services to major corporate clients by producing custom lifestyle magazines, newsletters and any other collateral to meet their business needs.

In the online and IT arena, SPH Magazines also has a highly regarded presence through the portals and publications of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hardware Zone Pte Ltd. www. hardwarezone. com(R) is consistently been getting rave reviews through the Hitwise awards and several review watchdogs over the last 2 years such that it has become the most respected portal in Asia.

With a vision to continue growth regionally, SPH Magazines is set to become Asia's publishing powerhouse. It has publishing houses in China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines. SPH Magazines in its fold have achieved strong market presence in their respective sectors, as well as distinguished track records and solid reputations.

At SPH Magazines, the promise is to deliver its best to meet the diverse needs and interests of all its stakeholders and achieve its vision to be a world class Publisher of Choice.

About Hardware Zone Pte Ltd (HWZ)
As the leading IT media company in Asia, HWZ is a provider of marketing channels and services to the information communications, technology and interactive entertainment industry. Hardware Zone Pte Ltd publishes prolific IT magazine titles across Asia, namely HWM, GameAxis® Unwired and PHOTOVIDEOi™, operating in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia and Australia along with popular online portal www. hardwarezone. com® which has to date, a monthly viewership of more than 35 million page impressions. Capitalising on its editorial strength and creative marketing strategies, Hardware Zone Pte Ltd offers to marketers integrated media solutions and effective reach to IT consumers via our magazines, Internet products, research, direct marketing services, education and training, as well as events management.
URL: http://www. hwzcorp. com (http://www. hwzcorp. com)

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Shady Grove Fertility Center Raises $95,000 to Help Families Afford Fertility Treatment or Adoption

Shady Grove Fertility Center Raises $95,000 to Help Families Afford Fertility Treatment or Adoption

Monies Raised Through 2010 Fundraiser Exceed 2009 Event By 50%

Rockville, MD (PRWEB) October 18, 2010

On September 26, Shady Grove Fertility presented the Cade Foundation’s Annual Race For The Family raising $95,000 to help fund grants for couples who need infertility treatments or adoption services. The Cade Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping infertile couples through education, community awareness and financial assistance. At the finish line, the Cade Foundation raffled off a free fertility treatment cycle donated by Shady Grove Fertility to a resident from Ellicott City, Maryland.

Nearly 7.5 million American couples have difficulty achieving a pregnancy or bringing one to full term. Many of these couples may not have the financial resources to afford fertility treatment or adoption services. By being the presenting sponsor of the Cade Foundation’s annual race, Shady Grove Fertility Center has provided a resource to couples who may need the financial assistance for their family building journey.

"The funds raised through Race for the Family will help couples in our area and beyond fulfill their dreams of starting a family," said Frank Chang, M. D., a Shady Grove Fertility Center board-certified endocrinologist and Cade Foundation board member. "Shady Grove is dedicated to offering innovative financing options and assistance for couples seeking fertility treatment, and we are thrilled to once again partner with the Cade Foundation to help more couples afford the treatment they need to have a family."

More than 175 runners completed the 5K race, and 150 walkers completed a one mile fun walk. More than 100 volunteers worked to make the event successful. In 2009, Race for the Family raised over $60,000 and helped fund family-building options for six couples. Of those, four are currently pregnant and a fifth is in the process of adopting a child.

Shady Grove Fertility has many financial programs designed to make fertility treatment affordable for more couples. These programs include: Shared Risk 100% Refund which provides up to six IVF treatment cycles for one flat fee with a guaranteed full refund if a baby is not delivered; and Shared Help Fertility Treatment Discount Program which offers financial discounts on fertility treatments to income-eligible patients. For more information on these programs, please visit http://www. shadygrovefertility. com/affording_treatment.

About Shady Grove Fertility Center
Shady Grove Fertility Center is America’s largest private fertility center, performing over 4,000 in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles annually – more than all other Baltimore/Washington area fertility clinics combined. Twenty-three reproductive endocrinologists, Ph. D. scientists and geneticists, as well as 350 specialized staff care for patients in 12 full-service offices throughout the Washington, DC, and Baltimore areas. Shady Grove Fertility offers a comprehensive range of fertility treatment options including IVF, donor egg and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and integrative holistic care, as well as resources to address all patients’ needs—medical, emotional, and financial. Shady Grove Fertility conducts clinical research in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health and is part of their subspecialty training Fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology. Since Shady Grove Fertility’s inception in 1992, more than 18,000 IVF babies have born. Shady Grove Fertility physicians have been featured as experts for comment on media outlets such as NBC’s The Today Show, The New York Times, NPR’s Diane Rehm Show (WAMU-FM 88.5, Washington, DC), and Parent Magazine. Washingtonian magazine listed Shady Grove Fertility among the area’s Best Places to Work in 2007. Visit http://www. ShadyGroveFertility. com.

About Cade Foundation
The Tinina Q. Cade Foundation Inc. is a not-for-profit organization that provides education about fertility and family building options and offers financial assistance to infertile families. This dual approach distinguishes the Foundation as the only organization of its kind in the nation. At the age of 55, Tinina Q. Cade delivered her own triplet grandchildren in 2004. Her daughter, Camille Hammond, battled infertility for years and began the foundation in honor of her mother’s unforgettable gift, and for other struggling couples. Visit http://www. CadeFoundation. org.

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Thursday, June 19, 2008

First California Mortgage Company Chosen for Warehouse Lending Initiative between Fannie Mae and Natty Mac, Receives $50 Million in Warehouse Funding

First California Mortgage Company Chosen for Warehouse Lending Initiative between Fannie Mae and Natty Mac, Receives $50 Million in Warehouse Funding

First California Mortgage Company (First Cal) has confirmed that it has been chosen as the pilot lender for the recently announced warehouse initiative between Fannie Mae and Guggenheim Partners’ mortgage warehouse operations company, NattyMac. Fannie Mae pledged its support as part of its recently-announced warehouse lending pilot to provide $1 billion in liquidity to non-bank lenders, and First Cal has secured $50 million in new warehouse funding through this program.

Petaluma, CA (PRWEB) April 19, 2010

First California Mortgage Company (First Cal) has confirmed that it has been chosen as the pilot lender for the recently announced warehouse initiative between Fannie Mae and Guggenheim Partners’ mortgage warehouse operations company, NattyMac. Fannie Mae pledged its support as part of its recently-announced warehouse lending pilot to provide $1 billion in liquidity to non-bank lenders, and First Cal has secured $50 million in new warehouse funding through this program. The added credit capacity will enable First Cal to fund an additional 5,000 home loans this year and more than triple its 2009 production.

“We are pleased and grateful for the leadership of Fannie Mae in helping us structure this credit facility, and to Natty Mac for its strong support,” said Christopher K. Hart, President of First Cal. “This is a milestone event because it addresses an obstacle that has hampered our quest to expand the availability of home loans for purchase and refinance directly and through our network of lending partners.”

“This innovative program, with its emphasis on enabling quality home financing, will help bring pricing stability to the housing market and to mortgage lending in general. This benefits both existing and new homeowners,” he added.

Lenders like First Cal use warehouse credit lines to fund mortgages, which in turn are sold to institutional investors like Fannie Mae. These credit facilities are critical to mortgage bankers, and ultimately to borrowers, as they provide liquidity that enables choice and competition, maintaining the affordability of home financing.

“This FNMA-supported credit facility validates the path we’re on. We are committed to developing a defect-free mortgage process that is also responsive to the needs of our homeowner customers and business partners, and we are clearly aligned with the government’s priorities for consumer protection, data integrity, asset quality and complete transparency for consumers and everyone involved in the mortgage market,” Hart continued.

The expanded credit facilities now in place at First Cal allow it to increase the production of residential home loans through its selected wholesale broker network, its own retail lending operation and through DealPoint, its community bank program.

“While we are evaluating a variety of strategies to expand our retail lending presence, we believe there is an equally compelling future in wholesale mortgage lending”, said Hart. “We are committed to strong relationships with our selected broker partners, helping them remain viable in the new regulatory environment while providing them competitive products and services for homeowners at the lowest possible price.”

Effective January 1, 2010, mortgage brokers and lenders began complying with new Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act (RESPA) guidelines for disclosing fees associated with loans. First Cal has implemented educational programs and materials that help brokers comply with the new guidelines, including personal and Web-based training presentations and loan submission guidelines that provide consumer protection and complete transparency.

According to Ralph F. Hints, Chief Financial Officer for First Cal, there are ongoing efforts to secure additional lines of credit to support other non-agency lending programs, such as FHA and VA loans, which First Cal is approved to underwrite and fund.

“It is gratifying to see opportunities like this come to First Cal,” says Hints. “We’re acknowledged as a quality organization and a top-tier lender and well-suited for Fannie Mae’s goal of enabling home ownership through responsible lending practices.”

About First Cal

Throughout its nearly 30-year history, First Cal and its affiliates have funded more than $200 billion in residential loans across the U. S. Today, First Cal is an approved FNMA Seller/Servicer, an approved HomePath Lender, and is licensed to lend in nine states: including Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington.

First Cal specializes in high quality, fully documented conforming, jumbo, FHA and VA loans. It is a Fannie Mae direct lender, a HUD Non-Supervised Title II Full Eagle Lender and an approved national correspondent for most of the largest U. S. banks. The company maintains its headquarters in Petaluma, Calif. and is privately owned. It is located on the Web at www. firstcal. net.

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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Synkera Technologies Inc. Announces New Products for Life Science at 2010 Pittcon Conference

Synkera Technologies Inc. Announces New Products for Life Science at 2010 Pittcon Conference

Synkera Technologies, Inc. will announce and exhibit a new family of high performance ceramic filters and bioanalysis substrates for laboratory, life science, bioseparation and biomanufacturing applications in Orlando, FL this March 1st through March 5th at Pittcon.

Longmont, CO (PRWEB) February 19, 2010

Synkera Technologies, Inc. has developed two new products for life science, bioanalysis and bioseparation: ceramic ultrafiltration (UF) membranes and nanoporous bioanalysis substrates. These patent-pending products are based on nanoporous ceramic with fine tuned pore sizes ranging from 5 to 300 nanometers, and lead the industry in unmatched pore size uniformity, sharp molecular weight cutoff, high permeance, resistance to fouling, tolerance to solvents and temperature, and biocompatibility.

“We are pleased to deploy our core technology platform – self-organized nanoporous ceramic, which resembles nanoscale honeycomb - and our capabilities of precision engineering of this materials, to deliver new solutions for separation and analysis applications in life sciences”, said Dr. Dmitri Routkevitch, Product Manager and Principal Scientist at Synkera.

Synkera will offer membranes and substrates in several standard and custom shapes, featuring a variety of pore sizes. Synkera is seeking industry partners to develop new applications and expand its product offerings to include filtration modules and cartridges, fractionation tubes, bioanalysis components, cell culture substrates, microfluidics and other microcomponents.

Synkera Technologies Inc. (Longmont, Colorado) develops and manufactures innovative yet practical materials, components and devices based on its capabilities in nanotechnology, microfabrication and advanced materials science. Our products, currently including advanced chemical sensors, nanoporous ceramic membranes, ceramic microcomponents and functional nanocomposites, enable improved performance and reliability, lower price, reduced size and lower energy consumption. Through continuing research, development and engineering Synkera seeks to further enhance the already high value to our customers in air quality, industrial and consumer health and safety, life science, water purification, clean energy and other markets.

Pittcon is the world’s annual premier conference and exposition on laboratory science. Pittcon attracts nearly 20,000 attendees from industry, academia and government from 90 countries worldwide. It is organized by The Pittsburgh Conference on Analytical Chemistry and Applied Spectroscopy, a Pennsylvania not-for-profit educational corporation.

For additional information on this announcement, contact Dmitri Routkevitch at droutkevitch(at)synkera(dot)com. Visit Synkera at www. synkera. com.

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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Harvard, Stanford, Chicago, Wharton and Dartmouth Top New MBA Ranking of the Best Business Schools by PoetsandQuants. com

Harvard, Stanford, Chicago, Wharton and Dartmouth Top New MBA Ranking of the Best Business Schools by PoetsandQuants. com

A new MBA ranking from PoetsandQuants. com is the most authoritative look at the best business schools ever. Created by John A. Byrne, "the dean of rankings" who began BusinessWeek's influential list in 1988, it tracks the top 50 U. S. B-schools and the top 30 schools outside the U. S.

Corte Madera, CA (PRWEB) August 19, 2010

Harvard Business School is the best B-school in the United States if not the world, according to a new ranking published by http://PoetsandQuants. com (http://PoetsandQuants. com). Among the top U. S. schools, Harvard is followed by Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, the University of Chicago's Booth School, the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, and Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business. Meantime, PoetsandQuants. com named London Business School the best academic institution granting an MBA degree outside the U. S.. Right behind London is IESE in Barcelona, Spain, IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland, IE Business School in Madrid, Spain, and INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France.

Why Harvard? "For years, it has attracted the very best faculty and students," says John A. Byrne, editor-in-chief of http://PoetsandQuants. com (http://PoetsandQuants. com). "The newest students entering this fall came from an exceptionally talented pool of 9,524 applicants who competed for just 910 seats. It was the second highest number of applications that Harvard ever received, and the average GMAT score for the entering class is a record 724, five points higher than the previous year. Even more amazing, the entire applicant pool to Harvard now has an average GMAT above 700. Many of its alums are among the most powerful and influential business people in the world. Just as importantly, Harvard has the vast resources to make the MBA experience unmatched. The school is a university onto itself with 33 separate buildings on 40 acres of property."

To some long-time watchers of MBA education, there may be little surprise at seeing the Harvard Business School and Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business at the very top as No. 1 and No. 2 of the list of U. S. schools. The most influential ranking by BusinessWeek, however, has never had either Harvard or Stanford in the top spot. Through 11 rankings over 22 years, BusinessWeek has awarded that accolade to Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management five times, to the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School four times, and to the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business twice. In the global MBA rankings published by The Financial Times, Harvard last ranked first back in 2005. The highest rank Stanford has ever achieved in The Financial Times ranking is third and that was four years ago in 2007.

London placed first among non-U. S. business schools due to the stellar quality of its faculty and students, and how it has smartly leveraged its location in the financial center of Europe. "In the past few years, London has come on very strong, surpassing in prestige what had long been thought of as the best business school in Europe, INSEAD," says Byrne. "Because the student population and faculty ranks reflect an amazing geographic diversity, London offers the quintessential international MBA experience."

The http://PoetsandQuants. com (http://PoetsandQuants. com) ranking is based on dozens of surveys and polls, along with a massive wealth statistical data ranging from average GMAT scores of incoming students to the compensation packages awarded graduates. "The beauty of this methodology is that each of the five major MBA rankings—BusinessWeek, U. S. News & World Report, Financial Times, Forbes, and The Economist—are brought together for the very first time," adds Byrne. "By blending these rankings using a system that takes into account each of their strengths as well as their flaws, we’ve come up with what is arguably the best and most reliable ranking of MBA programs ever published. In many cases, the differences in ranks in these other surveys are statistically insignificant, but you can't tell because the underlying data isn't revealed. We publish the index numbers behind every rank, so you know how are ahead or behind a given school is."

For example, even though Harvard is ranked first with an index number of 100, No. 2 Stanford has an index of 97.8, No. 3 Chicago is at 96.8, and No. 4 Wharton has an index of 95.6. "So within the relatively tight range of 4.4 index numbers, you have four of the best business schools bunched very close together," says Byrne. "It's so close at the top in terms of overall quality, it may make little difference to most people."

The composite index also naturally accommodates some of the wild disparities found from one survey to the next. Consider the University of California’s excellent Anderson School of Management. The Economist ranks it 50th, well behind L. A. rival the University of Southern California and the University of Notre Dame. The Financial Times puts UCLA at 33rd. BusinessWeek rates it 14th, U. S. News at 15th, and Forbes at 19th. "Those are some pretty big differences of opinion on UCLA’s Anderson School, some valid, some not so credible," says Byrne. "We think it’s the 16th best school in the U. S., a rank that is the sum total of all of them, adjusted for the authority we believe the major rankings have."

See attached file for a list of the top 25 business schools in both the U. S. and outside the U. S., according to PoetsandQuants.

For more information on the rankings, methodology, and schools, go to http://poetsandquants. com  (http://poetsandquants. com)

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Sunday, June 15, 2008

Gilsbar, Inc. Expands New Business Development In Louisiana and Mississippi

Gilsbar, Inc. Expands New Business Development In Louisiana and Mississippi.

Covington, LA (PRWEB) October 14, 2005

Gilsbar, Inc., a leading health plan administrator, announces the addition of Chris Delamain as Regional Sales Manager. Mr. Delamain will be responsible for building strategic partnerships in Louisiana and Mississippi to increase group health clients.

Mr. Delamain brings to Gilsbar extensive experience in group sales and service. Most recently, Chris served as Large Group Sales Executive for Humana, Inc. and Assistant Vice President for Marsh, Inc. In both positions he was responsible for group benefits consulting, developing agent and broker relationships and providing pertinent industry education to clients. His sales experience also includes The Principal Financial Group where he achieved ranking as one of their top five sales representatives in the country.

According to Gilsbar¡¯s President & CEO, Hank Miltenberger, ¡°We have been experiencing an increased demand for Gilsbar¡¯s health plan administration services. Mr. Delamain will help us to manage that demand while creating additional strategic partnerships. As we continue to grow nationally, we realize the importance of employing an expert sales team to deliver value to prospective partners and clients. Chris has proven talent in developing long-term benefit strategies integrating employee wellness, disease management and education, along with plan designs to achieve maximum cost control.¡±

As a leading provider of health benefit administration services, Gilsbar holds valued relationships with brokers and employers nationwide. Fostering these partnerships for over 45 years, our integrity, stability and focus is ever-present in an industry that is constantly changing. Gilsbar's responsive service, comprehensive technological solutions, fully-integrated medical management program and commitment to client satisfaction are some of the many qualities that define our 360¢ª Benefit Plan ManagementSM service for self-funded employers. Visit http://www. gilsbar. com/360 or call 1-800-445-7227 Ext. 830 to request information on how 360¢ª Benefit Plan ManagementSM can transform your company or organization¡¯s benefit plan.

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Thursday, June 12, 2008

Academy of the Sierras Opens in North Carolina

Academy of the Sierras Opens in North Carolina

First school for weight loss in the Eastern and Southern U. S. opens in Brevard, NC with founding class of 11 students.

BREVARD, NC (PRWEB) February 6, 2007

Academy of the Sierras North Carolina, the world's first school for weight loss outside of California, opened today in Brevard, NC with a founding class of 11 students.

"We're excited to announce the opening of our second campus," said Phil Obbard, Executive Director of Academy of the Sierras California, the world's first school for weight loss. "With our California program near capacity with 100 students, and as families in the Eastern and Southern United States often prefer to keep their children closer to home, Academy of the Sierras North Carolina is well-positioned to help thousands of overweight and obese children return to a normal weight and successfully control their weight through adolescence and adulthood."

The founding class at Academy of the Sierras North Carolina (AOSNC) consists of 11 students ages 11-16 from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, Rhode Island and Germany. Students range from 40 lbs. overweight to as much as 200 lbs. overweight.

Located in a valley in the Blue Ridge Mountains on a 220-acre campus near the town of Brevard, AOSNC offers activities as diverse as personal training, skateboarding, rock climbing, whitewater kayaking and tennis in addition to nutrition and culinary classes, and a core curriculum of math, science, social studies and language arts for grades 6 through 10. Hiking, camping and outdoor adventure activities are a staple of AOSNC, as the campus is bordered by over 2 million acres of public lands that include Pisgah, Nantahala and Cherokee National Forests, Dupont and Gorges State Parks and the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. Starting today and continuing through AOSNC's first month, the founding class of students will participate in an orientation expedition that will take them through North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. This expedition will jump-start student weight loss and commitment to a new, healthy lifestyle.

Ryan Madamba, Executive Director of AOSNC, said he expects the same remarkable results in North Carolina as Academy of the Sierras has achieved on its California campus. "Through a scientifically based program that combines diet and activity management, education, training and cognitive-behavioral therapy, AOS has helped hundreds of students return to a normal weight range and maintain their weight loss at home. AOSNC's therapists, educators, nutrition and culinary instructors, recreational therapists and outdoor education professionals - many of whom were trained at AOS - are deeply committed to the success of our new students and are very excited to bring long-term weight control to children in the Southeast."

Academy of the Sierras North Carolina is a residential school of Healthy Living Academies. Healthy Living Academies is the leading organization of treatment programs for pediatric and adolescent obesity. Healthy Living Academies programs include Academy of the Sierras California, Academy of the Sierras North Carolina, Wellspring New York, Wellspring Adventure Camp, Wellspring Adventure Camp California, Wellspring Texas, Wellspring Hawaii, Wellspring Family Camp in Michigan, and Wellspring UK. To learn more about Academy of the Sierras, Wellspring Camps or Healthy Living Academies, visit www. healthylivingacademies. com or call 866-364-0808.

Healthy Living Academies is a division of Aspen Education Group, the nation's leading provider of education programs for struggling or underachieving young people. With over 30 programs in 12 states and the United Kingdom, Aspen provides a comprehensive range of therapeutic interventions, including boarding schools, residential treatment and wilderness therapy. Aspen Education Group is a division of CRC Health Group, the nation's largest chemical dependency and related behavioral health organization. For more information, visit www. aspeneducation. com or call 888-972-7736.

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Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Business Consultant Will Speak to Professional Women's Group About Goal Setting

Business Consultant Will Speak to Professional Women's Group About Goal Setting

Local Business Consultant will speak to Professional Women's Group on how the effective use of goals and timelines help take personal and professional dreams from "Someday Isle" to the land of success.

Durham, NC (PRWEB) November 9, 2005

Beverly Weber, President of Spectrum Consulting Services, Inc., will speak to Triangle Business and Professional Women (BPW) on Thursday, November 10, 2005 at the Radisson Governor's Inn in RTP, NC.

"I am honored to have this opportunity," said Weber. "Achieving results through effective goal setting is a topic of interest to everyone. I look forward to sharing my knowledge and experiences with Triangle BPW."

About Spectrum Consulting Services, Inc. (SCS):

Beverly Weber is President of Spectrum Consulting Services, Inc., a consulting firm that offers services in the areas of Coaching, Training & Development, Recruiting and Human Resources Management.

Beverly has more than 20 years experience in public, private, and nonprofit organizations, and has held various senior level management positions. Her accomplishments include the successful creation of national recruitment and retention programs, and the development and delivery of training programs for management and staff for several major employers.

With the help of SCS, clients benefit from tailored solutions that meet organizational retention, productivity and efficiency goals.

SCS can be contacted by calling 919-783-7414 or visiting www. spectrumrecruiting. com

About BPW:

BPW/USA, founded in 1919, works to implement policies that benefit women, families and the workplace, and provides leadership through advocacy, education and information exchange within communities, states and the nation. BPW members benefit from the organization’s networking opportunities, resources, educational programs and visibility. Membership includes women working across various business areas.

Triangle BPW is one of over 40 local organizations across NC. The Triangle BPW meeting is at 6 p. m. on the second Thursday of each month at the Radisson Governor’s Inn in RTP, NC. Pre-registration required at 361-4653. For more information, visit www. TriangleBPW. org.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Carolyn Lyons

Triangle BPW Program Chair

919-624-1657

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Sunday, June 8, 2008

The Marine Mammal Center Reaches Milestone in Facility Revamp

The Marine Mammal Center Reaches Milestone in Facility Revamp

The Marine Mammal Center in Sausaltio, California has completed the first year of a two-year long construction project to rebuild its veterinary hospital for seals, sea lions and dolphins. The Center is one of the longest running hospitals of its kind in the world.

Sausalito, Calif. (PRWEB) December 15, 2006

The Marine Mammal Center announces its one-year anniversary of construction since it broke ground to rebuild its new veterinary teaching hospital, research center and educational headquarters in Sausalito, California last November. The $25 million project is one of the most ambitious projects underway in the North Bay Area right now. The new Marine Mammal Center will be located on the grounds of the existing facility, on 35,000 square feet of land, formerly a Nike missile site, in the Marin Headlands. When completed, it will boast species-specific pens and pools with solar panels, a modernized, underground water filtration system, and a campus of buildings to house critical veterinary, staff and educational operations, as well as an exhibits area for the public to see and learn more about seals, sea lions and other marine mammals The Center rescues and rehabilitates. To date, The Center has raised $18 million and expects to complete its rebuild by the end of 2007.

"In October, we announced the public phase of our capital campaign - a strategy to involve the public to help raise the remaining funds needed to make the project complete," said B. J. Griffin, Executive Director at The Marine Mammal Center. "A four month-long record-breaking rainy season earlier this year delayed the construction project, and at the same time, the $18 million dollar project price tag increased to $25 million due to the dramatic rise in prices of concrete, steel and PVC."

Soon, construction crews will pour the foundation that will support the new Community Education building. This, along with three other buildings, will make up the Life Sciences Center complex. Within that complex will be medical and animal care buildings and a Veterinary Science building. The Community Education building will house the public exhibits area as well as retail store and indoor classrooms. In all, approximately 67,500 cubic feet (nearly 4600 tons) of concrete will be poured for all of the buildings.  

The Marine Mammal Center's 30-year old collection of patched together shipping containers, trailers, pens, pumps and pools has deteriorated beyond repair. The Center's most critical need is to build new facilities if it is to continue to advance its work. As the only organization federally authorized to rescue marine mammals along 600 miles of northern and central California coastline, staff and volunteers rescue hundreds of animals each year. Many of those animals suffer from a multitude of injuries and maladies ranging from fishing entanglements to biotoxin poisoning and cancer.

Gifts totaling more than $500,000 from The Koret Foundation in San Francisco, the DMARLOU Foundation and the Wells Fargo Foundation, will help The Center move forward towards meeting its fundraising goal. Generous leadership donors such as The Marin Community Foundation, the Packard Foundation, the late William Kimball and the Geoffrey C. Hughes Foundation have helped launch The Center into its current construction phase.

To learn more about the capital campaign, call The Marine Mammal Center's Development Office at (415) 289-7335.

About The Marine Mammal Center

Headquartered in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in Sausalito, California, The Marine Mammal Center is a nonprofit veterinary teaching hospital and research and educational center dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of ill and injured seals, sea lions, otters, dolphins and other marine mammals, and to the research of their diseases. Since 1975, marine science organizations around the world have come to rely upon the body of knowledge The Center has accumulated about its patients and ocean health. The Center shares this information, along with its pioneering veterinary techniques and skills, whenever and wherever needed. The Center also strives to educate the public on the health of marine mammals and the importance of conserving our shared ocean environment.

On the web: www. marinemammalcenter. org

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Saturday, June 7, 2008

Peacemakers Dedicate Atlanta as Global Peace Nexus

Peacemakers Dedicate Atlanta as Global Peace Nexus

Peacemakers throughout Southeast U. S.A are invited to Dec. 11th ground-breaking ceremony to memorialize 42nd Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech and to dedicate his birthplace as Atlanta: City of Peace, A Global Nexus of Peace Cultivation.

Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) December 7, 2006

Peacemakers throughout Southeast U. S.A are invited to Dec. 11th ground-breaking ceremony to memorialize 42nd Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech and to dedicate his birthplace as Atlanta: City of Peace, A Global Nexus of Peace Cultivation.

Who:

Inspired by Abe Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, John R. Naugle, Co-Executive Director of Atlanta's newest nonprofit, will read... "The Atlanta: City of Peace Address" (copy below). There will be a metaphorical ground-breaking ceremony and the Official Founding Members of Atlanta: City of Peace, Inc. will call on peacemakers everywhere to assist in dedicating all of Atlanta as a Global Peace Nexus.

What:

The first 40 individuals to arrive will receive a number, and after program will be given a Certificate of Attendance (embossed with Official Atlanta: City of Peace Corporate Seal) plus a signed and dated copy of... "The Atlanta: City of Peace Address." Year 2006 is the 100th Anniversary-year of Gandhi's first Peace-Action (Birth of Peace Movement) and the 50th Anniversary-year of Dr. King's first Peace-Action (arrested 1956 in Montgomery Bus Boycott). The Mission of Atlanta: City of Peace, Inc. is to build the global peace legacy of Atlanta. Civic, government, and business leaders of Atlanta and the State of Georgia are invited to courageously "Live the Dream!" This nonprofit intends on planting and dedicating 10,000 Peace Poles throughout metro-Atlanta and the State of Georgia in the coming years. Accomplishing this and our other huge peace goals, our city and state will become known internationally as…Atlanta: City of Peace, and Georgia: The Peace State - A Global Nexus of Peace Cultivation, Education, and Inspiration.

When:

Monday, December 11, 2006, beginning at 7:00 PM.

Note: Meet & greet starts promptly at 7:00 PM.

Atlanta: City of Peace Address at 7:30 PM.

Where:

Woodruff Park, Downtown Atlanta

At Phoenix Rising Sculpture…

Auburn Ave Ne, and Peachtree St Ne

Atlanta, GA 30303

Google Map:

Note: We highly recommend arriving by taxi or Marta (http://maps. google. com/maps? q=Auburn+Ave+Ne+And+Peachtree+St+Ne,+Atlanta,+GA+30303)

Of Woodruff Park, City of Atlanta Department of Parks, Recreation & Cultural Affairs Commissioner Diane Harnell Cohen says: "Woodruff Park is THE Heart and Soul of Downtown Atlanta. The revitalization is absolutely critical to Mayor Franklin's priorities. Mr. Woodruff envisioned an oasis in the very middle of the most urban part of the city. That has never been truer. Downtown Atlanta is alive with new businesses and new residents arriving every day. Tourism flourishes because of Downtown Atlanta. A green space that is attractive, well maintained, well lit and programmed with activities that draw people to it is critical to our success."

Contact:

John R. Naugle

Atlanta: City of Peace, Inc.

LIVE 'AT' ATLpeace. org

Www. ATLpeace. org

The Atlanta: City of Peace Address

--- John R. Naugle (honoring President Lincoln)

Speech for December 11, 2006

Five score and 92 days ago Gandhi brought forth on this Earth, a new mission, conceived in Love, and dedicated to the proposition that all need to create Peace. The 100th Anniversary; observed September 11, 1906 was Birth of Peace Movement. Billions of people now refer to him as… "Gandhi: Man of the Millennium and Creator of World's Biggest Democracy!" Between Years 1000-2000 Gandhi contributed the most in nurturing health to our Global Family: "Be the change you wish to see in the world."

Two score and two years ago Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. accepted the Nobel Peace Prize. On December 11, 1964 he delivered his Nobel Lecture: "The Quest for Peace and Justice." Dr. King is now known as Gandhi's most globally productive peace-movement protégé. Supporters around the Earth are now raising $100+ million to create: The MLK Memorial on National Mall - Washington, DC. The Peace Movement is greatly substantiated by recalling that Abe Lincoln, Gandhi, and King were shot-down, murdered-in-cold-blood with bullets from guns while in the course of teaching us to cultivate peace & love for one another.

Now we are engaged in the great United Nations International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence (~777 organizations registered world-wide). We are blessed to live now… in this great new decade, century, and millennium. Courageous precedents set now will inspire many future generations. Dr. King's words still ring loud: "...We must fix our vision... upon the positive affirmation of peace. We must see that peace represents a sweeter music, a cosmic melody that is far superior... have the will and determination to mount such a peace offensive… We will unlock hitherto tightly sealed doors of hope... Our lives begin to end on the day we become silent… If humanity is to progress, then Gandhi's life is inescapable. He lived, thought, and acted inspired by the vision of humanity evolving toward a world of peace... We ignore Gandhi at our own risk!"

Atlanta: City of Peace, Inc. is building the global peace legacy of Atlanta. We are testing whether Atlanta or any city of Earth, so conceived and so dedicated, can be transformed for peace cultivation, education, and inspiration. We are met on Dr. King's great field of dreams and asking all to "Live the Dream!" Peace now, more than ever! WE come to invite all courageous citizens (local-global) to join in dedicating all of Atlanta as a peaceful, resting nexus. Needing this are those giving their lives so their Global Family might thrive. It is altogether fitting and proper that WE should create: The Global Peace Academy, The Global Peace Concert, The Global Peace Flight, The Global Peace Garden, and The Global Peace Museum.

However, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate -- we cannot consecrate -- we cannot hallow -- this ground. The courageous and peaceful, living and dead, who've already struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. Chronologically: 1838, the peace-loving Cherokee were forcefully marched westward in horrible Trail of Tears exodus. 1864, when Atlanta burned to the ground, peace loving men, women, and children were tragically uprooted. Five score and 80 days ago (September 22, 1906) disaster struck beloved extended family members displaced and killed in: The Atlanta Race Riot - great pain to oppressed; great shame for oppressors (100th Anniversary). 1956, great pains here were suffered by many in Birth of Civil Rights Movement (50th Anniversary). 2005, Morial proclaims: "Atlanta, I can't tell you how to market your city, but to outsiders YOU are seen as a beacon. You are seen as a shining light!" February, 2006 Clinton at Mrs. King's Memorial: "Atlanta, what will happen to the King legacy?"

The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it should never forget Atlanta's rising from the ashes. We are the mythological Phoenix. We are the peacemakers we've been waiting for. May Peace prevail on Earth! It is for us the living to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who planted peace here have thus far so courageously advanced. It is for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored brothers and sisters of our Global Family, we take increased devotion to: The Peace Way for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that WE here highly resolve that these displaced and dead shall not have suffered in vain -- that Atlanta: City of Peace, under God, shall have a new birth of courage -- and that peace & love of the people, by the people, for the people, shall inspire around the Earth.

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Friday, June 6, 2008

The Illinois Federation of Teachers Endorses Hyde Challenger

The Illinois Federation of Teachers Endorses Hyde Challenger

Christine Cegelis receives the backing of key union

(PRWEB) February 22, 2004

One of IllinoisÂ’ largest unions, the Illinois Federation of Teachers, threw their support behind Christine Cegelis, the main Democratic challenger to the twenty-eight year incumbent Henry Hyde.

“Education is one of the most important issues facing our country. I am pleased to have the support of the members of the Illinois Federation of Teachers. The IFT-AFT plays a critical role in improving our nationÂ’s schools,” Cegelis said after receiving the endorsement.

She continued, “The unfunded mandates set forth by the No Child Left Behind Act hamper the progress of local school districts. I believe that we need to fix and fully fund the measures of NCLB. Property taxes are skyrocketing in our area because the Federal government does not provide enough funding for the measures it imposes on our local schools.”

The endorsement by the Illinois Federation of Teachers means that the union will communicate with their members on CegelisÂ’ support on IFT issues. Campaign volunteers will be solicited to go door-to-door and volunteer in other critical voter identification and Get-Out-The-Vote efforts.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers consists of over 90,000 men and women who are teachers and paraprofessionals in school districts throughout Illinois, faculty and staff at IllinoisÂ’ community colleges and universities, public employees under every statewide elected constitutional officer, and retirees.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

E. Howard Hunt Dies Weeks Before Release of His Revelatory Memoir

E. Howard Hunt Dies Weeks Before Release of His Revelatory Memoir

Legendary CIA operative and prolific author E. Howard Hunt died yesterday in Florida at the age of 88, just weeks before the publication of his tell-all memoir American Spy by Wiley.

Hoboken, NJ (PRWEB) January 26, 2007

Legendary CIA operative and prolific author E. Howard Hunt died yesterday in Florida at the age of 88, just weeks before the publication of his tell-all memoir American Spy: My Secret History in the CIA, Watergate & Beyond (Wiley, March 2, 2007, $25.95/Cloth, ISBN: 978-0-471-78982-6).

Co-author Greg Aunapu said "Howard was funny, acerbic, big hearted, compassionate, and deeply loyal to his friends and family. Working with this fascinating icon of the Cold War gave me a much greater respect and understanding for the fears our elders lived by, which still resonate in today's national and global politics. His passing will be a great loss to all of his friends and family."

Kitt Allan, Vice President and Publisher of Hunt's book, said "E. Howard Hunt played a pivotal and controversial role in our nation's history. His account of his life and work in American Spy is an important part of the historical record, and is crucial to ongoing discussions about and analysis of seminal events of the 20th century -- such as the assassination of JFK, and Watergate."

His Editor, Stephen S. Power, said "For decades Hunt served our country well, and that is how he should be remembered: as an honorable man whose patriotism was misused and whose sense of duty to his president was abused. It was a privilege to work with him."

In American Spy, Hunt reveals details on many dramatic and historical events including how he orchestrated a successful 1954 coup in Guatemala as well as the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, worked with the White House Special Investigations, masterminded the burglary of Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office in 1971, and, with G. Gordon Liddy, organized the break-in at the Democratic National Committee's Watergate headquarters in 1972, for which he was ultimately convicted of burglary, conspiracy, and wiretapping and served 33 months in prison. American Spy addresses the conspiracy theories that pin Hunt to JFK's assassination and speaks openly about the rumors surrounding his first wife's death, as well as his unique perspective on the CIA, its influence on modern politics, and how the agency must now reshape itself to regain its edge and help win the war on terrorism.

There are few people whose pasts are as central and relevant to the past 50 years of our country's history as Hunt's - and he leaves his story in American Spy. Excerpts of up to 1,000 words will be available to select media in advance of the March 2007 publication date. If you would like to interview Publisher Kitt Allan or co-author Greg Aunapu, request a review copy or galley, or ask additional questions, please contact me at: 201/748-6339 or mkaye@wiley. com.

About the Authors

E. Howard Hunt (1918 - 2007) served as a covert operative for the CIA from 1950 until the 1970s, and participated in many of the agency's most secret missions both abroad and in the United States, as well as writing more than seventy spy novels.

Greg Aunapu (Miami, FL) is a nationally respected journalist, who worked as a freelancer for Time and People magazine for ten years, and has reported for Life, Fortune, The New York Times, and many national news organizations. He is co-author of two previous books, most recently Without a Trace.

About Wiley

Founded in 1807, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., provides must-have content and services to customers worldwide. Its core businesses include scientific, technical, and medical journals; encyclopedias, books, and online products and services; professional and consumer books and subscription services; and educational materials for undergraduate, graduate and lifelong learners. Wiley has publishing, marketing, and distribution centers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbols JWa and JWb. Wiley's internet site can be accessed at www. wiley. com.

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Emu Oil: The Next Big Thing in Hair Care Products

Emu Oil: The Next Big Thing in Hair Care Products

Derived from the Emu bird, a cousin to the Ostrich and Kiwi, Emu Oil is well known for its skin healing properties. Long touted as an alternative for solving such problems as acne, eczema, psoriasis, skin rashes, dry skin and as an effective treatment for scars and stretch marks, Emu Oil and its moisturizing and transdermal benefits is becoming a popular and effective ingredient in shampoos and conditioners.

Atlanta, Georgia (PRWEB) September 27, 2007

HealthyHairPlus. com, a leading manufacturer of hair care products (http://www. healthyhairplus. com), announces it has introduced a new line of Emu Oil Shampoos and Conditioners to target dry hair, thinning hair and scalp irritation.

Derived from the Emu bird, a cousin to the Ostrich and Kiwi, Emu Oil is well known for its skin healing properties. Long touted as an alternative for solving such problems as acne, eczema, psoriasis, skin rashes, dry skin and as an effective treatment for scars and stretch marks, Emu Oil and its moisturizing and transdermal benefits is becoming a popular and effective ingredient in shampoos and conditioners. Emu Oil has been repeatedly recognized in the cosmetic world for its ability to repair and heal the skin.

The Emu, a flight-less bird, was discovered by the Aborigines in Australia and is valued both for its healing properties, meat and feathers. In fact, the American Emu Association's (AEA) (http://www. aea-emu. org) mission includes education to promote whole use of the bird -- which is enjoying growing popularity globally.

Research has shown Emu Oil stimulates skin development, promotes follicle growth and is effective at blocking DHT, an inhibitor to hair growth. Emu Oil has superb transdermal features and acts as a carrier for vital nutrients, Omega 3, 6 and 9 and essential fatty acids. It is also an anti-bacterial, anti-microbial and hydrates the skin and hair shaft quickly and deeply.

As a natural emollient, Emu Oil does not clog skin pores which aids in deep-cleaning and hair follicle health; it blends well with active shampoo and conditioner ingredients allowing effective formulation to alleviate hair loss. Emu Oil is an anti-inflammatory, curing perifollicular inflammation -- an inflammation of the follicle. Many scalp and hair problems are a result of skin problems that manifest into rashes, psoriasis and inflammation -- all of which contribute to male baldness.

HealthyHairPlus. com has formulated Emu Oil shampoos and conditioners (http://www. healthyhairplus. com/dry_hair. htm) to take advantage of its rich benefits. Deep moisturizing properties and natural nutrients, Vitamin E, and Jojoba Oil combine to promote healthy, moisturized hair while promoting follicle development and hair growth -- an excellent combination to restore thinning and dry hair.

HealthyHairPlus. com manufactures a complete line of hair care products and hair vitamins (http://www. healthyhairplus. com/hair_vitamins. htm) for common hair problems. Hair products target thinning, loss, faster hair growth, scalp psoriasis, breakage, oily scalp, dandruff and hair color products.

Moisturizing and Cosmetic Properties Of Emu Oil: A Double Blind Study
Presented at the AEA national convention in Nashville, Tennessee. August 1994
Alexander Zemtsov, M. D., M. S. Indiana University School of Medicine
Monica Gaddis, Ph. D. Ball Memorial Hospital
Victor Montalvo-Lugo, M. S. Ball Memorial Hospital
We found emu oil to be totally non-irritating, having excellent moisturizing properties, cosmetically pleasing texture, and low incidence of comedogenicity. The most intriguing properties of emu oil as far as cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries are concerned is its apparent ability to penetrate the stratum corneum barrier. The study of penetration of various substances through the skin is an area of an active research and is obviously important from the therapeutical and toxicological viewpoints.

President
HealthyHairPlus. com
PO Box 901
Grayson, GA 30017
888-424-7009

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Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Making Animal Cruelty a Felony Passed by Utah Senate; SB 190 Now Moves to House

Making Animal Cruelty a Felony Passed by Utah Senate; SB 190 Now Moves to House

The Utah Senate took a courageous step today in passing a bill, 18-9 (2 absent) that would make torturing an animal a felony. The bill now moves to the House for consideration.

(Vocus) February 24, 2007

Kanab, Utah: 02/23/2007 - The Utah Senate took a courageous step today in passing a bill, 18-9 (2 absent) that would make torturing an animal a felony. The bill now moves to the House for consideration.

Senate Bill 190 would make torturing an animal a third-degree felony. Utah is currently one of only eight states that have no felony provision for animal abuse. People convicted of animal torture would face incarceration and possibly psychiatric evaluation. Generally, the court must order a psychological evaluation and any recommended treatment and can also order the defendant to pay for it, and has the discretion to bar the defendant from owning or keeping animals for a period of time, even for life.

Gregory Castle, director of Utah outreach for Best Friends Animal Society], applauded the Senate's action, saying, "As a society we are recognizing the direct link between animal abuse and cruelty to people. While we are heartened by the Senate's acknowledgment for the first time that animals deserve protection, it is important also to understand what this means for society as a whole. There is a very strong correlation between animal abuse and serious crimes of violence against people. We are grateful to Sen. Gene Davis for his leadership in championing this bill."

SB 190 provides an exemption for animals kept for agricultural purposes, animals used to train hunting dogs and falcons, and animals kept or owned by zoological parks.

"Now it is important for Utahans to stay in touch with their representatives on this important piece of legislation. SB 190 will only take effect if it passes through the House as well and is signed into law by the governor. So, everyone who has been calling, writing and e-mailing their senators now must focus their energies on the House of Representatives," Castle said.

For more information, go to http://network. bestfriends. org

Best Friends Animal Society operates the largest sanctuary for homeless animals,

And provides adoption, spay/neuter, and educational programs nationwide.

Http://www. bestfriends. org.

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Tuesday, June 3, 2008

BVibrantNow, A New All-Natural Health Supplement Business, Launches Free Online Wellness Calendar to Promote Healthy Habits

BVibrantNow, A New All-Natural Health Supplement Business, Launches Free Online Wellness Calendar to Promote Healthy Habits

Fitness & Fun? BVibrantNow, a new All-Natural Health Supplement Business in Northern California, was started with a vision of helping customers achieve a vibrant and healthy lifestyle through natural health supplements by reputable manufacturers. All this complemented by an educational strategy to help promote health and wellness for customers, and their pets, in a fun and humorous way! How? Read on and find out how BVibrantNow is doing it!

Windsor, CA (PRWEB) July 5, 2010

BVibrant Now's aim is to help its customers develop healthy lifestyles and habits, and their new online Wellness Calendar is one easy and practical way that customers can do so. The Calendar will not only have daily health tips but fun jokes too! Readers can print out these tips to put on their fridge or incorporate it into their outlook calendar as their daily healthy habit reminders.

“We specialize in all natural health products, for people as well as for pets, that have met our strict standards of in-depth research with proven effectiveness. I feel that American Biosciences and their products meet this requirement,” says co-owner, Lou Kestel. All of their products, including AveUltra (http://www. bvibrantnow. com/products) and Immpower (http://www. bvibrantnow. com/products) are all-natural supplements that boost the immune system and have been highly recommended by alternative and homeopathic doctors for patients that are facing serious health challenges, such as cancer, to complement their treatments. Because their products use all-natural herbs and ingredients any side effects are reduced or eliminated, unlike those of traditional medicines. Also, BVibrantNow has natural health supplements for some of the most common health problems such as arthritis or joint pain, high sugar, cholesterol, or insomnia. Their two top-selling products for pets are DGP (http://www. bvibrantnow. com/products), for dogs or cats with joint or mobility problems, and NK-9 (http://www. bvibrantnow. com/products) to boost pet’s immune systems. "Although every individual is different and not every product may have the same effectiveness, getting testimonials from our customers letting us know how one or more of our products have improved their, or their pets, condition after trying other competitor products make us feel that we are meeting our vision!” says Lou Kestel.

Alternative health care treatments have long been used throughout Europe and Asia successfully. While many of the natural health remedies are beginning to gain a following in the United States, natural health remedies have years of scientific studies from other countries that have historically experienced the healing benefits of alternative natural health supplements.

“When my oldest brother suffered a debilitating stroke a few years ago, it was a wake-up call to me since I was only 4 years younger than him! I started to study wellness and health; after I read 'Natural Cures' by Kevin Trudeau, I became committed to educating my friends and family to the importance of nutrition, the mind-body connection, and physical activity in achieving a vibrant and healthy lifestyle," adds Lou. Rob Rusert, Jr., co-founder and avid surfer, who also came up with the company's name, had this to say, "BVibrantNow is a natural outlet for us to help people find the best natural health supplements while also providing an online educational resource on nutrition, exercise, and developing healthy habits. Our company’s name says it all – we want all our customers to Be Vibrant, Now!"

BVibrantNow's new partnership with long-time Fun and Fitness experts and Noozhawk Columnists, Kymberly Williams-Evans and Alexandra Williams, is intended to help provide answers to customers’ fitness questions. Customers can simply log on to their online blog, “Fun and Fit: Q and A with K and A” (http://funandfit. org/) to get their fitness questions answered and in an enjoyable and humorous way! The company will also provide a link to the blog from their website, http://www. bvibrantnow. com (http://www. bvibrantnow. com). Customers and readers can also access and download their Monthly Wellness Tips, other health resource links, and their new online Wellness Calendar from their website. "Our goal is to continue to provide our customers with all the possible free resources to help them achieve a vibrant and healthy lifestyle. " says Lou.

Lastly, customers can join BVibrantNow's blog to let us know how they're doing on their healthy habit goals. And since the company believes that overall vibrant and healthy lifestyles can be achieved while having fun, the Fun and Fitness blog is a perfect complement and example of how humor can be used on the way to better health.

For product samples, research, testimonials, and prices on American Biosciences products such as AveUltra, ImmPower, Flexsolve 24/7, SleepSolve 24/7, CholestSolve 24/7, SugarSolve 24/7, HP-8 and pet products such as DGP and NK-9, call 1-800-810-6690 Ext 1 or visit their website, http://www. bvibrantnow. com (http://www. bvibrantnow. com).

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Monday, June 2, 2008

Becta to Streamline Educational Content Delivery via SiberSafe CMS

Becta to Streamline Educational Content Delivery via SiberSafe CMS

IPL, a UK supplier of software development, systems integration and consultancy services, and SiberLogic, a leading provider of innovative content technology, today announce the award of a major new contract by the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta), the UK government agency for information and communications technology in education, for the provision of an enterprise content management system.

Bath, UK, and Toronto, Canada (PRWEB) January 30, 2006

IPL, a UK supplier of software development, systems integration and consultancy services, and SiberLogic, a leading provider of innovative content technology, today announce the award of a major new contract by the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta), the UK government agency for information and communications technology in education, for the provision of an enterprise content management system.

The IPL solution is based on innovative technology from Toronto-based SiberLogic, a leader in XML/RDF/OWL-based content management. Their flagship product, SiberSafe CMS, combines robust, feature-rich content management with semantic knowledge modelling, which dramatically increases the efficiency of both the content development and content retrieval processes. The IPL/SiberLogic solution was selected for its unrivalled functionality and rich content taxonomy/ontology features, as well as representing excellent value for money.

Confirms Edward Taaffe, IT Consultant, on behalf of Becta: "It’s important that Becta seek out and employ the most innovative solutions to their electronic communications and knowledge management needs, and have gone through a very stringent selection process to ensure they get a system which best supports these requirements."

"Becta is precisely the kind of forward-looking organisation that derives most benefit from our technology", states Ian Lee, VP, Sales & Marketing, SiberLogic, Inc. "The IPL/SiberLogic team is delivering an open, standards-based, and sophisticated content solution that will adapt to meet future needs."

As part of the contract, IPL and SiberLogic are also providing a broad range of services, including project management, implementation consultancy, installation support, and user training. Shaun Davey, IPL's Sales and Marketing Director, adds: "We are excited to have been selected to supply this important content management solution. We are aiming to provide Becta with not only the tools to manage their content, but to equip their staff with the capability to use those tools effectively."

The contract, which has been awarded under S-Cat terms, will commence in the first quarter of 2006.

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Affinity Credit Union Awarded National Grant to Support Area Hispanic Community with Prepaid Reload Card and Financial Education Outreach Program

Affinity Credit Union Awarded National Grant to Support Area Hispanic Community with Prepaid Reload Card and Financial Education Outreach Program

Affinity was awarded an Innovation Grant for nearly $40,000 from the National Credit Union Foundation to launch a prepaid reload card program specifically designed to serve central Iowa Hispanics. Affinity is one of only 13 credit unions nationwide which received funding for 2009. Affinity has partnered with Coopera Consulting and TMG (The Members Group), both affiliates of the Iowa Credit Union League, to provide prepaid reload cards to serve the Hispanic community in a pilot program.

Des Moines, IA (PRWEB) October 29, 2009

Affinity was awarded an Innovation Grant for nearly $40,000 from the National Credit Union Foundation to launch a prepaid reload card program specifically designed to serve area Hispanics. Affinity is one of only 13 credit unions nationwide which received funding for 2009.

Affinity has partnered with Coopera Consulting and TMG (The Members Group), both affiliates of the Iowa Credit Union League, to provide prepaid reload cards to serve the Hispanic community in a pilot program.

Research indicates that between 50-60 percent of Hispanics in the U. S. are unbanked. Many Hispanics avoid traditional financial services due to lack of identification documents, language barriers, distrust or a variety of other reasons.

Prepaid reload cards provide access to cash, secure cash management, easy-to-understand fee structure, convenience and an opportunity to establish credit history with card use.

"We recognize a tremendous opportunity to provide a path to long-term financial stability for our Hispanic neighbors," said Sandy Robinson, CEO, Affinity Credit Union. "This grant will help us further develop our products and services that meet the needs of the Hispanic community, providing them a safer way to manage their cash and an opportunity to establish credit history."

"Affinity, TMG and Coopera are building a model that we hope to replicate with other credit unions nationwide," said Miriam De Dios, Coopera Director of Emerging Markets.

Affinity partnered with Coopera earlier this year to begin their Hispanic outreach initiative and together determined that repackaging a reload card program specifically for Hispanics would be a financial solution well suited for this market. Affinity will work with Coopera to launch a comprehensive outreach program to include grassroots communication, financial education and community development efforts to support the product.

Local Hispanic community leaders were invited to join the Affinity Hispanic Advisory Council. The Council will provide insight on Affinity's Hispanic outreach services and financial solutions, helping to ensure Affinity's Hispanic program reaches area Hispanics and provides the information and connections important to helping area Hispanics work toward financial stability.

Coopera specializes in helping credit unions better serve Hispanics by consulting with them to package financial solutions so they meet the needs of Hispanics and communicate in both Spanish and English. Coopera has provided Affinity Credit Union staff members training to understand Hispanic community needs and culture, advised them on culturally-relevant member service and translated many of the written product support communication pieces. Affinity has bi-lingual staff designated to serve Hispanic members in opening accounts and answering questions.

TMG specializes in offering a prepaid reload card solution and will work with Affinity to implement a new card specifically to meet the needs of the Hispanic community. TMG will work with Coopera to introduce a culturally relevant prepaid reload card Web site (ATIRAreload), provide Spanish translation for marketing materials and implement a Spanish text balance feature for card users.

Other local partners supporting the Hispanic program include Solutions Inc. Results Through Creative Marketing® and Blue Compass Interactive. Solutions Inc. developed the brand for the Hispanic prepaid reload card program and will create supporting marketing materials. Blue Compass will work with Solutions Inc. to create a Hispanic resource section for and provide a translated version of Affinity's current site http://www. affinitycuia. org (http://www. affinitycuia. org).

About Affinity Credit Union
Founded as Local 310 Credit Union in 1949 by Local 310 union members, the Credit Union adopted the name Affinity Credit Union on January 1, 2006. Affinity Credit Union is a not-for-profit member-owned financial cooperative and provides a full range of consumer financial solutions to over 11,700 member owners at two Des Moines locations. For more information, visit www. affinitycuia. org or call (800) 343-1028.

About Coopera Consulting
Coopera Consulting is an Iowa-based economic development firm focusing on emerging markets that present unique growth opportunities for credit unions. Coopera's bicultural and bilingual staff works with clients to assess their needs and develop custom solutions. Coopera is majority owned by the Iowa Credit Union League and is a strategic partner of the Credit Union National Association. For more information visit www. CooperaConsulting. com.

About TMG
TMG is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Affiliates Management Company, which is owned by Iowa credit unions and their members. As a financial and credit union service organization (CUSO), TMG is dedicated to providing innovative and flexible card processing and payment solutions to credit unions and financial institutions across North America. TMG's core products include credit, debit, ATM and a variety of prepaid solutions, as well as online reporting, item processing, ACH and ALM services. TMG's prepaid card products are branded ATIRA. For more information, visit www. TheMembersGroup. com.

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