For Immediate Release
Contact: Leah Craig, Communications Director
(904) 419-3346; leahscraig@gmail.com
Gainesville, Fla., May 16, 2013—The Gainesville Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA), the oldest public relations organization in the U.S., recently recognized the best in research, strategy, implementation and execution in the public relations profession at its 2013 annual Image Awards luncheon held April 18, 2013 at Sweetwater Branch Inn, Gainesville, Fla.
Eight awards were presented to local public relations professionals in two divisions—Public Relations Programs and Audio/Visual Tools of Public Relations. Three types of awards can be presented in each division. The Award of Distinction is presented to all entries that meet the five criteria of excellence set by the panel of judges. The Image Award is presented to the top-scoring entry in each category, provided it meets the predetermined criteria of excellence. The Judges’ Award is given to an outstanding entry that achieves maximum results while using a minimum amount of money. The top-scoring entry in each division receives a Grand Image Award, with the top public relations program receiving the Grand All Image Award.
Congratulations to our 2013 Image Award winners:
Division A: Public Relations Programs
Category 7: Promotional/Marketing
- Image Award & Grand All Image Award: Paul Ramey, APR, Leeann Hewlett and Logan Gerber received these awards for the Florida Museum of Natural History’s Cruisin’ the Fossil Freeway entry.
Category 2: Public Service
- Judges’ Award & Award of Distinction: Sheryl Eddie, Brittany Borsanyi and Tiffany Manning of the Early Learning Coalition of Alachua County received these awards for their Family Resource Festival entry.
Division C: Audio/Visual Tools of Public Relations
Category 5: Video-Internal
- Judges’ Award, Image Award & Grand Image Award: Gainesville Regional Utilities, The City of Gainesville received these awards for its Total Service Excellence Video.
Category 11: Website
- Award of Distinction: Wendy Crites Wacker, APR, Jenny Highlander, APR, and Leah Craig of RTI Biologics, Alachua, Fla., received this award for its Rspace intranet redesign.
Each entry consisted of a two-page summary of the program, tool or project and a notebook of supporting materials. Judges for the local competition are qualified, experienced, and accomplished PR professionals from a neighboring FPRA chapter who have achieved their APR accreditation.
“We are so honored to recognize these individuals for their excellence and passion for public relations,” said Allison Downey, FPRA’s Image Awards director. “We are pleased to celebrate their accomplishments and look forward to their many successes in the future.”
Winners of local Image Awards are encouraged to apply for the statewide Golden Image Awards, given at FPRA’s annual conference in August in St. Petersburg, Fla. The Golden Image Awards competition is conducted annually by FPRA to recognize outstanding public relations programs in Florida and to encourage and promote the development of public relations professionalism in our state. Winners demonstrate the very best examples of innovation, planning and design.
The Gainesville Chapter of FPRA was established in 1968 and boasts more than 100 members. The group hosts a variety of professional development, networking and community relations activities throughout the year, including monthly luncheons, its annual Professional Development Symposium and numerous fundraisers. In August, FPRA named the chapter its 2011-2012 Chapter of the Year—the sixth time it received the distinction. To learn more about the Gainesville Chapter of FPRA, visit www.fpragainesville.com. Get the latest chapter news at www.facebook.com/fpragainesville and on Twitter at @FPRA_GNV.
About FPRA
Lt. Col. John Dillin, APR, CPRC, established FPRA in 1938 for the purpose of helping public relations practitioners do their jobs better. As the oldest public relations organization in the country, FPRA is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners, who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. FPRA comprises 15 professional and nine student chapters throughout the state, providing professional development, networking and professional recognition opportunities. For more additional information, visit www.fpra.org.
# # #