Greetings. As shocking as it is that we're already well into the second
quarter of the year, I am amazed at how much our chapter has accomplished so
far, thanks to the efforts of our committee chairs and many of our members.
An overview:
* The PRSA awards on March 31 came together beautifully under the
leadership of Melissa Flynn (Laine Communications), with her committee that
included Cheryl Ball (Tanasi Girl Scouts), Becky Huckaby (Knoxville Airport
Authority) and Bonnie Riechert (University of Tennessee), along with the
valuable assistance of Sharon Pound (The Wordsmith Company), Sammie Lynn
Puett (University of Tennessee), Ann Crytser (Blount Memorial Hospital),
Alan Carmichael (Moxley Carmichael) and others.
* Sharon Pound and Nancy Mayes (Fort Sanders Foundation) kicked off
the quarterly roundtable program in March, with Sandra Plant (Bechtel
Jacobs) serving as the facilitator for an excellent discussion on community
relations. Stay tuned for information on other roundtables coming up in the
months ahead.
* Dan Hurst has done a fantastic job as co-chair of the Southeast
District Conference, taking place in a matter of weeks (May 5-6) in
Chattanooga (the Volunteer and Lookout chapters of PRSA are co-hosting this
event). If you haven't already registered for this event, please do. It
will be well-worth your while. Registration pamphlets were mailed to all
PRSA members in the Southeast District last month, but we'll have additional
ones available at the April 27 chapter meeting.
* Shelley Johansson (Shelton Communications) and Melissa Kinton (Media
Directions Advertising) have gotten the chapter newsletter rolling this
year. The newsletter is published every other month, and I think we have an
issue to be mailed out in the next week. Shelley and Melissa have made a
great deal of progress toward making the newsletter a valuable and
consistent membership benefit.
* Get ready for Public Relations Day 2000, coming up later in the year
on Friday, November 10. Mark your calendars now. Similar to the event that
Candace White (UT) led and made such a success in 1998, this year's Public
Relations Day promises to be a professional development opportunity packed
with value for both professionals and students, with national-level speakers
and multiple interest tracks. If you would like to participate on the event
committee, please e-mail me back at [log in to unmask] An initial
planning meeting will be set very soon.
* If you've received recent issues of the East Tennessee Business
Journal, then you've probably seen two articles contributed by PRSA members
Travis Parman (General Motors) and Sandra Plant concerning public relations
issues of interest to local business owners and managers. In the April
issue, PRSA's regular column will feature a contribution from Rod Irvin
(Eastman Chemical). I have a short list of members who have expressed an
interest in writing a column, and I'll be following up with them to submit
their articles soon. Let me know if you have an article you would like to
contribute (PRSA members only, please).
COMING UP NEXT WEEK . . .
Thursday, April 27, 11:30 a.m., Club LeConte -- Don't miss the April meeting
when the Volunteer Chapter welcomes Larry Stone, executive producer,
operations manager and game day host of the Tennessee Titans Radio Network.
Stone will discuss the public relations strategies that the team and the
radio network have employed to generate a statewide, regional and national
fan base.
In radio since the age of 16, Stone brings a wealth of experience in sports
programming to Tennessee's new NFL entry. In 1997, Stone moved to Tennessee
to build the radio network for the former Houston Oilers. As executive
producer, Stone oversees all aspects of the on-air product, including eight
hours of game day coverage on the 60-station network and the Nashville
flagship station WGFX. Stone also serves as host of the game day broadcast,
working closely with the team of Mike Keith and Pat Ryan. The network's
pre-game show won Nashville's Best in Radio Award during its first season.
In August 1998, the network promoted Stone to the dual role of executive
producer and operations manager. In this role, Stone deals with station
relations, promotions and other non-sales areas.
Thank you for your membership in PRSA and the Volunteer Chapter. Your
active participation and volunteer contributions can generate value not only
for yourself but for all of our members and for the public relations
community in East Tennessee. If ever you have any ideas or suggestions to
share with your chapter board (Karen Bridgeman, Melissa Flynn, Nancy
Ledford, Amy Reagan, Susan Barnes, Cheryl Ball or me), please contact any of
us.
As always, let me know if you have any questions or would like additional
information about how to get involved.
Best,
Mary Beth West, APR
(President, Volunteer Chapter)
Vice President, Marketing
Union Planters Bank
P.O. Box 15993
Knoxville, TN 37901
T: 865/549-2243
F: 865/549-2236
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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