Nonprofit Organization
YMCA Character Awards Celebrated Future Leaders
If you want to truly be inspired…spend an evening surrounded by young people who are making a difference in this 
world in their own very personal way. This was the 15th year that the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati celebrated teen role models for caring, respect, honesty and responsibility. It was such an honor for me to work with them and g
et to know them in writing their bios and working on the publicity. A special thank you to FOX19, who I got to partner with us in promoting it. Each day the week leading up to the event Tracey Johnson (who emceed the event) interviewed honorees on her Morning Xtra show.
Cincinnati Enquirer story on YMCA Character Awards
One of Tracey Johnson’s interview with YMCA Character Award honorees
A Husband Shares Why He Loves His Wife
It is so wonderful when you ask someone on the spot to talk about who in their life inspires them and gives their life meaning. Here, one Cincinnati area husband spontaneously shares what he loves about his wife. His response is pretty special.
In my public relations work for Beech Acres Parenting Center, I met them when I stopped by the organization’s free Hitched and Happy class, part of Beech Acres community-based Building Strong Marriages and Relationships Program. The goal is to empower couples with skills and strategies to establish positive attitudes, behaviors and patterns of emotional expression that lead to healthy habits for loving family relationships.
Don’t forget to check out My Sidekick and Me for fun and educational pet related posts.
Cincinnati Appalachian Festival Is A Good Thing!
Mother’s Day weekend in Cincinnati just isn’t the same without the region’s most popular spring festival – the Appalachian Festival. And the three day event is back – May 11 to 13 at Coney Island – packed with down home fun for the whole family. (For hours and pricing, please see below.)
The 43rd annual Appalachian Festival — presented by The Appalachian Community Development Association to help raise awareness of Appalachian culture – will re-create authentic mountain life with down-home music, dance, storytelling, food and crafts. Appalachian heritage runs deep throughout this entire region with more than 300,000 people claiming Appalachian ancestry.
It’s hard to believe I’ve been working on the publicity for the Festival for over 20 years (I started in grade school). It is such a fun event.
Appalachian Festival 2012 release
Hang out with the Appalachian Festival on Facebook by clicking here.
The Appalachian Festival has always been known as a value-packed festival with modest ticket pricing. And now it is even better: Friday, May 6, is extra special with a half-price admission all day and night long. “Frugal Friday” pricing is adults $4, seniors $2, and children 4-11 $1 (children under 3 get free admission.) Pricing on Saturday and Sunday is adults $8, seniors, $4, children 4-11, $2. Parking is $6.
Festival hours are Friday 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.-9 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Don’t forget to check out MY SIDEKICK AND ME while you’re here for
pet behavior and fun posts. Just click here.
A Teen’s Perspective On ‘Caring’
On April 17, 2012 Erin Daniels, a junior at North College Hill High School in Cincinnati, will be among 40 local students who will be honored by the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati as a YMCA Character Award recipient. Each of the honorees has her/her own very unique story of making a difference but what they all share is how they are role models for the character values of caring, respect, honesty and responsibility.
I was with Erin recently for a television interview and afterward asked her what it means to be ‘caring’. This is what she said.
YMCA Character Awards 2012 news release
2012 YMCA Character Award recipients 2012
The YMCA Character Awards Event will be April 17, 2012 at the School for Creative & Performing Arts. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets for the event are $25 for an adult or $10 for a youth. To purchase a ticket, please call 513-246-3205.
I have a few tickets to give-a-way. I will be drawing on this coming Wednesday from among my Good Things Pledge champions. Not a champion yet? It’s simple. Just visit the page and add your contact information.
Calling Greater Cincinnati Student Performers!
Empowering young people to pursue their passions, to use their creative skills and to bring out their strengths is one of the greatest gifts we can pass along.
The Cincinnati Arts Association is doing just that with the region’s largest solo arts competition for students – the 
Overture Awards Program. This year it is initiating a new opportunity for Tri-State teens in grades 9 to 12.
The Next Pop Star Competition is designed for singers and dancers who perform popular music and dance. Most of them will not have studied privately. It will offer a chance for them to compete with others who share their enjoyment of these art forms. Applications from students who have competed in the Overture Award Program in the past will not be accepted.
25 dancers and 25 vocal music students will be allowed to compete on a first-come first-served basis for no longer than five minutes. There is an application that must be filled out but no application fee. The application can be found at http://www.cincinnatiarts.org/Overture_Awards
Two winners, one from each discipline, will receive a $300 prize. The event will be Saturday, June 2, 2012 at The Aronoff Center from 9:00 a.m.to 1:00 p.m. Students will receive a letter with a specific time at which they should report.
The Arts Association will provide a keyboard and a CD player for students’ use and they can bring an accompanist.
Guidelines for both disciplines can be found on our website, cincinnatiarts.org/overture_awards. Click on the Next Pop Star link.
Please call Carolyn Phillips with any questions at 513-977-4168 or send an e-mail to cphillips@cincinnatiarts.org.
A word about competition from the Cincinnati Arts’ Association:
Successful working artists agree that self-discipline, hard work, determination, and one’s ability to deal positively with criticism are the best indicators for success in the arts. Many brilliant high school performers have gone on to lead very traditional lives. Many people whose talents went completely unrecognized in high school have gone on to have brilliant careers in the arts.
This year’s Overture Awards will provide just one of many occasions in which a young artist’s creative efforts will be judged. A realistic picture of how a competition works and a healthy attitude about winning and losing will help keep stress to a minimum and allow contestants to keep the competition in good perspective so that it can be a useful learning experience.
