It is traditional for my lovely wife, Carol to cook a feast on Thanksgiving for family and friends. I cannot think of a more enjoyable experience than sitting around a warm fireplace, listening to the burning and crackling of wood with family and friends with a nice glass of merlot in hand.

The subject of desserts came up and it gave me pause to reflect back to 1967 when I was in the USAF helping to guard an off site crash of an F 1-11.

The question was put to me as to what is my favorite dessert. I stated, enthusiastically, “Why, German Chocolate Cake, of course!” My wife, quickly replied, “But Larry, you hate coconuts!” True, I do not care for coconuts unless of course served on top of The German Chocolate Cake!

Allow me to explain:

Many of you recall that I spent my time in the USAF as a Sentry Dog Handler, part of their Security Police. Prior to going to Vietnam, I volunteered to help guard an off base crash site where an F 1-11 went down in a farm field somewhere out in the country near Carswell AFB. Fortunately the pilot bailed out and was rescued, but his aircraft made a huge crater in a farm field in the middle of no-where in Texas. It was Thanksgiving and the Air Force asked the Security Police for volunteers to help guard the site through Thanksgiving until they could get the necessary inspectors/officials on site to investigate the cause of the crash and remove the debris.

My dog and I, along with several other members of our squad were transported, what felt like, in the middle of Texas, off the road in some farmer’s cornfield that seemed to go on forever and ever. There were only farmhouses in the area and they were far and few in between. There was a trailer on site that the government put in place to use as a headquarters for the inspectors. We had access to it, but there were no cooking or bathroom facilities. This was truly my first “real” camping experience and I learned from my four-legged companion how to use the outdoors for the “necessary”!

We arrived on Wednesday evening as the sun was setting. No one in sight, except us security people. We worked the next day, through Thanksgiving, wondering about our family and friends back home. Our grunts consisted of whatever mysterious food came from a can. Our canteens were full as there was no running water.

It was a mild day for Thanksgiving. A few clouds overhead. No rain in site. As the sun was nearing to set we observed a crowd of people from the distance walking down the gravel road. At first we thought they were farmers, their wives and a few children just coming over for a quick and curious look. Several of us, my dog, Siam, included, ventured over to act like tuff soldiers and tell them to stay the heck away from the crash site. But as we approached the old wood fence that followed the gravel road, we observed that the farmers dressed in their coveralls and the ladies in their long colorful skirts were approaching us with a different purpose. They were carrying pots of food, still steaming, plastic containers and bags!

They were treating us to a Thanksgiving feast! From over the fence they handed us our surprising meals! Several of my team mates came over from the crash site to help carry the warm food back to camp. We shook their hands and graciously thanked them. Siam didn’t seem to be the least concerned or threatened by their presence. Although trained to attack on command and be suspicious of strangers, he wagged his tail and instantly new they were no threat. As we thanked them and began to walk back to the crash site, a farmer yelled over to me, and his wife handed me, a container with a home made cake, still warm. To my astonishment, it was a German Chocolate Cake! My first one!

Yes, I hate coconuts! But, not on German Chocolate cake! The memories of those kind people feeding us on Thanksgiving Day, for out weighs what my taste buds have to say.

After I told the story, there was a quite hush amongst my family and friends. I knew at that instant what they were thinking. “Wouldn’t it be great to give every soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan a German Chocolate Cake!?”

This coming week, December 5, 2010, the ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships Board of Directors will meet for their annual dinner. We will announce several scholarship awards for several veterans. You can help, by making a small donation to ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships, so we can continue making these worthwhile Gifts and Scholarships to those veterans that truly deserve a German Chocolate Cake and more! Will you help?

Donations can be made on line: www.pronetscholarships.org or by mailing your check to the address below.

Checks should be made out to ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships. Your donation is tax deductible as PNIG&S is a 501 (c) (3).

Thanks and good health and peace to all this holiday season!

Jaimie Dobson recently re-branded his company from iNetengineers to iNetinsights.  He invited me along to the ProNet meeting (a networking group) held at the Park Lane Centre in Bradford.   Although the ProNet group is new, it has a lot of potential, already attracting a number of local businesses to the fortnightly meetings.  For more information about the group check out the Linkedin and Twitter pages:

http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2312663

http://twitter.com/joinpronet

Generally, the main perceived advantages of latrine ownership are proximity/easy access and privacy. For the people of Gozakope in the Dangme West District of the Greater Accra Region however, ownership of household latrines means all of these plus massive improvements in their health status.

Raymond Kotoka Lusu, Chairman, Water and sanitation (WATSAN) Committee of Gozakope, has said the introduction of the Community Led Total sanitation (CLTS) approach, which has led to the construction of latrines in various households in the small settlement, has improved health tremendously.

“We used to have diarrhea and stomach problems but now we are growing fat,” Lusu told members of the Ghana WATSAN Journalists Network (GWJN) who took a field trip to the area recently to know at first hand the state of water sanitation and hygiene issues (WASH), as well as, the state of interventions by the Professional Network Association (ProNet) Accra, a partner of WaterAid Ghana.

About a year ago, ProNet Accra introduced CLTS to the Gozakope community located in the Asutwuare Sub-district of the Dangme West District. Hitherto, the community engaged in “free range” defecation. Men, women and children alike defecated in the bush.

A defecation map showed that sometimes the indigenes “did their own thing” close to water bodies and on hills where it was very easy for water to run off into water bodies. Also, they had satellite refuse dumps scattered all around. Though, they experienced health hazards and its attendant problems, they appeared oblivious to the need for alternatives.

Derick Abandoh, ProNet Accra Officer in charge of Hygiene, said the organisation introduced the CLTS approach to the community because it saw evidence of open defecation. Besides, its research proved that there had not been any previous funding of any projects relating to WASH in the community.

Upon entry, ProNet officials took the community through pre-triggering (getting to know the community), triggering (mapping defecation routes), post triggering and the walk of shame (leading the community members to the defecation site and holding discussions at the scene). All of these were supposed to alert the community about the unpleasant outcome of defecating in the open.

The construction of the latrines was undertaken by the community members themselves, using locally available material and local labour. Some of them have estimated the construction cost to be between GH¢70 and GH¢100 [US$ 49-70].

According to the people, the latrines are helping to keep flies away, leading to fewer disease germs being spread from place to place and there is less fecal seepage into water bodies. The result has been that there have been fewer diseases – less diarrhea, less worms, less cholera, and less typhoid fever.

Lamisi J. Dabire, Communication and Campaigns Officer of WaterAid, Ghana, said “All these monies came from their own pockets; it shows their commitment.” She added, “We want to bring the self-help spirit in the community up.”

ProNet has also been working to improve water supply situation in the area [by] putting iron removal plants in some boreholes to make the water safe for use.

Source: Public Agenda / Peace FM Online, 23 Oct 2009

Generally, the main perceived advantages of latrine ownership are proximity/easy access and privacy. For the people of Gozakope in the Dangme West District of the Greater Accra Region however, ownership of household latrines means all of these plus massive improvements in their health status.

Raymond Kotoka Lusu, Chairman, Water and sanitation (WATSAN) Committee of Gozakope, has said the introduction of the Community Led Total sanitation (CLTS) approach, which has led to the construction of latrines in various households in the small settlement, has improved health tremendously.

“We used to have diarrhea and stomach problems but now we are growing fat,” Lusu told members of the Ghana WATSAN Journalists Network (GWJN) who took a field trip to the area recently to know at first hand the state of water sanitation and hygiene issues (WASH), as well as, the state of interventions by the Professional Network Association (ProNet) Accra, a partner of WaterAid Ghana.

About a year ago, ProNet Accra introduced CLTS to the Gozakope community located in the Asutwuare Sub-district of the Dangme West District. Hitherto, the community engaged in “free range” defecation. Men, women and children alike defecated in the bush.

A defecation map showed that sometimes the indigenes “did their own thing” close to water bodies and on hills where it was very easy for water to run off into water bodies. Also, they had satellite refuse dumps scattered all around. Though, they experienced health hazards and its attendant problems, they appeared oblivious to the need for alternatives.

Derick Abandoh, ProNet Accra Officer in charge of Hygiene, said the organisation introduced the CLTS approach to the community because it saw evidence of open defecation. Besides, its research proved that there had not been any previous funding of any projects relating to WASH in the community.

Upon entry, ProNet officials took the community through pre-triggering (getting to know the community), triggering (mapping defecation routes), post triggering and the walk of shame (leading the community members to the defecation site and holding discussions at the scene). All of these were supposed to alert the community about the unpleasant outcome of defecating in the open.

The construction of the latrines was undertaken by the community members themselves, using locally available material and local labour. Some of them have estimated the construction cost to be between GH¢70 and GH¢100 [US$ 49-70].

According to the people, the latrines are helping to keep flies away, leading to fewer disease germs being spread from place to place and there is less fecal seepage into water bodies. The result has been that there have been fewer diseases – less diarrhea, less worms, less cholera, and less typhoid fever.

Lamisi J. Dabire, Communication and Campaigns Officer of WaterAid, Ghana, said “All these monies came from their own pockets; it shows their commitment.” She added, “We want to bring the self-help spirit in the community up.”

ProNet has also been working to improve water supply situation in the area [by] putting iron removal plants in some boreholes to make the water safe for use.

Source: Public Agenda / Peace FM Online, 23 Oct 2009

On Thursday I attended a new networking event.  ProNet has been recently launched by Jaimie Dobson from inetengineers.  This was the first ProNet meeting to be held at the Park Lane Centre in Bradford.  There were around 15 people in attendance which was pretty good for a new group.  The guest speaker was Phillip J Gwynne from The Naked Marketing Company who gave a very interesting presentation on writing a news release.
The meetings take place every 2 weeks, check out  ProNet for more information.

Nemo was obtained by the Air Force in the summer of 1964 when he was 1 1/2 years old.

In January 1966, Nemo, and his first handler, Airman Leonard Bryant Jr., were transferred to the Republic of South Vietnam and was assigned to the 377th Security Police Squadron, stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Base. Six months later, Airman Leonard Bryant Jr. was rotated back to the United States. Nemo was then teamed up with 22 year old Airman 2nd Class Robert Thorneburg.

Just before total darkness on December 4th, 1966 after Sentry Dog Nemo and his handler Thorneburg were posted, Nemo alerted and was released to attack the VC who had evaded earlier detection. Nemo and his handler were both wounded, but not before killing two VC.

Nemo’s injuries included the loss of one eye and a gunshot wound that ripped into his nose and had exited his mouth. Nemo, an 85 pound German shepherd, although severely wounded, protected his handler who had been shot in the shoulder by crawling across his body and guarding him against anyone who dared to come near.

When help arrived, they were able to convince Nemo to leave his handler, who was then given first aid. Nemo, suffering from a gunshot wound to his face and the lost of his right eye, was relieved of Sentry Dog duties.

The base veterinarian performed skin grafts on Nemo’s torn up face. He did a tracheotomy to help the dog breathe. He had to remove the dog’s right eye, which was hanging uselessly out of its socket. Nemo has been credited with saving his handler’s life and preventing further destruction of life and property at Tan Son Nhut Air Base.

On 23 June 1967, Headquarters, USAF, directed that Nemo be returned to the United States as the first Sentry Dog officially retired from active service. The C-124 Globemaster carrying TSN Hero Nemo, touched down at Kelly Air Force Base, Texas on July 22, 1967. Nemo was now home!

His permanent retirement kennel was located at the Department of Defense Dog Center, Lackland AFB, Texas. Sentry Dog Nemo was one of the few Military Working Dogs that returned home. Nemo spent his retirement years at the Department of Defense Dog Center, Lackland AFB, Texas.

He was assigned a permanent kennel near the veterinary facility. A sign with his name, serial number, and details of his heroic exploits designated his freshly painted home. Nemo was frequently taken on tours throughout the United States to assist in the procurement of Military Working Dogs. The military used Nemo as a Department of Defense canine recruiter. He made several television appearances and helped maintain an adequate supply of working dogs for all the armed services.

Sentry Dog Nemo died in December of 1972 at Lackland AFB shortly before the Christmas holiday. The Vietnam War Hero was laid to rest on March 15, 1973 at the DoD Dog Center at the age of 10. The government recruited over 4,000 dogs and we believe that less that 200 made it home. It was estimated that these dogs saved the lives of over 10,000 American soldiers. On November 15, 2005 a dedication was made to honor Nemo at Lackland, AFB named “Nemo’s War Dog Heroes” Memorial. The legacy will continue to honor all of canine heroes past, present and future. Till this day, Nemo, is the most famous canine to serve in the military.

By MICHAEL M. PHILLIPS via the Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama will award cavalryman Jared C. Monti a posthumous Medal of Honor on Thursday for repeatedly braving enemy fire to rescue a wounded comrade in the Afghan mountains, the first such decoration presented by this president.

During a Taliban attack, Sgt. First Class Monti twice ran into the open to try to retrieve the wounded man, only to be forced back by rocket-propelled-grenade and machine-gun fire. Sgt. Monti, 30 years old, of Raynham, Mass., was cut down on his third try and died at the scene.

“It was pure courage and love for his soldier,” said Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Cunningham, 29, of Whitingham, Vt., a sniper who was in the firefight.

The president is scheduled to present the award to Sgt. Monti’s parents, Paul and Janet Monti, in the East Room of the White House.

The Medal of Honor is the nation’s highest award for military valor, reserved for those who risk their lives with gallantry beyond what duty requires. Sgt. Monti will be the 3,448th recipient since Congress established the medal during the Civil War. President George W. Bush awarded five such medals for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, all posthumously. He awarded others for prior conflicts.

Mr. Obama is deepening U.S. involvement in Afghanistan while winding it down in Iraq. He will soon face the decision of whether to deploy more troops to Afghanistan on top of 21,000 he has already approved. Public opinion toward the war, meanwhile, is souring.

Sgt. Monti enlisted in the Army at 17. Over the years, he accumulated a chestful of medals, but he rarely spoke of them. His father didn’t know his son had received a bronze star until he found it in his son’s drawer, according to report from ABC News.

The action that claimed Sgt. Monti’s life came on June 21, 2006, in Nuristan Province along the volatile Pakistan border. Sgt. Monti, then a staff sergeant, was commanding a 16-man patrol from the 3rd Squadron of the 71st Cavalry Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division.

The squad was supposed to position itself on a mountaintop to call in artillery and air support for a larger offensive, but the big operation was delayed. A helicopter sent to resupply the men apparently drew the attention of a Taliban force that first numbered around 30 but steadily grew larger, according to Sgt. Cunningham.

“They just kept running down the mountain,” Sgt. Cunningham said in an interview. “They swarmed into a position where they could shoot at us.”

The Taliban split into two groups to flank the Americans troops and came within 50 yards.

Sgt. Monti called for mortar fire, artillery and air strikes, then realized that one of his men, Pvt. Brian Bradbury, was lying wounded and exposed to enemy fire. During a lull in the shooting, the soldiers could hear Pvt. Bradbury calling out that he was unable to move.

Sgt. Monti tightened the chin strap on his helmet and made three attempts to retrieve the private. The distance was short, perhaps 20 yards, but the grenades and gunfire were intense. “I’m going to get him,” Sgt. Cunningham recalled Sgt. Monti saying.

On the third attempt, a rocket-propelled grenade hit Sgt. Monti in the legs. As he lay dying, he asked Sgt. Cunningham to tell his parents that he loved them. Soon after, U.S. artillery and bombs ended the fight.

“Going out there to get his soldier…instilled so much courage in me and all our guys to continue to fight,” Sgt. Cunningham said.

Medics eventually reached Pvt. Bradbury alive. But he and one of his rescuers died when the hoist that held them to the helicopter gave way.

The Army promoted Sgt. Monti posthumously to sergeant first class.

As you may know, I am a former USAF Sentry Dog handler. I met a young man yesterday whose story touched me personally and illustrates how important it is for all us to be involved in supporting veterans. Phil served in the USAF as a Dog Handler in Iraq during Desert Storm and Desert Shield. Having completed his tour of duty, he again re-enlisted into the US Army with the intention of making the military a career. However, upon returning to Iraq, Phil was critically wounded while in a truck struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. (His 3 comrades, also in the truck, were killed) After months of recovery and physical therapy, Phil was discharged from the service with multiple physical disabilities including traumatic brain injury.

We have all heard how overwhelming and depressing it can be for a soldier to return home to civilian life. Imagine coming home from war, and all of the challenges of reintegrating into the civilian world. Now imagine what it is like with the added weight of physical therapy and the struggles of a brain injury. Phil was paralyzed with grief; unable to even manage the daily work of physical therapy until the day he found a purpose, a puppy named Lt (pronounced L-T)

Lt and Phil were introduced when the dog, a chocolate Labrador retriever, was only eight weeks old. With the support of a fellowship from The Mission Continues, Phil made a twelve-month commitment to train Lt to become a support Dog for the handicapped for The Support Dogs, Inc. Today Phil is not only adapting to his own physical challenges, he is thriving once again as a dog trainer. Watching Phil and Lt go through their training paces, together, filled me with pride.

Meeting Phil made a personal connection for me. He graduated from the same dog handler school I graduated from, Lackland AFB. Seeing him beat adversity and to find his purpose is heartwarming. It strengthens the desire for me to do anything and everything I can to make sure that we assist our veterans when they come home from war.

Come and network with PR professionals at the PRONet Committee Happy Hour Event at Piola, Arlington, VA, Wednesday, June 17, 5:30 – 8:00 p.m. Admission is just $10 and includes a drink and free appetizers. Cash only at the door, please. RSVP to Sabrina Kidwai at skidwai@acteonline.org or call 703-683-9312.

Piola
1550 Wilson Blvd.
Arlington, VA 22209
703-528-1502

Directions from Metro: Exit Rosslyn Metro (blue/orange lines) and turn right. At the corner, take a right onto Wilson Blvd. and walk three blocks. Piola will be on your left. PRSA-NCC will have a table on your left as you walk in the door.

Here is a link to the entire newsletter. Please click to read:
ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships Newsletter, May 2009

Meet Sabrina Kidwai, public relations professional and organizer of PROnet, a committee within the Public Relations Society of America, National Capital Chapter, that plans networking happy hours and professional development events for Washington, DC area young professionals in public relations.

Learn why it’s important to become involved with this dynamic group.

Carol and I are trying to catch our breath since the ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships (PNIG&S) dinner April 25. It was, in my opinion, the best program that we have ever put on.

There were several special guests that attended including:
1. Mr. Patrick Heavey, Veterans Advocacy Foundation
2. Ms. Patrick Rowe Kerr and her husband, Reverend John Kerr
3. Mr. Timothy Smith, Stand United For Veterans
4. Mr. Charles Layton, The Mission Continues

Carol gave an excellent opening remark for James Suh the Fallen Soldier we named the dinner after. Tears could not be helped.
,

Mike Schlatman was awarded the Robert Troutt Humanitarian Award by ProNet International Inc. and Robert Troutt’s son, Travis Thacker.

Certificates of Appreciation were given to those PNIG&S Board Members that attended including, Larry Byers, Matt LaRochelle, Michael Schlatman and James Godfrey (yours is in the mail).

Scholarship Awards were given to three veterans, Ben Lechene, Tim Smith and Charles Layton accepted one on behalf of Troy Crawford from The Mission Continues. Mr. Layton gave a brief overview of The Mission Continues.

Please remember the purpose of our cause and keep in mind that our success is your success and we cannot accomplish our goals without your help. We thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts.

It made our hearts feel good to see the smile on the faces of the veterans and their spouses upon giving them their awards. What a great way to say “Thanks”!

It was truly an honor to recognize one of the Navy Seal’s finest, James Suh, who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can do what we do, live our lives in peace and freedom and be happy. We must never forget that if it were not for our veterans, well… think about it.

“If Not For Our Veterans!” There is the story of stories. “If Not For Our Veterans!”

Chi-Cha Lounge

Mingle with PR professionals and celebrate the beginning of Summer!

PRONet Committee Happy Hour Event at Chi-Cha Lounge

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

5:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Chi-Cha Lounge,1624 U Street, NW, Washington, DC

Phone (for directions): (202) 234-8400

Web Site: www.latinconcepts.com/chicha

$10 at the door (cash only)

One free drink and appetizers!

Please RSVP by May 11 to Sabrina Kidwai by email or phone, 703-683-9312.

Directions from Metro: Take the Green/Yellow line to U Street/Cardozo Metro Stop. Take the U/13th street exit. Walk down four blocks west on U St., and Chi-Cha Lounge is near the corner of New Hampshire and U Street.

A Conversation with Sabrina Kidwai, PROnet organizer

Meet Sabrina Kidwai, public relations professional and organizer of PROnet, a committee within the Public Relations Society of America, National Capital Chapter, that plans networking happy hours and professional development events for Washington, DC area young professionals in public relations.

Learn why it’s important to become involved with this dynamic group.

Mary Fletcher Jones is your host for this episode of Conversations in Public Relations, a video series that features interviews with Washington, DC area public relations professionals.

With Passover staring last night and Easter, this coming Sunday, what better time is there to share with you a story I was recently told, a true story that is, about an 18 month old (now eight) grandson, named Abraham.

Abraham’s parents, both serving in the US Military were part of the call up in 2003.  Like a lot of military parents, Abraham’s mother, who was in the reserves, was the first of the parents to be called up and spent 18 months in Iraq missing out in celebrating Abraham’s third birthday.

Shortly thereafter, Abraham’s father, also in the reserves, was next to be called up, leaving the responsibility of raising Abraham with his loving grandparents.

These call ups were not new to Abraham’s grandmother, who was already involved in working with wounded veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan.  Because of her tight schedule, often, Abraham accompanied her instead of being left with a babysitter.  Thus Abraham got to know and establish one relationship after another with many of the wounded veterans, relationships that soon developed into friendships with Abraham’s newly found friends, many soldiers in wheel chairs, amputees, etc.

At the age of three Abraham learned to play basketball with several wheel chair bound veterans.  This went on for many months until Abraham’s mother finally returned from war.  One Saturday afternoon, a bright sunny day, Abraham, along with his mother, and grandmother were invited to a celebration at the Veterans Hospital to welcome home many recently wounded veterans.

There were venders set up outside for the guests, selling popcorn, soda, hot dogs, etc., as part of the festivities.  One vender sold cotton candy and what three year old can resist the taste of cotton candy?  Abraham’s grandmother gave him enough money to buy some cotton candy and after Abraham handed the vender the cash, the vender gave him his treat along with some change.

As they strolled away, ready to greet some of the other guests, Abraham’s grandmother said, “Abraham, why don’t you put that change in your pocket?”

Abraham gave her an odd look of deference and replied, “Nanna, I can’t do that.”

“And why not?” asked Abraham’s mother, following them both.

With that, Abraham turned to look at his mother and then to his grandmother, with the look of a little boy who knew he was about to be in trouble.  However, Abraham put his hand forward to his grandmother, opened his palm and said, “Nanny, (hesitation) this is for your soldiers”.  In the small pale palm of Abraham’s hand was 11 Cents in change, one dime and one penny.

Abraham was of course in no trouble.  Both his Nanna and mom stooped down picked Abraham up and hugged him like he had never before been hugged.  One of the senior officials, the grandmother’s boss, saw what was going on, strolled over and asked what he had just missed out on.  The grandmother, with the look of pride in her face, said, “We just witnessed the Power of 11 Cents!”

That story has become a working model for the Missouri Military Family Relief Fund.  Thousands of children state wide in Missouri have since been responsible for donating 11 Cents each and the MMFRF has since raised over $60,000.00 to help military families in need throughout Missouri.

Perhaps this story can encourage ALL of us to make a contribution, small or large to a veteran fund raising organization of your choice.  And if you have no preference then please consider doing so to ProNet International Gifts & Scholarships that are currently assisting veterans to meet their academic goals, and assisting other 501 (c) (3) s that are providing Fellowships to veterans, such as The Mission Continues.

Carol and I have met many professionals in the last 30 days working to help raise $$$ for veterans all over the USA.  We have heard one sad but moving story after another.

The returning home veterans need our help!

We cannot and WILL NOT turn our backs on them as was done with the returning home veterans from the VIETNAM WAR.  And to play our part, PNIG&S will be awarding three scholarships on April 25 to both veterans in state and out of state in an effort to assist them.  These scholarship awards are only the beginning!

If a three year old can do it, how about YOU?

As a former Vietnam Veteran, on behalf of our fellow brothers and sisters in arms, will you please reach out as Abraham did and help a veteran?

Sabrina Kidwai is a guest on Conversations in Public Relations.

Sabrina Kidwai

Sabrina Kidwai is a member of the Public Relations Society of America and a co-chair for the PROnet committee.

The PROnet Committee targets public relations professionals with seven years or less experience in the field of public relations, as well as graduating students, new professionals to the industry, and others interested in expanding their knowledge of public relations through networking and professional development activities.

Sabrina is in charge of coordinating and planning monthly networking events for PROnet, and will talk about this fun and exciting networking group in her interview for Conversations in Public Relations.

Sabrina Kidwai and Mary Fletcher Jones

Sabrina has been involved in public relations for eight years and is currently the media relations manager for the Association for Career and Technical Education, which she joined in December 2006.

She is responsible for managing all of ACTE’s media activities, including responding to media inquiries, developing and executing media plans, and providing media relations advice for members.

She is a current fellow in the IEL Education Policy Fellowship Program in Washington, DC.

Before joining ACTE, she served as media relations director for a small non-profit in South Carolina, and she worked as an account manager for a high-tech public relations firm.

Sabrina received her Bachelor’s in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and her Master’s in Public Administration from the University of South Carolina.

In Bawjiase in the Central Region, Plan Ghana, is assisting five communities to construct improved household pit latrines. A total of twenty-seven toilets that have so far been completed, were inaugurated at Obo Yambo and Aboano, two of the beneficiary communities. The facilities were built with local materials under the supervision of the Professional Network Association (ProNet), an NGO based in Accra. Labour services were provided by the community. The project, the first in the area, is a six-month pilot project.

Read more about Plan International’s water and sanitation activities here.

Read more about water and sanitation in Ghana here.

Source: Accra Mail, 30 Oct 2008

So you’ve probably found this page because you’re looking for Recruitment Software. Well I’ve done all the hard work of comparing the top Recruitment Software providers. I’ve had in depth looks at work flow, useability, Website Integration, technology behind the scenes etc. Although most of the Recruitment packages out there can provide basic recruitment functionality i.e Sending CV’s, Candidate Profiles etc, none of them seem to compare to RDB ProNet which is the latest Recruitment Software Database Application from First Choice Software.

First Choice Software have developed RDB ProNet to compliment thier strong recruitment software portfolio. The pedigree of this portfolio runs central in their ongoing software development.

The platform and architecture they have built into RDB ProNet ensures simple ongoing development and expansion of the Application and makes it suitable for all sizes of business from one man bands to global enterprises with thousands of users!

Ok so whats so great about it?

Well first of all it’s the only true .NET 2 Recruitment Software Package available. It’s written in Visual C# and uses a Microsoft SQL Database. Well what does this mean? .NET is the a framework Microsoft has developed. The main bennifits of using the .NET framework is that it makes it very easy for applications to interact with eachother. For exapmle, you have you website, and you have your database, you need a simple way to upload all the latest jobs to your website. RDB ProNet has all this functionalitry built in. It takes a matter of seconds to get you live jobs to your website. Apart from that it allows for easy Integration with your payroll software. So no longer do you have 3 seperate peices of software, they can all communicate with eachother.

Heres a list of some of the benifits of using RDB ProNet

Multilingual or Multicultural – Customisable by your system administrator – at the most basic level allows different users to name the same field a different thing. You call a candidate a candidate – your colleagues call them applicants. You can both see them as you want to!

LAN, Thin Client, VPN Access – Easily distribute and access your RDB ProNet Application. Have it exactly as YOU want it.

Customisable Interface – Set up your Application with the Navigation you need most prominent on your screen. Saves you time and makes you more money.

All in one Contact Management – All correspondence handled within the Application; Emails, SMS Messaging, Faxes, Letters and all with limitless editable Templates. Contact your candidates faster than the competition and make more placements.

Free-Text Search – awesomely powerful and fully integrated free-text searching using the DT Search Engine. Search your CVs, notes, profiles all at once – don’t miss a candidate again. Do this at the same time as your search within a radius and or against your own codes or separately!

Integrated Diary – organise you business time with fully integrated User Diaries, Resource Diaries and Task lists – never miss a call back and plan your team meetings all within your Application. You can share your diary with other users and view multiple diaries all at once!!

Our improved, innovative main index allowing you to see all your applicants, contacts, candidates all in one place. Frequently copied – our index remains the best of its type!

CV Reader :- get mailed CVs into your database quickly and accurately, de duping and updating as you go with our own CV reading software. Saves hours a day – get your admin people doing something more productive!

Add your own, searchable fields to your database in minutes :- You don’t have to pay some one hundreds of pounds to create new fields for you!

Store all your CVs within the database :- don’t risk someone copying all your CVs with file manager and running off to start their own business with all YOUR CVs.

Extensive reporting capability :- write your own reports with a suitable tool or use one of the range of provided reports to find out exactly what has been going on in your business!

Incredibly stable and reliable :- keep down time to a minimum and spend more time making money.

This is just touching the surface of what RDB ProNet can do for you. For a live online demo contact the sales team at First Choice Software and they will be more than happy to demonstrate the power of RDB ProNet.

First Choice Software

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Our last fund raiser, Texas Hold ‘Em was held at the Moolah Shrine Temple November 7, 2008.  One of the invited Texas Hold ‘Em Players asked me, during a break, why and how PNIG&S was formed.

Here is what I explained:

As a Dog handler for the USAF, in February of 1968 I received orders to go to Vietnam, Ben Hoa Air Base.

But first: Gary P. and I graduated High School together in 1965.  During HS we took a few classes together and on more than one occasion, after school and/or on weekends we studied together.  Soon after HS Gary P. enlisted in the US Army.  I enlisted in the US Air Force.

In February/March of 1968, while home on leave, before I was to ship out to Ben Hoa Air base VN, I learned of Gary being one of the many KIA and he was to be interned shortly after my leave.  I contacted the Red Cross and asked if they could help me get an extension on my leave so I could stay and attend Gary’s funeral.  His parents asked me to be a Pall Bearer.  I was honored.

Several days after Gary P. was interned I flew to San Francisco and waited for about one week before the USAF was able to find me a seat on a commercial plane to VN.

I arrived at Ben Hoa Air base 3 weeks after the 1968 Tet Offensive.  In fact my CO was confident that I would spend my first night in VN in peace and quiet.  They had not been hit since Tet.  I inquired as to when the Tet offensive was as I lost track of days.  It turned out to be the same day we buried Gary P.

There were several Security Police and Dog handlers killed and wounded during that attack on Ben Hoa.

My first night at Ben Hoa was anything but uneventful.  While asleep, the sirens and sounds of incoming mortar shells awoke me!  My CO yelled at us to get up and follow him!  There were several of us that awoke from a sound sleep with mortar shells dropping all around the flight line, of which we were in the proximity.

Running and half ducking, we followed our CO outside to two bunkers about 30 feet from our hut.  I immediately began to enter one that appeared to be only half in place.  I also noticed that there was a huge hole in the ground in front of the entrance to the sand bagged bunker.  I thought that was strange.

My CO yelled for me and told me not to enter that bunker, as it was not safe, but to follow him to the other, just a few yards apart.  While hunkered inside the second bunker, some of us praying for dear life, we listened intently to loud bangs and earth shattering noise from the mortars dropping.

My CO turned to me and pointed and yelled, “Son, that other bunker, you almost entered is not safe.  Several weeks ago a mortar dropped at the entrance to that bunker and exploded, killing all 13 airmen inside. That’s what created that crater in front, near the entrance.”

This was like a bad dream!

After the mortars dropped and the sirens signaled an all clear, the CO took us back to the hut and instructed us to remain alert and be prepared to hit the field with our weapons.

After a few moments, I became curious and asked him when the bunker was hit.   He pointed to his calendar hanging over his cooking utensils.  I noted the words “Tet” (for Tet offensive) and the date on the calendar.

It was the same day we buried my friend, Gary P.

That was my motivation for creating PNIG&S.

This coming holiday season, many of you will buy gifts for your clients.   This year, we ask that you consider, instead of buying your client a material gift, why not make a donation to PNIG&S in the name of your client?

Your client will appreciate the fact that the $$$ donated to PNIG&S are going to a noble cause, to help the Veterans and their families fulfill their educational aspirations.

We look forward to making a scholarship presentation soon in 2009.  Will you help us achieve our goal?  Will you help the veterans?

Thanks for your continued support!