President's Word

By Kathleen Taylor, APR

Perseverance. If you’ve ever felt the fire of burn out and still managed to meet deadlines, get your point across and keep your temper in check, you know the meaning of this word. As public relations professionals, we are unintentional experts at perseverance.

You may have gotten into this career because you like to write, or because you had great media connections or a passion for the organization you serve. Maybe you jumped in because you love planning events or meeting new people. Whatever the reason, I’m almost certain it wasn’t so that you could face uninformed criticism for being a flack or a roadblock to the “real story.” Surely you never planned on spending so much of your days following up on emails and other still unanswered requests. I would bet my last vacation day that you don’t get into public relations because you hope to be overwhelmed with so many things that you don’t have time to remember to eat lunch.

No, we love our jobs despite of all these things. We become models of perseverance because we have to. When all else goes haywire, it’s often the PR pro’s job to keep a cool head, stay on top of the tiniest details and balance a million and one tasks, all while delivering well-targeted messages and fostering relationships with your audiences.

Remember, accomplishing a challenge that really tests your meddle can be one of the sweetest victories…

New Slate of Officers and Chairs for 2010-2011 approved.

The slate of officers and chairs for the 2010-2011 Board and Leadership Team were announced and approved during the FPRA, SWFL Chapter July Business Meeting.

The slate of officers for the 2010-2011 Board was approved as follows:

Pam Nulman, APR, CPRC as President

Carla Ulakovic as President Elect

Kathleen Taylor, APR as Past President

Erin Comerford as Treasurer

Laura Puerto as Secretary

Kate Gooderham, APR, CPRC as VP of Professional Development

Jessica Clark, APR as VP of Communications

Julia Babair, APR, CPRC as VP of Member Relations

Tiffany Esposito as VP of Community Relations

The slate of chairs for the 2010-2011 Leadership Team was approved as follows:

Mary Briggs, APR, CPRC and Kara Winton, APR, CPRC as Credentialing Co-Chairs

Heidi Taulman and Carla Ulakovic as Co-PRU Chairs

Phyllis Ershowsky, APR, CPRC as Education Chair

Kerri Goldsmith as Emerging Communications Chair

Kirsten O’Donnell as Media Relations Chair

Diana Sabino as Newsletter Chair

Danielle Flood as Website Chair

Michelle Meier as Hospitality Chair

Melissa Simontis as Special Projects Chair

The Programs and Image Chair Positions are still available. The new Officers and Chairs will be inducted during the September FPRA SWFL Chapter Business Meeting on September 7th, 2010. 

Members of the new 2010-2010 Board and Leadership Team met for their first retreat on Friday, July 30th and started to plan another exciting FPRA year of Powering today's PRofessionals!

Before they were PR Professionals . . . 

Do you know these babies? 

Member Spotlight: Carla Ulakovic (@carla_u)

As East County Water Control District's Community Project Specialist, Carla Ulakovic (@carla_u) specializes in community relations, grant writing, and media relations. She created and implemented the district’s first full-scale outreach program introducing Able Otter, the district mascot.

Carla holds a Masters of the Arts in communications/advertising (2007) from Bond University in Queensland, Australia and a Bachelor of Science in public relations (2005) from the University of Florida. During her master's thesis, she developed a strong passion for social media and has been an active speaker on the topic. As a freelance communications consultant, Carla uses her experience to guide public relations planning and social media strategy development for a variety of clients from theaters, to galleries, museums to small businesses.

She is an active member of the Florida Public Relations Association and serves as the as vice president for communications for the Southwest Chapter. She has been past emerging communications chair 2008-2009, implemented the Chapter’s popular Social Media Café series, and has participated in several committees from the 2008 Media Breakfast to PRU 2009. In 2009, Carla was named Rising Star for the Southwest Florida Chapter. In the new Chapter year, she will serve as president-elect and as co-chair to PRU 2010.

Southwest Florida FPRA Members Sharpen Skills with Media Training

Members of the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) Southwest Florida Chapter improved on their media relations and interview skills on July 14th in Fort Myers at a media training day organized and led by Susan Bennett, APR, CPRC.

The first portion of the day was spent at The News-Press and enjoyed a tour of The News-Press led by Business Editor Steve McQuilkin, including the news room, art department, online media, and printing presses. Attendees also learned interview techniques, participated in discussions of ethical dilemmas faced by journalists, and had a voice in the morning news meeting with a group of editors.

Waterman Broadcasting hosted the second portion of the day, which began with a working lunch and discussion with NBC-2 Executive News Director and Manager of Marketing and Promotions Darrel Lieze-Adams and Florida Weekly Assistant Managing Editor, Osvaldo Padilla . Attendees also heard from Executive Vice President Steve Pontius who provided a tour of the NBC-2 and ABC-7 studios. The afternoon also included interview techniques as attendees were given a case study and went on-camera with NBC-2 Anchor Jamie Yuccas for mock interviews. To cap the day, the group watched the 4 p.m. news live from the studio.

Photo Credit: Thank you to Ginny Cooper, APR, CPRC, for taking all the photos. Additional photos can be found on the SWFL FPRA Facebook Album, click here to view them all!

FPRA, SWFL Chapter Names 2010 Chapter Award Recipients

The Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) Southwest Florida Chapter has named the three recipients of its annual chapter member awards.

Danielle Flood, Public Relations and Communications Manager at Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization (ECHO) has been named the 2010 Rising Star. Ms. Flood joined ECHO in December 2007 after serving as a missionary in Niger, West Africa for two years. She is responsible for ECHO’s public relations and communications, including the web site and social media campaigns. She currently serves as the FPRA chapter’s Special Projects Co-Chair.

The recipient of the Rising Star Award must be involved energetically and enthusiastically in many chapter projects; seize opportunities to develop his or her career; exhibit a desire to pursue leadership opportunities in FPRA; support of fellow public relations practitioners; and display professional attitude and conduct.

Victoria B. Moreland has been named the 2010 Chapter Member of the Year. Ms. Moreland joined the Lee County Port Authority as the Department Director of Public Affairs in May 2007, where she is responsible for the promotion of Southwest Florida International Airport and Page Field General Aviation Airport. Her career spans more than 34 years in the aviation industry. She has served as the FPRA chapter treasurer, and co-chaired the local Image Awards in 2009-2010.

The Chapter Member of the Year must give time and energy in the areas of creative thinking and participation in chapter projects; support the chapter in raising the level of professionalism in our community; exemplify a professional attitude and standard of conduct; and support fellow public relations professionals.

Pamela L. Nulman, APR, CPRC, President of Nulman PR and Marketing has been awarded the 2010 PR Professional of the Year distinction. Ms. Nulman is an independent public relations consultant offering strategic and creative marketing and public relations solutions for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations. She has been a member of FPRA’s Southwest Florida Chapter since 2001 and is the incoming Chapter President for 2010-2011.

The PR Professional of the Year must display a professional attitude and conduct; cooperate with and support fellow public relations professionals; and be concerned with raising the professional standing of FPRA.

Established in 1938, FPRA is 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.

For more information about the SWFL Chapter of FPRA, click here.

Bridging Yesterday with Today: Lessons Learned from a Rutbuster

The Florida Public Relations Southwest Florida Chapter will welcome Myra Janco Daniels, founder of the Philharmonic Center for the Arts and Naples Museum of Art at its luncheon meeting on Tuesday, August 3, 2010, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre in Fort Myers. Mrs. Daniels will discuss the evolution of public relations and share her personal experiences as featured in her new book Secrets of a Rutbuster: Breaking Rules and Selling Dreams.

Myra Janco Daniels is a former Chicago-based advertising executive, who served as president of Draper Daniels Inc. and before that was executive vice president of the firm Roche, Rickerd, Henri, Hurst, Inc. She also ran her own agency, Wabash Advertising, in Terre Haute, Indiana. She was the first woman in the country to head up a major national advertising firm and became the youngest person to be honored as National Advertising Woman of the Year by the Advertising Federation of America (now known as the American Advertising Federation). Daniels earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business and communications from Indiana State University. She held a six-year associate professorship in marketing and advertising at Indiana University, where she pursued doctoral studies in marketing management. Mrs. Daniels is a former member of Florida Arts Council and has won numerous honors, including a Jefferson Award for community service and honorary doctorates from the University of North Carolina-Asheville and Allegheny College. More information about Mrs. Daniels can be found at ww.myrajancodaniels.com.

Mrs. Daniels’ book Secrets of a Rutbuster: Breaking Rules and Selling Dreams will be available for purchase and signing following the luncheon.

The cost to attend the luncheon meeting is $18 for members, $25 for non-members and $10 for students. Walk-ins are welcome for an additional fee. For reservations or information, visit http://www.fpraswfl.org/.