Lynn Daniel Joins WFAE's board

Charlotte - Lynn Daniel, president of The Daniel Group and an expert
in strategic business planning, research, and service quality
management programs, has joined the board of directors for public
radio station WFAE 90.7 fm.

Daniel previously worked with WFAE to develop its strategic plan in
response to rapid technological changes in the broadcast industry.
Daniel helped the staff revise the station's mission statement and
pinpoint the values that drive WFAE's priorities. As a result, the
station accelerated its plans to rebuild its web site and offer
streaming audio. This move provided a way to offer services to
younger listeners and those across the nation.

"We are delighted to have Lynn's expertise in bringing organizations
up to even higher levels of performance," says WFAE President and
General Manager Roger Sarow. "He's also an 'early adopter' of our new
transmission technology, HD Radio, and has paid special attention to
the future of public radio."

WFAE 90.7fm is a non-profit public radio station, licensed to the
University Radio Foundation Inc. With 90.3 in Hickory, 106.1 in
Laurinburg and 93.7 in Southern Pines, WFAE serves over 200,000 weekly
listeners in the Central Piedmont with an award-winning mix of local,
national and international news, and entertainment programs from
National Public Radio, American Public Media and Public Radio
International.

The Daniel Group, in Charlotte, N.C., provides customer loyalty
strategy, customer retention, and customer loyalty research services
to clients across the country. Its services are designed to help
companies find new customers and strengthen connections with existing
ones. For more, see http://www.thedanielgroup.com, call 877-967-4242,
or email info@thedanielgroup.com.

"How To Prepare For The Great Recovery" Discussed by Lawrimore on WFAE’s "Charlotte Talks"

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – "How To Prepare For The Great Recovery" was the
topic of Mike Collins' "Charlotte Talks" on WFAE Thursday, Dec. 10.
Buck Lawrimore, president of Lawrimore Communications Inc. (www.Lciweb.com
), spoke on how small businesses especially can prepare for and take
advantage of the coming recovery.

Other panel participants were Dr. John Connaughton, UNC Charlotte
economist, and David Swenson, Vice President of the Charlotte Regional
Partnership. WFAE operates at 90.7 FM.

"Small businesses in the Charlotte Region appear to vary widely in
their current state of financial health based on the market sectors
they serve," Lawrimore said. "Those fortunate enough to serve health
care, government, energy and other strong sectors of the economy
appear to be doing fairly well, and some have not seen any drop in
sales. Those who serve cyclical market sectors like real estate are
really suffering. This is especially true of architects. One estimate
is that over 40% of Charlotte area architects have no work at this
time. Other architects that specialize in serving health care,
government and education markets are doing much better.

"Certainly the Great Recession will be followed by the Great Recovery
in the next few years," he continued. "Those companies fortunate
enough to survive the Recession and wanting to take advantage of the
Recovery should consider guides for action like the following:

-"Keep your name out in the marketplace so when customers come looking
for a provider, they can find you fairly easily. The two most cost-
effective ways to do this are through internet marketing and public
relations."

-"The internet is the ultimate marketing tool because it is so
inexpensive. It is absolutely essential to have a website that is
search engine optimized so that people can find your business on the
internet. I am here today, and practically all the new business my
firm is receiving as the Recovery begins, is because our website is
highly search engine optimized."

-"Consequently we are finding a lot of companies that had unoptimized
websites are coming to us to rebuild their websites so they are highly
optimized. It used to be that a website was not essential for doing
business, but now it is. Likewise the time is coming where businesses
realize that an optimized website is essential. Google, Yahoo and Bing
will deliver you all the business you need if you are not locked into
a depressed market like commercial real estate."

-"What is so important about search engine marketing is that, unlike
many other forms of marketing, the potential customer is in the hunt
when he or she goes online to look for a provider. If you use
advertising, direct mail, or many other forms of marketing, most of
the people you reach, sometimes at great expense, have no interest in
your products or services. But when people are using a search engine,
they are searching for a solution. So you need to be sure your
solution can be found on the first page of search engine results."

Lawrimore pointed out, "A related very cost-effective way to prepare
for the Recovery is to get more and more information about your
business out on the web. Increasingly companies are realizing that
they don't have to depend on traditional media like newspapers,
commercial radio or TV to reach their target markets. They can
broadcast their news stories across the Internet. So when potential
customers come searching, the chances of them finding a story about a
new supplier might be even greater than finding their website. Of
course the right kind of Internet PR story will contain links back to
the website. This is also another way to increase search engine
rankings.

"Another way to prepare for the Recovery is with updated strategic
planning. Traditional strategic planning tends to be a failure because
it assumes the company has control over many external variables which
it does not have. New forms of strategic planning, what we call
dynamic strategic planning, places a lot of emphasis on monitoring and
adapting to the constantly changing market environment. Instead of
being internally driven, the new form of dynamic strategic planning is
more market driven. Having a dynamic plan will help any company think
creatively about the markets they have served, the markets they could
serve, what sort of signals or indicators to watch in terms of new
market opportunities, and much more. Involving the whole company, not
just the management team, in this kind of process can lead to all
sorts of innovations and increased energy, positive attitudes toward
positive change which is coming."

Lawrimore Communications Inc. is a full-service marketing and
strategic consulting firm based in Charlotte since 1979. The company
provides internet and traditional marketing, public relations, web
design, advertising, graphic design, strategic planning and related
services. The company has conducted surveys of the attitudes and needs
of small businesses in the Charlotte Region for Mecklenburg County and
the City of Charlotte's Economic Development Office.

# # #

[For more information or to schedule an interview, contact Buck
Lawrimore at 704-332-4344 or email Buck (at) Lciweb.com]

Twitter Users Giving Back for the Holiday Season

Ad.ly is a unique Twitter platform that is connecting Twitter users,
also known as publishers, with top-tier advertisers allowing for the
publisher to make money from ads sent through their Twitter feed.

Ad.ly works when a publisher signs up for the Ad.ly platform and
advertisers send them an offer to run four pre-approved, distinctly
marked tweets through their stream over the course of seven days.
Each publisher simply sets a price that they'd like to be compensated
for the ad, then they get the offer from the advertiser and approve
whether or not they want to work with that advertiser. Once the
publisher has approved the offer, the tweets are automatically sent
over the next seven days.

Each user can opt to donate their earnings to a charity of their
choice or keep the monies for themselves. Currently celebrity Ad.ly
users are using this opportunity to spread the word of their favorite
charities, while raising money through their Twitter accounts to
donate to these organizations. DJ Samantha Ronson chooses to donate
her money to Music Rising, which raises funds to provide instruments
to those affected by Hurricane Katrina, while "Heroes" star Greg
Grunberg shares his money with Talk About It, a charity aimed at
raising awareness for Epilepsy.

"Ad.ly is bridging the gap between advertisers and Twitter users and
although we feel that each user should be paid for the content that
they are producing on Twitter, we also feel that it is important for
these publishers to be able to give back to a charity of their
choice." said Sean Rad, founder and CEO of Ad.ly, "We know that not
everyone can afford to donate to the charity organizations that they
are most passionate about, so we have found a way to allow them to
combine their enjoyment of Twitter with the love of their favorite
cause."

Ad.ly was developed on the basis of allowing Twitter publishers to
monetize their Twitter accounts through advertising. The founders
consider each publisher as an influencer in their own right and feel
that they should be compensated for their time and effort when using
Twitter. Currently advertisers such as Nestle, Microsoft, NBC,
Universal and Sony are using the Ad.ly platform to connect with their
target demographic.

Ad.ly is a privately held company that has recently raised a round of
financing from GRP Partners, who have invested in companies like
Overture, Bill Me Later, DealerTrack, Costco and Starbucks. For more
information on Ad.ly visit www.ad.ly.

TAE KWON DO STUDENTS TO DONATE $5K TO CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

On Saturday, December 5, 2009 at 3:00 PM, 15 Black Belt students from
King Tiger Tae Kwon Do will present a check in the amount of $5,100.48
to the Levine Children's Hospital.

The 15 Black Belt students were all part of the Fall 2009 Black Belt
Candidate program at King Tiger Tae Kwon Do. In addition to daily
training in forms and sparring the candidates were also required to
complete many other challenges during the 10 week cycle including
running a total of 105 miles, completing 10,000 pushups, 10,000 sit
ups, 240 random acts of kindness, and one community service. In this
case the community service was to hold a "kick-a-thon" and raise money
to help the Levine Children's Hospital. The Kicks for Kids event was
held at King Tiger Tae Kwon Do on Saturday, November 7.

On December 5 a representative from the Levine Children's Hospital
will be present to receive the check. December 5 also marks the day
that the candidates will participate in a traditional Korean Tea
Ceremony and where they will be receiving their new belts denoting
their new rank.

The candidates and their newly earned belt levels are: James Thamm,
3rd Dan; Joseph Hamel, 3rd Dan; Mark Kenna, 3rd Dan; Duchess Ave 1st
Dan; Robert Hird, 1st Dan; Scott Schneider, 1st Dan; Nitika Arora, 1st
Dan; Lauren Hackett, 1st Poom; Alex Tabaczynski, 1st Poom; Carlo
Ortega, 1st Poom; Nikhil Arora, 1st Poom; Missy Wisniewski, 1st Poom;
Jalyn Martin, 1st Poom; Taylor Wilkerson, 1st Poom; Jessica Schneider,
1st Poom.

King Tiger Tae Kwon Do is located at 3016-B Prosperity Church Rd,
Charlotte NC at the Mallard Crossing shopping center. For more
information you may call 704-717-0903.

Peter Gilchrist Decides Not To Seek Re-election

Statement from District Attorney Peter Gilchrist on Thursday Dec. 3:

"I have been privileged to serve as Mecklenburg County District
Attorney for 35 years. Today I met with my staff to announce that my
current term, ending December 31, 2010, would be my last term, and
that I will not file for reelection in February 2010.

I am proud of the many outstanding attorneys and staff members who
have worked in this office through those years to carry out our
responsibility: representing the State of North Carolina in criminal
prosecutions in Mecklenburg County. Seventeen of my former assistant
district attorneys later became judges in Federal or State courts.


Many other former assistants have been selected to work for the U.S.
and N.C. Departments of Justice, the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg
County, other public agencies and private practice. All carried with
them the mantra of the District Attorney's Office: "do the right thing.
In an office with such broad responsibility, our goal has always been
to do what is right based on the evidence and the law in each
individual situation. We have looked at the evidence objectively in
each case and have avoided making rash or rushed judgments or
promises. The District Attorney's responsibility in felony cases is to
review the results of investigations by law enforcement officers and
agencies to decide what charges, if any, will be presented to the
grand jury. There is an important distinction between what is
required to make a lawful arrest and to support a verdict of guilty.


Arrests are based on "probable cause" – that is, a crime "probably"
has been committed and a particular defendant "probably" committed it.
Convictions in our courts require a finding of "beyond a reasonable
doubt."
Currently we have 79 assistant district attorneys daily making
decisions on the 12,000 felonies and over 200,000 other filings in the
criminal district courts of this county each year. With such an
enormous number of cases and a finite amount of resources, we have to
make difficult decisions every day. Which cases will meet the higher
"beyond a reasonable doubt" standard for conviction? Which cases
should we try even if the evidence is not as strong because the
defendant represents a clear danger to the community? Of course, we
need to – and have – constantly pushed for more resources. But there
will never be enough prosecutors, judges or jail cells, to have jury
trials in anywhere near all of the cases brought to the District
Attorney's Office
For the past 35 years I have worked to ensure this office carries out
its responsibility to our community. I am proud of our
accomplishments. While we still have our challenges, I believe the
District Attorney's Office now has the best staffing and is in the
best shape ever. It is time for someone else to assume its leadership.
I believe the upcoming election will present an opportunity for the
citizens of Mecklenburg County to reflect on the role of the District
Attorney and to learn more about the statutory regulations that create
and govern the position, so that each citizen can make an informed
choice. I hope voters look for candidates who understand the
statutory, ethical and practical boundaries of the job – and are wary
of headline-grabbing and unrealistic campaign promises. In my last
year in office, particularly over the next few months before the
election filing deadline, I would welcome the opportunity to discuss
the office, its duties and its challenges.
Most of all, I would like to thank the citizens of Mecklenburg County
for reelecting me for the last nine terms as your District Attorney.
It has been my honor to serve you."

HEALTH DEPARTMENT BEGINS OFFERING H1N1 VACCINE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC

Charlotte, N.C. - The Mecklenburg County Health Department is now
accepting appointments for anyone who wishes to be protected from the
H1N1 virus.

Appointments are available beginning Monday, December 7, 2009, and can
be scheduled now by calling (704) 432-5100between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. or
online 24 hours a day at www.meckhealth.org.

The appointment system allows our clients, particularly those in
vulnerable populations, to receive the vaccine without having to stand
in long lines.

Vaccine shipments have become more plentiful in recent weeks, allowing
the health department to advance to the next level in keeping the
community safe.

Parents are reminded that children through age 9 should get two doses
of vaccine about a month apart. Older children and adults need only
one dose.

Residents are still encouraged to check with their personal medical
provider for vaccine availability. Many pharmacies and grocery store
pharmacies are also receiving limited quantities of the H1N1 vaccine
for public distribution.

Prevention and good personal hygiene can help you stay healthy this
flu season. Frequent hand-washing, covering your cough and staying
home when sick are keys to good health.

For more information about the flu and protecting yourself and your
family, go to www.meckhealth.org. In Mecklenburg County, call 311.

CPCC Opera Theatre to Present "The Pirates of Penzance" Jan. 15-17

Central Piedmont Community College's (CPCC) Opera Theatre is pleased
to bring "The Pirates of Penzance" to the Halton Theater stage in
January. This hilarious operetta, written by Gilbert and Sullivan, is
a family-friendly production that individuals of all ages will enjoy.
Give the gift of laughter, song and dance this holiday season and
purchase tickets to this must-see production.
Join CPCC Opera Theatre's stellar cast as it tells the tale of a young
pirate apprentice, Frederic (Skipper Johnson), who is about to be
freed from his indentured lifestyle. The honorable Frederic, who has
been apprenticed to the Pirate King (Jeffrey Braaten) and his pirates,
has decided to leave the pirate life, and upon arriving on-shore
instantly falls in love with Mabel (Jenny Chen), one of the daughters
of Major-General Stanley (Buddy Nash). Comedy ensues when the
remaining pirates arrive and want to marry the rest of Major-General
Stanley's daughters without his consent.
CPCC's Opera Theatre is proud to serve as a community partner that
brings affordable cultural events to the Charlotte metropolitan area.
The theatre's productions are renowned for quality talent and diverse
content that enrich the economic, social and cultural fabric of the
city of Charlotte and beyond.
WHERE: Halton Theater, Overcash Center, CPCC Central Campus, 1206
Elizabeth Ave.
WHEN: January 15 and 16; 8 p.m.
January 17; 2:30 p.m.
CONTACT: Ticket prices are $16 or $18. CPCC Students may attend for $5
(limit one ticket per student and present a student ID). To order
tickets, please visit http://tix.cpcc.edu/ or call 704.330.6534 for
more information.
Central Piedmont Community College is the largest community college in
North Carolina, offering close to 300 degree and certification
programs, customized corporate training, market-focused continuing
education, and special interest classes. CPCC is academically,
financially and geographically accessible to all citizens of
Mecklenburg County. In 2002, the National Alliance of Business named
CPCC the Community College of the Year for its response to the
workforce and technology needs of local employers and job seekers
through innovative educational and training strategies.

Football Rematch: Butler vs. Independence

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Students, parents and staff are pulling out their
green, gold, red and black gear this week as they prepare for a
rematch between Butler and Independence high schools. On Friday night,
Dec. 4, the teams will face each other at the Providence High School
stadium in the regional round of the North Carolina High School
Athletic Association (NCHSAA) playoffs. The winner of Friday night's
game will play for the state championship on Saturday, Dec. 12, at
N.C. State University.

Butler is the home team for the game, which will be played at
Providence High's 6,000-seat stadium. The home stands seat about 4,000
fans and the visitors' side seats about 2,000. Tickets will cost $8
and will not be available in advance.

"Both of these teams have incredible fans and we expect this game to
sell out," said Vicki Hamilton, CMS director of athletics. "Providence
is one of the largest stadiums in the area and has more parking on
campus than most of our schools. Access will be tight on Friday night,
and we're recommending fans carpool to the game."

The game will kick off at 7:30 p.m.

Save Money and Give Back to Local Charities with Every Online Purchase

CHARLOTTE - As a result of the economy and because of a national drop
in donations, individuals are looking for innovative and free ways to
help their favorite charities.

More than 85,000 nonprofits have partnered with the online shopping
mall, GoodShop.com, and Yahoo! powered search engine, GoodSearch.com,
to enable their supporters to generate funds simply by shopping online
and searching the Internet. What makes the system so compelling is
that it doesn't cost the users (or the organizations) a thing. It's a
form of philanthropy that works for everyone in this tough economy!

Organizations benefiting in the Charlotte area include:

Mommies Network, 704-470-4291
Push America, 704-504-2400 ext. 122
Carolina Raptor Center, 704-875-6521
Jeff Gordon Foundation, 704-455-0625
Down Syndrome Association – Charlotte, 704-536-2163
Hospice and Palliative Care Charlotte Region, 704.375.0100
Childrens Theatre of Charlotte, 704-973-2800

Consumers are helping their favorite causes by shopping at
GoodShop.com where they can choose from more than 1,400 well known
retailers including Target, Apple, Macy's, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble,
Gap, and PETCO among others. The shopping experience and the prices
are exactly the same as going to the retailer directly, but by going
through GoodShop, up to 30% of the purchase price is donated to the
user's favorite cause. GoodShop also offers coupons and free shipping
deals, so not only are the consumers helping their favorite non-
profits, but they are saving money while doing so!

Similarly, with every search conducted on Yahoo!-powered
GoodSearch.com, approximately one penny is donated to the user's
favorite charity. It's used exactly like any other search engine and
the pennies add up quickly! Just 500 people searching four times a day
will earn around $7,300 in a year! And, again it doesn't cost the
users a thing!

Individuals can even add the GoodSearch toolbar to their browser,
allowing them to automatically generate donations every time they
search or shop online – without going to GoodSearch or GoodShop first.

GoodSearch and GoodShop have quickly spread via word-of-mouth, the
blogger community, and a number of celebrities and their foundations
including Jessica Biel, Montel Williams, Jeff Bridges, Faith Hill and
Tim McGraw among others.

To give you a sense of how this has worked:

· Supporters of the ASPCA, to date, have raised over $30,000
to help animals in need.

· The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has earned over $12,000 in
pursuit of finding a cure.

· The National Inclusion Project, which helps children with
disabilities, has used the money it's earned to send more than 100
children to summer camp.

· A single purchase placed at Gaiam.com resulted in a $284
donation to the Motion Mania Dance Theater in Maryland!

Internet users have found GoodSearch and GoodShop to be a compelling
idea. Leslie Philips, a veterinarian in Tennessee, uses GoodSearch
and GoodShop to support The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee – the
nation's largest natural habitat refuge developed specifically for
endangered African and Asian elephants. "There's no reason not to use
GoodShop! It makes me feel so good knowing that when I'm buying my
friends and family gifts this season, a portion of that money will go
towards endangered species. And with the new toolbar and coupons,
it's a no-brainer!"

The GoodSearch and GoodShop team is revolutionizing online
philanthropy so that no one is denied the opportunity to support the
causes most important to them. "The response to this idea has been
truly overwhelming," said Ken Ramberg, Co-Founder of GoodSearch and
former President of JOBTRAK, the largest online career site for
college students (which was acquired by Monster.com). "More than 100
new nonprofits and schools register daily and GoodSearch and GoodShop
are making a difference in communities across the country. They are
alleviating the strain in resources and making it possible for
everyone, regardless of how much time or money they have, to give back."

Salsarita's Launches Unique Coupon Swapping Holiday Promotion

Charlotte, NC - Salsarita's Fresh Cantina, one of the nation's fastest
growing, fast-casual Mexican restaurant chains, is celebrating
December with a special "Spin the Wheel" promotion at the Ballantyne
Quad location on 14021 Conlan Circle in Charlotte. Guests are
encouraged to bring in any valid coupon and trade it in for a chance
to spin the wheel to win a menu discount.

"During the holidays consumers are inundated with coupons they don't
use or need. Salsarita's is offering our Ballantyne customers a
chance to trade any coupon in at checkout for a chance to win a free
menu item or discount," said Patricia Morris, brand manager,
Salsarita's Fresh Cantina. "You can bring in a coupon for an oil
change, dry cleaning or even another restaurant as long as it is valid."

The promotion is being tested at this single corporate location for
the month of December and if successful, will be rolled out to
franchisees nationwide in 2010. Prizes include various discounts off
entrée menu items, a complimentary meal or a free cookie. Guests
landing on the grand prize spot will be entered into a weekly drawing
in which they'll have the chance to win a year's supply of free
burritos. Typically, in-store promotions are piloted at selected
corporate locations and then expanded systemwide based on the
campaigns' effectiveness.

"Many chains discourage couponing, which we feel is counter intuitive
for our fast casual offering since customers are seeking ways to save
on restaurant meals now more than ever," said Paul Mangiamele,
president and CEO, Salsarita's Fresh Cantina. "Ultimately, we want our
customers to become lifetime guests and this unique promotion is
focused on delivering value, while exposing our guests to our
legendary food and hospitality."

Salsarita's specializes in serving made-to-order burritos, tacos,
tortilla pizzas and taco salads. Prepared fresh-daily in each
restaurant, guests can enjoy high-quality dishes featuring ground
beef, grilled chicken, grilled steak, or pork, grilled shrimp and
fresh vegetables. Salsarita's also offers a choice of 13 delicious
fillings and four homemade salsas. Every order is prepared in full
view of customers in a 700-square-foot display kitchen with a
contemporary Hispanic motif.

With new locations opening across the country, Salsarita's is one of
the leading fast-casual fresh-Mexican restaurants in the United
States, and is quickly gaining brand recognition and a reputation for
quality and legendary hospitality.

"In today's tough economy, we thought this would be a unique and fun
way to offer our loyal guests a price break over the holiday season,
said Morris. "We invite family and friends to stop in and take
advantage of the promotion and enjoy our delicious Fresh-Mexican fare."

Salsarita's is currently looking for qualified candidates with food
service, operations or real estate experience to join its team as area
representatives, area developers or single-unit franchisees. The
estimated initial investment for a traditional restaurant is between
$296,700 and $577,100 depending on the real estate selection ranging
from 2,200 to 2,700 square-feet, which includes a $25,000 franchise
fee. The company's comprehensive training and support program
includes a three-week Burrito Boot Camp at the corporate headquarters,
pre- and post-grand opening on-site support and ongoing business
coaching.

About Salsarita's Fresh Cantina
Founded in 2000, Salsarita's Fresh Cantina is one of the fastest-
growing Mexican fast-casual Mexican restaurant chains, recognized for
its people, food and world-class hospitality. Customers can create
delicious made-to-order meals from a flavorful Mexican menu that
offers burritos, tacos, quesadillas, nachos, tortilla-crusted pizzas
and salads with a wide selection of meats, fresh vegetables and
homemade salsas in lively, family-friendly environment. The company
is currently closing in on its first hundred restaurants with the goal
of opening 200 restaurants by the end of 2012. For general
information, please visit www.salsaritas.com or call 704-540-9447.
For franchising information, please visithttp://www.salsaritasfranchising.com
or call 866.61SALSA.