PORTSMOUTH — For five decades, Strawbery Banke Museum has been inspiring curious minds to imagine everyday living in this bustling seaport. The Museum traces more than 375 years of history and connects one generation to another by allowing visitors to experience the lives of those that settled before them.

To celebrate half a century as one of the nation’s preeminent outdoor history museums, Strawbery Banke will host a gala and live auction fund-raiser on Friday, Nov. 7, at the Wentworth By the Sea Hotel in New Castle, N.H. beginning at 6 p.m.

The event will feature live musical acts performing classical guitar, swing, rhythm and blues, and rock-and-roll. Tickets are now on sale at www.strawberybanke.org.

Flanking the black-tie-optional event will be Strawbery Banke’s first-ever online auction fundraiser, commencing on Friday, Oct. 31.

“In this 50th anniversary year, we are taking time to celebrate the preservation of Strawbery Banke, the people who supported this project with their gifts of time, knowledge and resources, and to reflect on the road traveled,” said museum President Lawrence J. Yerdon.

“It is our distinct pleasure to invite members of the Seacoast area communities to join us in celebration of our 50th birthday and support future education for children and families as we continue to evolve.”

The gala will feature a reminiscent look at the museum’s journey to its 50th anniversary with a gourmet plated dinner and dessert, dancing, live performances by Ben Baldwin and the Big Note, Lex & Joe swing and blues, the Mathew Lister Classical Guitar Duo, and an exhilarating live auction.

For information on becoming a sponsor, please contact Beth Wheland at (603)-422-7552 or bwheland@strawberybanke.org.

The online auction will run for three weeks as part of the museum’s efforts to preserve the past for the future and feature a wide variety of exciting items to bid on. The auction is a perfect opportunity to shop for the holidays while supporting education programs and preservation of its 37 historic structures.

The live auction will feature rare items including a Tuscan villa travel package and an African safari. Online auction items include a five-night stay for two at one of Aqua Hotels and Resorts boutique hotels in Hawaii, a Key West getaway, and a Sonoma Valley vacation, and more.

Source Link :- http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20081015-BIZ-81015032

SANTA CLARA, CA, Oct 14, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) — WITI (Women in Technology International), the nation’s leading professional organization for tech-savvy women, is pleased to announce the start of its annual Summit, which includes several notable keynote speakers, educational sessions, and a host of top executives who will be recognized for their professional accomplishments within the field.

During the three-day conference, October 12th – 15th, at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, top executives, consultants and business professionals will discuss their experiences and engage in this year’s celebration of women’s leadership. Senior executives from companies such as Disney ABC Television, GE, and Deloitte will lead roundtable discussions in addition to stand-alone presentations.

Most notably, this year WITI is launching the Women’s Leadership Award, honoring women who have excelled as industry leaders in their communities and workplaces.

“This is the year to celebrate women in leadership roles and WITI is proud to award women who have shown distinction and initiative,” said Carolyn Leighton, Chairwoman and Founder of WITI. “It is our goal to have the attendees empowered with inspiration to lead and find direction in their personal and professional lives.”

This year’s keynote presenters include: Cathleen Benko, Vice Chairman and Chief Talent Officer, Deloitte LLP; Ardice Farrow, Founder, Publisher, Wake Up Women; Mk Haley, Director, Product Design and Development, Disney ABC Television Group Digital; Randy Methven, Executive Coach, On Your Mark; Kjerstin Barley, Sr Vice-President and Industry Leader, Technology and Electronics, GE Commercial Finance; Sandy Carter, VP, SOA & WebSphere Strategy, Channels & Marketing, IBM Corporation; Michelle Yozzo Drake, CEO, The Cove Group, Inc.; Judy Estrin, Chief Executive Officer, JLABS, LLC; Judy Lin, Senior Vice President, Ethernet Switching Technology Group, Cisco; Shirley C. McCarty, President, Shamrock Consulting and Heidi Peterson, Regional Director – Western Region, CARE.

Source Link :- http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/thought-leaders-top-executives-gather-annual/story.aspx?guid={24AA2AAC-ACC0-4227-B08D-0D4FC066BE62}&dist=hppr

Trying to balance a demanding tennis schedule and schoolwork limits choices for the San Marcos standout.

Smyth, a junior, rarely has time to engage in activities the average 16-year-old high school student is accustomed to.

When she’s not competing with the Knights or training with her personal coach, she may be tied up at a major national tournament.

“I don’t really have any hobbies,” said Smyth, the Knights’ No. 1 singles player.

Tennis for Smyth, at this point, is more than just a hobby. To an extent, tennis is her life.

Smyth is regarded as on of the best in the San Diego Section. She can be found matching up against top-caliber opponents in preparation for national junior tournaments.

She competed in the 18’s division in the Wilson Junior Championships in Palm Springs last week and in another national tourney the week before.

Then there’s additional guidance at home from her father, Terry Smyth, who considers himself “addicted” to tennis.

“I like to watch the tennis channel when she’s there,” her father said. “I would watch tennis 24-7 (with her). But that wouldn’t last very long. I tell her to watch a movie.”

Smyth is limited in her extracurricular activities. She attends football games when she can, but trips to the movies and visits to the mall with friends seldom happen.

The closest thing to an actual hobby is spending time with her four dogs:

Hershey, Jaime, Tucker and Maggie.

Smyth, who has drawn attention from a handful of Division I tennis programs and hopes to continue her career at UCLA, often has her head buried in books. She takes a full load of courses: Advanced Placement history and English, Spanish, trigonometry and genetics.

Source Link :- http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/preps/20081012-9999-lz1mc12tennis.html

Endorsing the paradigm shift in the media towards online dissemination of knowledge, AAFT, a premier institute for film and media studies, in affiliation with BatchBuzz.com, an online networking site for active news generation, recently held an online essay writing competition for its 60th graduating batch. The competition, an exclusive for the AAFT graduates, was an encouraging initiative to tease the figment of every participant’s imagination and unleash their literary creativity.

The modest length of the essay, 1000 words, along with the flexible option of ideating on ay issue in the realm of media, made for a delectable word platter, with diverse taste. Each entry submitted, clearly mirrored the rich experience and understanding of the subject, amassed by the students. Out of the deluge of entries received, the piece written on ‘Media Monopoly’ immerged as the clear winner.

Impressed by the phenomenal and encouraging success of the competition, AAFT along with Batchbuzz has now decided to make the nascent endeavour a regular feature. “The impassioned play of words and ideas online, the institute opines will help in cultivating a healthy platform for opinion and knowledge sharing, along the length and breadth of the institute”said Sandeep Marwah,director AAFT.

To sustain the momentum of the lexical creativity, AAFT is also set to publish the submitted entries, which in most cases spanned a life proportionate to the frequency of professors who read it, until its untimely death in the garbage bin. The idea of publishing the entries will throw open a wider window for the students to interact and share information holistically. The activity will also help in exerting considerable influence which will transcend the confines of the classroom. “The Online Writing Competition has not only nudged at the untapped artistic talent present in the institute but has also been a catalyst for initiating an informative interaction within the student community and the faculty.” added Marwah.

Source Link :- http://www.prlog.org/10128868-aaft-and-batchbuzzcom-organizes-an-online-write-up-competition.html

The reality that 100 acres in a highly desirable residential part of Jamaica Plain and South Brookline is still farmed has not happened by chance.

The 100-acre Allandale Farm, part of a 2,000-acre land grant to Capt. Joseph Weld in 1640, has been in the Weld family for 368 years.

Descendants Lee Lawrence Albright, her brother Edward Lawrence and two other siblings have owned Allandale Farm since the late 1960s when they inherited it from their uncle.

The farm and the adjoining Brandagee estate, a Tuscany Villa now leased to a nonprofit world health agency, are still in the hands of the family.

Mary Bryant Pratt Brandegee inherited the properties in 1890, from her grandfather William Fletcher Weld.

“We never even thought of developing the land,” says Allandale farm co-owner Lee Lawrence Albright, who grew up on the farm and returned to live on and farm the land after college in the late 1960s. “We feel a stewardship toward a property that was given to us and our responsibility has been to carry it forward.”

The farm acreage – 30 in Boston and 70 in Brookline – was part of a larger 2,000-acre swath that comprised today’s Weld Hill and Moss Hill near the Arnold Arboretum and all the way into South Brookline.

The Allandale tract was first farmed by William Weld, the ancestor of our own former Gov. William F. Weld. Descendants took over the management of the farm, which for much of its existence was known as Faulkner Farm.

Albright, her brothers and husband farmed the land themselves for 15 years, growing corn and beans which they sold at a farmstand on the Newton Street side of the property.

Source Link:- http://news.bostonherald.com/business/general/view/2008_10_13_Fields_fulfill_owners__dream/srvc=home&position=also

I’have been assigned an executive coach because some of my colleagues seem to feel I’m not enough of a team player.I disagree with almost everything the coach says,but I’ve got no choice in the matter.What should I do?

First, you have to really understand that everyone has areas they can work on. The fact that you were assigned an executive coach is a statement that you’re valued and your superiors would like to see you improve and move up at the company. So rather than see this as being punitive, view it as an opportunity to help you smooth out some rough edges in your style or approach. Making an ally of an executive coach who’s well-regarded at your company can also pay dividends, gaining you a critical internal supporter.

Once, when I was consulting for a Fortune 500 company, a woman who was a very strong performer but who had a brusque style and didn’t suffer fools gladly was assigned to see me. She was very reluctant to get coaching and canceled her first two to three appointments with me, even though I had a high profile at this company and people normally were enthusiastic about meeting with me. For her, though, it carried a whiff of having been punished and sent to the principal’s office.

When we eventually met up, her initial stance was full of resistance, conveying “I don’t think I need this” or “the only reason I’m here is that my co-workers are jealous.” I worked with her to help her understand that she did, in fact, have issues to work on, such as self-presentation and working effectively with others, but also that the fact she’d been asked to meet with me was still a sign of confidence in her. I let her know that some of the most effective executives in the company—those she aspired to be like—had worked with me and other executive coaches on interpersonal and leadership issues. And she began to see the whole event as less of a stigma and something she could use to her benefit. Eventually she sought out the help of other coaches as well, and was largely able to turn her career around at that company.

Source Link:- http://www.portfolio.com/careers/features/2008/10/14/Forced-to-Meet-Exec-Coach

Olive Garden Contest Challenges Kids to Use Internet to Help.

This year, Olive Garden’s 13th-annual Pasta Tales essay writing contest asks students in first through 12th-grade: “How would you use the Internet to change your community for the better?” The grand prize winning essay is worth a three-day trip to New York and a $2,500 savings bond.

Beginning Monday, Oct. 6 through Friday, Dec. 5, Olive Garden will accept essays of 50 to 250 words from students in the U.S. and Canada. Entry forms and complete rules are available at local Olive Garden restaurants or by logging on to www.olivegarden.com /company/community/pasta_tales.

A winner also will be chosen in each grade category and will receive a $500 savings bond and a family dinner at their local Olive Garden.

Source Link:- http://www.brooklyneagle.com/categories/category.php?category_id=9&id=23655

Christian singer/songwriter Matt Maher was a featured guest at YC 2008 in Gander.

Originally from St John’s, Maher resides in Arizona serving as a member of the worship team in a local church and creating music. Maher says taking part in YC 2008 was a fantastic experience.

He says to take part in ministry with and for teenagers is something near and dear to his heart.

He says doing so in Newfoundland and Labrador is a dream come true.

Maher says they also had a Mini Christian Idol Contest. He says he has always encouraged local talent.He says there’s amazing gifts of music in the people and culture of Newfoundland.

This year’s YC Convention included a Christian Song Writing Competition.

After an online vote, Gary French of Goose Bay won the honor to perform at next year’s convention, based on his song writing abilities and performance.

Source Link:- http://www.vocm.com/news-info.asp?id=31859

Paulette Wagner is all smiles when at work or even when she’s just talking about her work.

Something as simple as a smile can help keep a business in business, says the retired sixth grade schoolteacher turned entrepreneur who owns Prime the Pump Consulting, a company focusing on improving morale in the work place.

Looking every bit a fairy godmother from the hand-shaped porcelain lapel pin holding a magic wand she wears to the infectious smile she bears, “The Morale Fairy,” as Wagner is otherwise known, has been spreading her uplifting message of job morale and staff placement and development since 1999.

With the current downturn in the economy that has many employers and employees grumpy and in jitters, Wagner believes her motivational presentations and life coaching techniques geared for human resource managers, CEOs, supervisors and business owners to help hire and retain personnel might be needed more than ever.

“Our morale as a nation is in jeopardy,” she said.

Wagner, who also is a strategic business partner with assessment company Profiles International, said her keynote is teaching praise and respect “because those are what are needed to keep an organization from falling apart.”

“The simplest and most effective way of letting people know they are appreciated and respected is to look them in the eye and smile,” she said. “Positive, friendly greetings by bosses and managers lead to a more productive work place where workers feel appreciated and are willing to make the effort to do what is necessary. A smile from both employer and employee sets the tone for the whole work place.”

A graduate of the CoachU training program for personal and business coaches as well as a graduate of the Business Assistance Center’s Project New program, Wagner specializes in job morale along with ethics, networking and stress reduction. To get her message across, she uses a lifetime collection of anecdotes, jokes, tried-and-true methods and suggestions and resources in her seminars.

A native of New Jersey, Wagner was educated at Augustana College and Northern Illinois University. She and husband, Joe Wagner, a computer software specialist, moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area from Chicago in 1984. Wagner launched Prime the Pump – Joe has a Web design and software solutions sideline in the business – nine years ago. She officially retired from teaching in 2000 after 28 years in public schools.

“I had no idea what I was going to do but I thought I was going to be a personal coach,” Wagner said. “Joe chose the name for because the bottom line on it is getting your business and your personal life flowing.”

Personnel evaluation needs is the mainstay of Wagner’s business. With a battery of assessment instruments, Prime the Pump provides testing assistance and counseling for businesses regarding customer service levels, hiring and retention, and staff development.

After meeting Harriet Meyerson, another motivational speaker, Wagner was inspired to add the magic wand-carrying Morale Fairy to her presentations.

“I debuted in March 2001 at a program where I walked around and tapped everybody on the head who attended and gave them a smiley sticker and said, ‘You’ve been given a dose of morale by the Morale Fairy,’” she said.

A sticker for an adult is just as vital as it is for a child, she said.

Source Link :- http://www.fwbusinesspress.com/display.php?id=8623

William Syrcle explains the new executive coaching aspect of his career as “totally different” from counseling.

“It’s not counseling at all,” he says while sitting in his new office at 103 S. Johnson St. “Counseling works with past wounds, past hurts, and it’s about healing those. Executive coaching is building strengths, advancing and developing individuals. It’s more future-oriented.”

Syrcle recently left Counseling Perspectives, a Macomb clinical counseling practice, to start his own business that focuses on executive coaching. “Synago” which means “Leading Together,” is the name of Syrcle’s new practice.

Syrcle says he became interested in executive coaching while at Counseling Perspectives.
“I’ve enjoyed the business end of being in private practice, and so it’s a nice combination to do the business end and help people,” he says.

According to Syrcle, businesses use an executive coach for a variety of reasons.  Co-workers might need to learn how to communicate with each other, or an individual might need help with developing leadership or management skills.

“Executive coaching is very popular in Europe, probably 80 to 90 percent of businesses in Europe hire coaches,” Syrcle says.

“It’s growing in the United States. Most of the Fortune 500 companies utilize coaches. There’s a strong return on investment.”

The return on investment, Syrcle says, can be 2 to 1, meaning businesses get $2 back in profits or productivity for every $1 they spend on executive coaching.

“I’ve seen numbers as high as 10 to 1,” he adds.

A big part of executive coaching, according to Syrcle, is emotional intelligence. How well a person performs on the job depends highly that person’s emotional intelligence.

“There’s a big push on emotional intelligence, and that’s what distinguishes high-end performers from average performers. It’s not necessarily their skill and intellect, it’s how they manage their emotions.”

Syrcle says he is certified to give the Emotional Quotient Inventory test, which evaluates how well a person handles his or her emotions.

While the focus of Syrcle’s business is executive coaching, he also provides traditional counseling services.

“I’m continuing the counseling, and Christian counseling is a big part of that,” he says. Syrcle’s business card for the counseling part of his practice-he has a separate card for his executive counseling-says “Professional Counseling with Christian Grace.”

At Counseling Perspectives, he worked in all areas of counseling, including depression, anger management, and divorce.

Syrcle received his bachelor and master degrees in clinical psychology from Western Illinois University.

Source Link :- http://www.macombjournal.com/news/x1985679441/Synago-leading-together