British mathematician and philosopher Alfred North Whitehead once observed that, "The art of progress is to preserve order amid change and to preserve change amid order."

I used that quotation in June to compliment Tom Lucia for the fine job he and the Excalibur Awards committee did in organizing and staging the 13th annual awards competition and dinner. Tom, who chaired the committee, had the unenviable task of implementing changes in the awards competition and, as we all know, change can sometimes be difficult. But Tom and his committee preserved both order and change, and progress was made. The competition and the dinner were both very successful.

At the risk of being overly repetitious, I would cite Whitehead's words again as we embark on a new era in the history of the Buffalo/Niagara Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. This is the first electronic version of the chapter's newsletter, which has been known as Prime Line. It's a big change, and efforts are under way to ensure that the transition from a printed copy of the newsletter to a fully electronic format is successful and that the chapter sees progress in improving communication with its membership. At the same time, we look to achieve substantial savings in postage and printing, while also saving some trees from the pulp mill.

Several individuals deserve credit for moving the chapter to this new stage in its history. Board members Dick Shaner and Barb Byers, assisted by past president Julie Coppola Cox and her husband, Doug, led the early efforts to develop the chapter's Web site. More recently, Debra Park has stepped forward and agreed to handle the chapter's electronic communications, including this newsletter. Chuck Pustelnik, her associate at Canisius College, is lending his valuable technical support to the effort. We are grateful to them, as well as to Joe Genco of Independent Health and Jeff Bucki of Collins & Co., who have agreed to serve as reporters for the newsletter.

While their efforts are critical to the success of the newsletter, the ultimate test will come from how well it is received by the membership. That will take some effort. Again, it's the change thing. The newsletter isn't going to be delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. You'll be informed, via e-mail, when it's coming, but it will be up to you to retrieve it to make this change translate to real progress.

Career –Crowning Achievement for Stanton Hudson

Stanton H. Hudson Jr., APR, joined a distinguished class of public relations practitioners in August when the Public Relations Society of America elected him to its College of Fellows. The appointment makes Hudson, director of the Organizational Communication and Development Graduate Program at Canisius College, the first person from Western New York to ever receive the prestigious honor, which recognizes lifetime achievements of senior public relations professionals.

An accredited member of PRSA, Hudson has been actively involved in the Public Relations Society of America at the local, regional and national levels throughout his 27-year career. He is a member of the Educators Academy, past president of the Buffalo/Niagara PRSA Chapter and past chair of the organization’s seven-state Northeast district. Hudson also served as one of two national advisors to the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and is the faculty advisor to the PRSSA Canisius chapter.

An active member of the American Lung Association (ALA), Hudson serves on the organization’s national board of directors and governing council; as president of the NYS American Lung Association; and as a member of the Western New York ALA board of directors. He also holds leadership positions on the boards of the American Red Cross Blood Services (NY/PA region), the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site and the Erie County Cultural Resources Advisory Board (to name a few).

The Buffalo/Niagara PRSA recognized Hudson’s professional and civic involvements in 1993 by naming him Practitioner of the Year. And in 2000, the national PRSA presented Hudson with the Paul M. Lund Public Service Award, for his significant contributions, through personal participation in public service activities, which reflected credit on the public relations profession.

Hudson will be inducted into The College of Fellows of the Public Relations Society of America at the PRSA International Conference on November 16 in San Francisco, CA. To be considered for such an honor, a PRSA member must have practiced public relations for 20 or more years; demonstrated superior capability as a practitioner; exhibited personal and professional qualities that serve as a role model for other practitioners; and advanced the state of the profession.

13th Annual Excalibur Awards

The 13th Annual Excalibur Awards Dinner, held June 20 at Fanny's Restaurant, overcame the fabled numerical jinx, proving to be one of the chapter's most successful in recent years. Celebrating public relations excellence throughout Western New York , the event was hosted by Kevin Keenan, Director of Communications for the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo.

This year's planning process began early, as, shortly after the 2001 awards dinner, a task force convened with the mission of reviewing and improving the judging process, the entry summaries, and the awards dinner itself. From this group, a survey was compiled and sent out to all chapter members in search of feedback. Based on those returns, recommendations were made and the Excalibur program received a face-lift.

The change that proved to be the most impactful came from the idea of making it truly an accomplishment to win a Gold, Silver, or Bronze Excalibur Award. The point totals for honorees were upped significantly, increasing the prestige of all three awards. Other changes included: use of the national Bronze and Silver Anvil award framework and criteria, honoree plaques for all Gold, Bronze, and Silver Excalibur winners, and use of an expanded event program book which would include entry summaries.

When the smoke cleared, the laser printers stopped humming, and the entries were completed, 76 were officially submitted and shipped off to this year's judging chapter, PRSA of Richmond, Va. Fifteen Richmond members (including 10 accredited individuals) mulled over the entries for several weeks, before sending the scored entries back with the following remarks: There is no question that the level of public relations work going on in Buffalo is quite high. Every entry was a worthy one and those who did win an award should know that they represent the "Best of the best." All of the judges were impressed. Bravo Buffalo!

Debra Park with Stanton H. Hudson	Jennifer Hickok received the Rising Star Award
Colleen Hannon	Outstanding Executive Award Winner Jake Lamb (2nd from left) poses with Collins & Company's Hadley Pawlak, Susan Asquith, and Bill Collins.

A hot June day yielded a wonderful night, which was kicked off with the presentation of the 2002 Outstanding Executive Award which went to Vincent "Jake" Lamb of the Peace Bridge Expansion Project. Immediately following, Jennifer Hickok of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation was honored with the 2002 Rising Star Award. A new addition to the event format, the awarding of the chapter's May C. Randazzo Scholarship, drew accolades for St. Bonaventure student Colleen Hannon. And, finally, the May C. Randazzo Outstanding Practitioner Award went to Canisius College's Debra Park.

In recognition of the entries submitted, Collins & Company earned 15 awards, including one gold, six silver, five bronze, and three honorable mention certificates. Carr Marketing Communications took home six awards, including two silver and four bronze. Canisius College was the other big winner, earning two gold awards and two bronze. Award recipients were rounded out by: Crowley Webb and Associates (one silver, one bronze, and one honorable mention), Niagara University (one bronze and two honorable mentions), Flynn & Friends Advertising (one silver and one bronze), the Health Association of Niagara County Inc. (one gold and one silver), Hilbert College (one silver and one honorable mention), Child & Family Services (one honorable mention), the City of Buffalo (one bronze), Corning Incorporated (one silver), the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (one bronze), Rural/Metro Medical Services (one silver), Univera Healthcare (one honorable mention), and WNED-TV (one bronze).

Audrey Browka and Debra Park accept the Platinum Award

But the height of the evening's excitement came at its finale with the presentation of the coveted Platinum Awards, distributed to the entry deemed "Best of Show." Canisius College's project in the External Video Programs category entitled "McGowan Learning Community Program" captured top honors and raves from the judging chapter in Richmond: "the objectives and audiences were clearly defined and the results say it all!"

Challenged with carrying out a number of format and criteria changes, the volunteer planning committee answered the bell and did a wonderful job. This year's committee included Lisa Cegielski, APR, Kandis Fuller, Beth Kelly, APR, Tom Lucia, Julie Marranca, APR, Debra Park, Charlotte Viscio, and Glen White. Not willing to rest on its laurels, the committee will be re-convening in late Summer to look at fine-tuning the process even more with an eye toward making the 14th Annual Excalibur Awards Program the best yet.

Name That Newsletter

If you're like most PR professionals who thrive on creativity and the thrill of a little healthy competition, then do we have a contest for you!

Now that the chapter newsletter, formerly known as "Prime Line," is available on-line, it's only appropriate to anoint the new electronic format with a new name. So, we are asking members to put their ideas to paper, or rather E-mail and enter the "Newsletter Naming Contest."

Valuable prizes (although the prizes and their value have yet to be determined) will be awarded to the member with the winning submission along with bragging rights. But of course, the real reward is the humble glory of just knowing that you contributed to your local PRSA chapter!

Please send all submissions for the "Newsletter Naming Contest" to Debra Park at parkd@canisius.edu. Entries must be received no later than October 1.

Void where prohibited by law.