Nebraska-Iowa Heroes Game Rivalry Trophy Unveiled

It's simple -- just like the two states it represents -- a 30-inch trophy with a wooden base and a brushed silver football on top. The new Heroes Game trophy was unveiled Wednesday at Memorial Stadium. It will go to the winner of the annual Nebraska-Iowa game, this year's edition to be played at 11 a.m. Friday.

The front displays the Heroes Game logo, and the trophy features themes of tradition, valor and victory. The back includes images of Nebraska's Memorial Stadium and Iowa's Kinnick Stadium and lists traditions of the two institutions and their football programs. The left side has small plaques or badges that will be dated and carry the names of the two citizen heroes chosen each year. The right side has badges that will be dated and carry the final score of each Heroes Game. The stone base of the trophy is etched with corn stalks.

Brenda Jo Schawang and her son Taylor visited the stadium and checked out the trophy Wednesday morning -- they gave their approval. "It's nice. You're Nebraska and Iowa, and you're simple; life is simple here," Brenda Jo Schawang said. "This trophy does the states justice -- it's the epitome of what we are." Schawang was born and raised in Humboldt but moved to Jacksonville, FL. It's the first time her grown son has been to the stadium. They said trophies aren't that big of a deal to them as fans, unless it's the big one with the crystal football on top -- the National Championship Trophy.

The Heroes Game trophy does have a football, just not crystal. The brushed metal football is etched with laurel leaves. In ancient Greece, a laurel leaf crown was awarded to the victors of the Olympic Games. Those were the heroes of their time and the laurel leaf crown was considered the symbol of a hero, an athletic department press release said. "The trophy itself is just a piece of metal; it's the bragging rights that matter," Taylor Schawang said.

Fans can view the trophy at the Husker Nation Pavilion from 8-10 a.m. Friday.

Arunachal Bag 16 Medals in National Youth Weightlifting

Takio Yana clinched three more gold medals to help Arunachal Pradesh top the medal tally with 16 medals including six gold, seven silver and three bronze, on the final day of the seventh National Youth Weightlifting championship held at Nirjuli near.

Yana won the gold in 58 kg (girls) category by lifting 64 kg in snatch, 85 kg in clean & jerk and 149 kg in total.

Orissa finished second with six gold, six silver and three bronze followed by Uttarakhand with six gold, Andhra Pradesh (five gold, four silver and five bronze), West Bengal (5 gold and a silver), Manipur (4 gold, 9 silver and 9 bronze), Madhya Pradesh (4 gold and 2 silver), Delhi (3 gold) and Bihar with a gold medal.

In 63 kg (girls) category, Subhasmita Mohanty of Orissa won three medals by lifting 61 kg (silver) in snatch, 78 kg (gold) in clean and jerk and 139 kg (gold) in total.

Putul Sarkar from Bihar also won three medals by lifting 62 kg (gold) in snatch, 76 kg (silver) in clean & jerk and 138 kg (silver) in total in the same category while Pompi Sarkar of Assam won a bronze medal in snatch by lifting 58 kg and P S Hringtun Anal (Manipur) also won a bronze in clean and jerk by lifting 65 kg along with Muneera MS from Kerala clinching a bronze medal in total by lifting 111 kg. medal.

Multiple Awards Garnered by Deutsche Post DHL

Deutsche Post DHL has just received two corporate awards for its human-resources policies. The Group’s diversity management was honored with the first-ever German Diversity Award 2011, which was presented under the motto of “Thinking, Talking, Acting and Working Together – Diversity as an Opportunity.”

The award was sponsored by the German business magazine Wirtschaftswoche, the consultancy McKinsey & Company and the consumer business Henkel. Corporate awards were given in four categories to companies, individuals and innovative projects that encourage a working environment characterized by diversity in Germany.

Deutsche Post DHL also received this year’s award given by the Human Capital Club e.V., a group established in 2001 that includes many partner organizations in German-speaking regions, including the German Association of Human Resources Management and the German Network of Business Ethics. Deutsche Post DHL was awarded as the DAX company with the most-transparent personnel policies.

“Deutsche Post DHL’s core business is all about crossing borders and facilitating exchange and communication. We can do our job only if our employees work together hand in hand,” says Walter Scheurle, Board Member for Personnel of Deutsche Post DHL.

The commitment of Deutsche Post DHL to human resources is reflected in its Group Strategy 2015, the guiding principle of “Respect and Results,” and the effort to become the employer of choice in the mail and logistics industry and its “People Strategy.”

The company uses a number of measures and initiatives to put its diversity management into practice. “The intensive discussions among many colleagues with various experiences, languages, religions and cultural and ethnic backgrounds really enrich our company. But it can work only on the basis of tolerance and mutual respect,” Scheurle says.

Illinois Tries to Reunite Heroes With Their Medals

Illinois Treasurer Dan Rutherford has more than 200 unclaimed military medals, records and even dog tags, dating as far back as the Spanish-American War, and he’d like to find their rightful owners.

Rutherford on Friday announced Operation Reunite, a program aimed at finding the owners of the medals and other military artifacts. “I think it’s appropriate to try to reunite such an important part of our military record to the individual recipients if possible — if not, to their families,” Rutherford said.

One of the artifacts belongs to a William White of Joliet. Rutherford did not have specific information on White or what belonged to him on Friday, but said his office would provide more information later.

Preliminary efforts to locate the medal owners have been unsuccessful. Rutherford hopes that by announcing Operation Reunite he can bring more attention to the fact that his office has these medals. Hopefully, he said, that could lead to finding the owners.

The owners are not necessarily military veterans. They rented bank safety deposit boxes where the medals were found. Banks turned in the medals to the state after being unable to locate the box owners. Among the medals being held are 15 Purple Hearts, five Bronze Stars, one Silver Star and a Navy Cross. Of historical note are a Spanish American War medal and a World War I Service medal.

“The one that touched me the most is the Purple Heart,” Rutherford said. “A Purple Heart is given because someone was wounded or killed in action.” There are also a few foreign medals, including the German Iron Cross and the Order of Vasco Nunez Balboa medal awarded by Panama.

The property is included in the state treasurer’s Cash Dash program, which attempts to locate owners of unclaimed property turned over to the state by banks and other corporations. Operation Reunite is a first attempt to put special focus on the military medals.

The Cash Dash data base has 10 million entries (Some names are in more than once.), and the private property being held is worth $1.5 million. The military artifacts account for 72 of those names and very little of the cash value. But given the importance of the medals, Rutherford said he believed it was worth trying to bring attention to them.

Rutherford announced the program after a Veterans Day ceremony in Chicago. Veterans were very interested to learn that the state held so many unclaimed medals, he said. Rutherford plans to approach veterans’ organizations to help bring attention to Operation Reunite. Those interested in learning more about the medals can go to the treasurer’s Web site at www.treasurer.il.gov and click onto Operation Reunite. Or, people can call the treasurer’s Unclaimed Property Division at 217-785-6998.

Dashwood Wines Win Air NZ Awards

Dashwood Wine is pleased to announce it has won two trophies and a Pure Elite Gold Medal at this year's Air New Zealand Wine Awards for its 2011 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. The event included 1,504 wines of which 269 were Sauvignon Blancs.

Dashwood's trophies were for Label and Litho Champion Sauvignon Blanc and New World Champion Open White Wine. The winery also received a prestigious Pure Elite Gold medal. According to the judges: "This smashing beauty shows perfumed aromas of passion fruit, lime zest and subtle capsicum. Impressively concentrated and intense, perfectly balanced."

Said Dashwood's winemaker Stu Marfell, "Air New Zealand is the biggest and most important wine show in New Zealand. With New Zealand producing some of the world's most celebrated Sauvignon Blancs, winning a trophy for the 2011 Dashwood is truly an honour."

Composed entirely of Sauvignon Blanc the wine blends grapes from Wairau Valley (60% for passion fruit and tropical aromas) and Awatere Valley (40%
for weight and structure). Viticulturist Allan Croker works closely with independent growers to ensure the best possible fruit.

Continues Marfell, "I am constantly amazed at the quality of Marlborough's wines. I tasted through the other gold medal winners and was impressed with their character and style. It was a testament to the great terroir we have here and the talent of our staff!"

Dashwood produces Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris from estate and grower vineyards in Marlborough's Awatere and Wairau Valleys. Bill Foley, the owner of Dashwood, and its parent company, Foley Family Wines, commented after the event, "It was a thrill to be there during the awards ceremony. The entire Dashwood team has shown incredible dedication in the vineyards and winery. The medals and the trophies were the crowning achievement of their hard work and innovation. I'm very happy for everyone involved."

The Air New Zealand Wine Awards 2011 marks a 25 year partnership between New Zealand Winegrowers and New Zealand's national airline. Over the last 25 years, nearly 30,000 wine entries have been evaluated by more than 130 different judges, including more than 50 international judges. The event also promotes sustainability with 75% of this year's wines being farmed and produced sustainably.

Lynn Golf Club Honors Champs

Lynn Golf Club celebrated their numerous golfing champions at their annual presentation evening after another great year for the club. The trio of Luke Johnson, Paul Reade and Ian Hardy won the county team shield for the second year in a row.
Johnson also won the County Amateur title with a fantastic score of 6 under par for the four rounds.

While the county team shield was certainly the largest trophy of the night, it was by no means the only one - 14 junior trophies, 19 ladies trophies and 28 men’s trophies.
Winner received a cup or shield, along with beautifully engraved crystal awards.
Thanks go to Dawn for organizing all the engraving and managing to accurately match up 61 Golf Trophies with the correct 61 engraved crystal awards.

Among the ladies, special mention goes to Juliet Fenton, who at the tender age of 14, has managed to win the junior girl championship and become ladies’ club champion in the same year.Most improved girl for the year was Aimee Rudd and, for the boys, Ben Reed had a great year, winning the John Pink Salver and the Dot Barrett Trophy.

Special mention also to Paul Savage for winning the main knockout Trophy of the year - the Ramsden Cup - and the overall order of merit - the Geoff Higgins Trophy.
Off his low handicap, this was a stunning double.

More than 100 people enjoyed a great presentation evening with complimentary wine and a variety of food prepared and served by Andy, Maria and Mark. Congratulations to all 61 Lynn champions, who made it another special year at the club.

Cardiff Brothers’ War Plaques to be Auctioned

Poignant plaques commissioned to honor the lives of two Cardiff brothers killed during the Great War are set to go under the hammer. The plaques will be part of a large sale of militaria – including custom medals, uniforms, guns and swords. The memorial plaques, which are made of bronze, remember siblings Private Arthur Jenkins and Walter John Jenkins, who came from Grangetown and gave their lives for their country.

Arthur, of the 2nd Battalion Welsh Regiment, was killed in action on August 23, 1916, while Walter, of the Royal Guernsey Light Infantry, was killed on March 21, 1918. The plaques were sent to their parents John and Hanna Jenkins, of Stoughton Street, Grangetown, as a token of recognition for their sons’ service. Now they are due to go to auction at a Bristol auction house on Tuesday, November 29, where they are expected to fetch between £400 to £600.

Malcolm Claridge, a military specialist from Dreweatts auction house, said the fact the plaques were together implied they have always been kept as a pair. He said they came to auction from a local dealer after originally being consigned to an antiques market in 1994.

“It’s quite an interesting story – they were found in a flea market a few years ago,” Mr Claridge said. “It was very common. Memorial plaques were given if you were killed in action and sent to your mother or wife. During the 1920s, there would have been thousands of them around – that is what you got for serving your country.”

Medal Dreams Live On for Sam

Sascoc president Gideon Sam says he has not given up on his dream of 12 medals in the 2012 Olympic Games. "The truth of the matter is we've been very strict in terms of ensuring that those who get onto that plane would have worked hard and by April (2012) we will look at what we've got," he told reporters in Johannesburg.

"I have to put my foot down and ensure that we raise the bar once we are there what happened after 1996 by allowing things to sink a little we end up with one medal."
Sam said the dream of a string of medals was still alive. "The athletes have worked hard and administrators worked hard, but there are still certain things that are missing that we need to address."

Sam said Sascoc called on the various national federations in 2009 to nominate their leading athletes. The Olympic body's high performance unit then identified the elite athletes that formed part of the Operation Excellence who were given support.
Sascoc had through the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund distributed more than R500-million to the various federations. Sam said it was unacceptable that they had not had satisfactory medals results yet. He was, however, optimistic the efforts they had put in would bear fruit next year and the years to come.

Hilton Head High Boys Run to 3rd Straight State Title

Hilton Head High's cross country teams have made a tradition of returning from northeast Columbia with trophies and custom medals in tow. The Seahawks won their third consecutive Class 3-A boys state title Saturday morning at the Sandhills Research Center, edging Wade Hampton of Greenville by six points, while the girls team earned its second consecutive runner-up trophy after winning the state championship in 2008 and 2009.

"I'm extremely pleased," Seahawks coach Bill Wrightson said. "The boys team lost four of our seven varsity runners from last year, and the girls lost three of last year's seven. To come back and do this is pretty special."

Junior Jack Manesiotis was the Class 3-A individual state champion, leading the race from start to finish. "From about 800 meters on I never looked back," said Manesiotis, who posted a time of 15 minutes, 36 seconds -- 43 seconds ahead of his closest competitor. "I could hear the crowd yelling for the people behind me, but I just didn't look back and gave it everything I had."

Alex Couch and Colton Hennessey finished sixth and ninth for the Seahawks and were named all-state performers.

Mabati Rolling Mills wins Company of the Year Award

Mabati Rolling Mills set a new record in corporate management and leadership after it was declared the Company of the Year Award (COYA) for the fourth time at a ceremony held on Wednesday night in Nairobi. MRM had previously won the 2003, 2007 and 2009 editions of the annual corporate awards sponsored by Kenya Institute of Management (KIM). The steel firm beat 47 other contenders to the trophy during the 12th edition of the awards gala night held at the Safari Park Hotel.


MRM’s chief executive officer Mr Kaushik Shah bagged the CEO of the Year award while British American Company (Britak) CEO Benson Wairegi walked away with the runners up trophy. In recognizing MRM as the top company, the judges said that the firm had shown unparalleled commitment to continual institutional improvement in its operations.

“MRM is a stable company with a conscientious, focused and highly disciplined leadership. It has got sound institutional systems, instruments and mechanisms that have placed it at the very top in its core business in the region and beyond,” the judge’s citation read in part. The company was also commended for being sensitive to the environment and its workforce.

Nation Media Group won three runners up trophies for its excellence in Leadership and Management, Human Resource Focus and in Innovation and Knowledge Management.

Historical Society to Plaque Two Dundee Homes

The Dundee Township Historical Society will present plaques to two historic homes at 2 p.m. Sunday. Each year the society recognizes sites with plaques that are considered historically significant. The site must be at least 100 years old, according to a news release from the historical society.

The grand Victorian home on Oregon Street began life as a small house believed 
to have been built in the mid 19th century. It was expanded sometime in the late 1800s to the three-story Victorian existing today. The beautiful painted ceiling in the front parlor has stood the test of time. What is the connection between this house and the infamous cooper, abolitionist, detective Alan Pinkerton?

The second home to be honored is located on Washington Street with a view of old “Tower Park.” Its original design was Victorian, but during the time of the Arts and Crafts movement of the early 20th century, the design was changed. For more than 100 years it has stood as a brick and stucco Prairie Style home. The woodwork is a fine example of the artistry of the craftsmen of the time.

Join society members and learn the history of the sites and the people who lived in these homes. The museum is at 426 Highland Ave., West Dundee. There is no charge for the program. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call the museum at 847-428-6996 or visit dundeetownshiphistorical.org.