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Kansas City News Today Kansas City Front Page is a weekly news publication, with daily updates, spotlighting attractions, events, business and hospitality in Kansas City. |
KANSAS CITY NEWS TODAY - Friday, January 2, 2009 
KANSAS CITY, MO, (PRNewswire-USNewswire), January 2, 2009 - Bayer Advanced won its ninth consecutive Rose Parade trophy with its Garden of Oz float during the January 1, 2009, Rose Parade. Bayer Advanced makes consumer rose care products that make it easy to grow Rose Parade-quality roses in your own backyard. Tournament of Roses judges awarded the Bayer Advanced float the Fantasy Trophy for most outstanding display of fantasy and imagination. Bayer Advanced is a three-time winner of the Fantasy Trophy. "It's an honor to be recognized with our ninth consecutive trophy for the Bayer Advanced Garden of Oz Rose Parade float," said Mark Schneid, head of marketing for Bayer Advanced. "The Garden of Oz is symbolic of the type of wishes Bayer Advanced grants: Rose Parade-quality roses in your own backyard." Kansas City, Mo., is the home of Bayer CropScience's core technology center; the company's Bayer Advanced arm is the float's sponsor. The theme for the 120th Rose Parade was Hats off to Entertainment. Bayer Advanced and Pasadena-based Phoenix Decorating, the largest Rose Parade float builder, created the float that salutes one of the most entertaining and popular movies of all time: The Wizard of Oz, which was released in 1939. The American Film Institute considers it one of America's 10 greatest films. Warner Bros. has launched a 70th anniversary celebration. Key Features of the Bayer Advanced Garden of Oz Float
Children International Wins Award for Social Networking to Help Poor Children Around the World KANSAS CITY, MO, (PRNewswire-USNewswire), December 29, 2008 - Children International, a humanitarian organization with headquarters in Kansas City, has won an award for using the internet to connect new supporters with poor children around the world. The charity received the Innovator Award from Convio, an internet marketing company, provider, forits Lift One Project - a social networking tool - to help reach its goal of providing sponsorship assistance to 400,000 children by the year 2011. Steven Forsey from North Tonawanda, New York, recently won a contest using this social networking tool. Forsey said, "Children International has ignited a firestorm of interest and captured people's true inherent passions for giving and selfless service.Children International is enlisting sponsorship activism at home, in our neighborhoods, at our workplaces, and in and around our communities, essentially taking sponsorship back to the places where it starts." Over 4,000 people have signed up to use Lift One since its launch in November 2007, and are helping lift poor children from poverty around the world as a result of their online campaigns. Children International President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Cook stated, "We are very grateful for winning this award, but more proud of helping children who live in poverty. Using the internet is an economical way to broaden our family of sponsors who want to help poor children." Tour of Missouri Officially Announces Dates and Upgrade to "Above Category" Ranking for 2009 KANSAS CITY, MO, (kansascityfrontpage.com), December 29, 2008 - The Tour of Missouri, which enters its third year in 2009, has formally announced its official dates as September 7th - 13th, as well as an upgrade to the highest status from the international governing body for the sport of cycling. The upgrade raises the level to a 2.Hors Category from the Union Cycliste Internationale, the governing body for world cycling, and USA Cycling, the national governing body for the sport in America. The upgrade from 2.1 last year to an 'above category' ranking will put the Tour of Missouri on par with a mere handful of major professional stage races outside of Europe. The only other American race with an equivalent ranking is the Amgen Tour of California, which will be staged February 13-22. "The success of the first two years is really astounding," said Missouri's Lt. Governor Peter Kinder, who also serves as chairman of Tour of Missouri, Inc., the event's rights holder. "Due to its overwhelming success, the international governing body as well as USA Cycling have recognized all the good work done by host communities, state tourism, race organizers, and, of course, our sponsors. This marks a great step for the event and bodes well for the people supporting this great race." Lt Governor Kinder added that the 2008 Tour of Missouri attracted spectators from 32 states and 21 countries. An estimated 434,000 saw part of the event, making it Missouri's largest single international sporting event. Television coverage through FOX Sports Midwest and Fox Sports-Kansas City and up to three hours daily live via the web on universalsports.com and tourofmissouri.com extended the Tour's reach to more than five million viewers. Added Chris Aronhalt, managing partner of Event Managers Medalist Sports: "The meteoric rise of this event is a testament to the leadership and vision at the state level. An event of this size and magnitude can only be achieved with the proper support from both the public and private sectors. The people within the state have embraced this event and helped propel it to prominence." The year's race was won by American Christian Vande Velde of the Garmin-Chipotle team. Earlier in 2008, Vande Velde finished fourth in the Tour de France and was the highest-placing American. British sprinting sensation Mark Cavendish of America's Team Columbia won three stages of the race. "Being a Midwestern guy (from Chicago area), the Tour of Missouri was the perfect way to end the year, with a major race on domestic soil. It's amazing how this event has grown in only two years," Vande Velde said at the end of last year's event. "This has the feeling of a top race in Europe. Plus, the race was super hard...everywhere we went, there were great crowds. It's obviously promoted well and the organization is top notch." The race will start on Labor Day for the first time and conclude six days later on Sunday. Route host cities will be announced in late January in Jefferson City at a press conference.   The Kansas City Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Kansas City area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 2007 - 2009 Moore Design Group. |
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