AW Lends a Helping Hand
Each year, thousands of volunteers join forces at “Hands On Charlotte Day” to make a huge impact on the local community. On October 18, volunteers participated in dozens of projects, from beautifying area schools and parks to sorting clothing and food donations and much more.
Addison Whitney employees and their families joined in on the fun as part of a new corporate initiative called “AW Helping Hands.” We started our day with a kick-off celebration at the EpiCentre (Charlotte's newest Uptown hot spot). Starbuck’s coffee helped take off the chill at the open air pavilion, so we could listen to words of inspiration and get revved up for our day of hard work. Speakers included County Commissioner Jennifer Roberts and US Olympic Women's Basketball coach Anne Donovan. From there, we all dispersed to our individual project sites.
Our team’s project was at Irwin Avenue Elementary. We were asked to help beautify the school grounds by re-mulching playgrounds, pulling weeds, planting flowers and shrubs, and building planter benches. Our team did a fantastic job and had a lot of fun! We worked hard to see that everything was done well and looked great. Click here to see photos!
About Hands On Charlotte:
Founded in 1991, Hands On Charlotte, a nonprofit volunteer service organization, provides individuals, families, businesses and community groups with volunteering opportunities that are flexible, rewarding and fun. Over the years, they have become Charlotte's number one source for volunteering, engaging thousands of volunteers annually. Hands On Charlotte is an affiliate of HandsOn Network.
2008 Addison Whitney Pumpkin Carving Contest
After much rivalry, smack-talk, and closed-door sessions, the 2008 pumpkin line-up was revealed yesterday for AW's Third Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest.
Each year, the competition gets more fierce, and this year was no exception. Teams pulled out all the stops ... giving their pumpkins personalites, acting out skits, and even injecting a little multi-media into their presentations.
Check out the amazing entries below.
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Gen-Ed
What’s your generation?
Interbellum Generation (born 1901 - 1910)
Derived from the Latin inter- between and bellum- war, this generation was too young to have served in World War I, and generally too old for World War II.
The Greatest Generation (born 1901 - 1924)
This generation fought and/or kept the home front intact during World War II, honored by Tom Brokaw as the greatest generation any society has ever produced.
Silent Generation (born 1925 - 1945)
Too young to be world war two heroes, two old for the counterculture, this group is largely overlooked. Within it, however, exists American literary expatriates who lived in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, referred to as the Lost Generation.
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Handicapping the Pumpkin Teams
As Laine reported in her post, the gauntlet has been thrown down for the Third-Annual Addison Whitney Pumpkin Carving Contest. The rules are a bit different this year, which means that teams are crucial … and as a completely unbiased handicapper, I can say with confidence that my team will be the group to beat.
Check out our lineup:
Clayton Tolley: Hungry for a win this year, Clayton has been part of some of the most memorable AW pumpkin teams in history, helping to create the terrifying and lifelike Jaws pumpkin in 2006, and the elaborate pharmacist “Dr. Feelgood” pumpkin in 2007.
Meredith “blades” Badinelli: A self-proclaimed whiz with the knife, Meredith has also performed extensive market research on potential pumpkin motifs, pinpointing the idea most likely to resonate with our target audience.
Vince Budd has never met a squash he doesn’t like, and his calm demeanor is sure to play a key role guiding the team through the contest this year.
Paula Weigel: A potter, artist, and fellow creative, Paula is a reigning champ with her 2006 New Year’s theme and is always strong competition. Rumor has it that Paula will be changing the name of her private venture “Plays with Mud” to “Plays with Pumpkin Guts” for the event.
And last, but not least is our rookie, Jonathan “I put the Hall in Halloween”: A fresh face to the competition . . . can anyone say secret weapon?
Contributed by: Maghan Cook
AW's Pumpkin Carving Contest Begins!
Tensions are high around the office, as the AW team is gearing up for the annual pumpkin carving contest! Teams have been assigned, and this year there will only be three days given to carve. Stay tuned for more details and may the best pumpkin win!
{View pictures of the last two years of the contest on our PHOTOS page}
Contributed by Laine Beyerl
Employee Feature: Kelly Wilson
Name: Kelly Wilson
Job & Company: Senior Associate of Verbal Branding at Addison Whitney
On a road trip, my staple convenience store purchases are: Sweet Tarts and Salt & Vinegar Chips
If I could have a super power, it would be: reading minds
What's playing in your iPod right now?: Eddie Money!!!
Big Mac or Whopper?: Oh a Big Mac for sure....maybe 2!
Word Stretch #2: Freedom
FREEDOM: The quality of state of being free: independence / Exemption or release / Ease, facility / Frankness / Unrestricted use / A political right
At first glance the word freedom may not appear very ‘stretchable,’ but a quick trademark search reveals 94 registered or pending marks. Certainly a word that can apply to everything from herbicides to hotels has got some flexibility.
While looking over the various trademarks, I realized that “freedom” can be divided into four categories:
1. Freedom as a philosophy- meaning free will
Leveraging the emotions behind personal identity, name brands in this category suggest living independently and authentically – being who you want to be. Brands that use this angle would include Freedom surfboards, inline skates, and the Freedom cologne by Tommy Hilfiger.
2. Freedom with regard to politics- meaning liberty or right
Freedom in this case garners strong political or government connotations. Brand names under this category are literally relaying a sense of protection and government, including Freedom aircrafts, armored vests as well as the ever so popular Freedom fries.
3. Freedom from restriction- meaning relief, emancipation
Many products in the medical field use the word freedom to connote relief from discomfort or restraints. Fresenius has a Freedom home dialysis machine. Freedom pesticide suggests freeing your crops or land from pests.
4. Freedom to do things- meaning latitude, flexibility
The most ‘freeing’ category of the four, these trademarks suggest providing range and ability. Freedom communications suggests going and connecting wherever you want, and Winnebago’s Freedom motor home invites consumers to explore the open road.
Freedom is a concept that everyone can relate to in one way or another, which makes it a potent word in the naming industry. Of course, with 94 trademarks in the US alone, whether it’s ‘free’ to own or not is up to your trademark attorney.
Contributed by: Maghan Cook
Branding on a Budget
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With the economy slowing, many consumer brands are feeling the pressure to keep customers spending, which means better deals for us! Listed below are just a few brands that are attempting to leverage the recent economic crisis.
TARGET:
Target’s new TV ad campaign focuses on a more cost friendly approach to everyday life. The do-it-yourself spirit of the ad empowers customers to think about their everyday life differently. For example, riding a bike to work rather than worrying about expensive gas, cutting your children’s hair rather than taking them to the barbershop every 3 weeks and exercising at home rather than paying a costly gym membership. The ads encourage me to think about the necessities in my life and how I can find ways to simplify and reduce my spending.
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The Sweetest Day
It’s that time of year again! Have you stood in line to dig through all of the picked-over cards to find just the right one for this week’s special holiday? If you’re thinking to yourself “It’s not Christmas or Valentine’s Day, or even Halloween yet” then you’re right. This Saturday is actually “Sweetest Day.” Sweetest Day is a holiday set aside every third Saturday in October to celebrate the "occasion that offers all of us an opportunity to remember not only the sick, aged and orphaned, but also friends, relatives and associates whose helpfulness and kindness we have enjoyed" (according to Retail Confectioner’s International).
This much debated “candy” or “Hallmark” holiday can be traced back to the early 1920s and is said to have originated in Cleveland, Ohio by Herbert Birch Kingston, a local candy company employee. In 1921 he, along with other candy employees, formed a confectioner’s committee and provided over 20,000 candy gift baskets to orphans, the poor and others less fortunate. While the holiday has become mostly celebrated within the Great Lakes region, it is considered a holiday geared toward giving loved ones flowers, cards and candy. So, I don’t know about you, but I definitely can find reason in having another day dedicated to giving and receiving candy and chocolate!
By: Kelly Wilson
The Caducity of Words
A recent article in Time magazine highlighted group of words that are up for removal from the Collins English dictionary in order to make room for 2000 new entries. So hurry up and use these goodies while they still count!
Abstergent: Cleansing
Agrestic: Rural
Apodeictic: Unquestionably true by virtue of demonstration
Caducity: Perishableness
Caliginosity: Dimness
Compossible: Possible in coexistence with something else
Embrangle: To confuse
Exuviate: To shed
Fatidical: Prophetic
Fubsy: Squat
Griseous: Somewhat grey
Malison: A curse
Mansuetude: Gentleness
Muliebrity: The condition of being a woman
Niddering: Cowardly
Nitid: Bright
Olid: Foul-smelling
Oppugnant: Combative
Periapt: An amulet
Recrement: Refuse
Roborant: Tending to fortify
Skirr: A whirring sound, as of the wings of birds in flight
Vaticinate: Prophesy
Vilipend: To treat with contempt
Contributed by: Maghan Cook