The 2nd Annual All Women Art Exhibition Can Now Be Seen Online

Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery is extremely pleased to announce that its February 2013 online art exhibition is now posted on their website and is ready to view online.

Jupiter, Florida, USA – February 1, 2013 — Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery is extremely pleased to announce that its February 2013 online art exhibition is now posted on their website and is ready to view online. The theme for this art exhibition is “All Women”. The gallery received a broad selection of 2D media from women artists only, from around the world.

An international online art competition was held in January 2013 which determined and judged the art for this exhibition. The gallery received and judged 909 entries from — 26 different countries from around the world and they also received entries from 36 different states.

Congratulations to all of the artists who have been designated as this month’s category winners, along with the winning Special Recognition artists. The gallery commends all of the winning artists for their artistic skill and their creativity, as this online art exhibition is indicative of their creativity.

To proceed to the galleries 2nd Annual “All Women” online art exhibition follow this link: http://www.lightspacetime.com/all-women-art-exhibition-february-2013/

Each month Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery conducts themed online art competitions for 2D artists. All participating winners of each competition have their artwork exposed and promoted online through the online gallery to thousands of visitors each month. If you know of a talented 2D artist who may benefit from the exposure and the publicity that the gallery can provide to them, please forward this press release to them.

About Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery

Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery offers monthly art competitions and monthly art exhibitions for new and emerging artists. Light Space & Time’s intention is to showcase this incredible talent in a series of monthly themed art competitions and art exhibitions by marketing and displaying the exceptional abilities of these artists.

The art gallery website can be viewed here: http://www.lightspacetime.com

Media Contact:
John R. Math
Light Space & Time Online Gallery
118 Poinciana Drive
Jupiter, FL 33458
888-490-3530
info@lightspacetime.com
http://www.lightspacetime.com

SAFE International Launches Ottawa Executive Self Defense Lessons– Ottawa, ON Self Defense

SAFE International is expanding its seminar options to include executive self defense lessons in Ottawa, ON.

Ottawa, ON, January 31, 2013 – (Straight Line PR) – Ottawa Self Defense, SAFE International Launches Ottawa Executive Self Defense Lessons.

SAFE International ™ is the leading provider of mobile self defense/personal protection training in Canada. SAFE International has taught more than 175,000 clients in the private, corporate and high school environments since 1994. SAFE International is expanding its seminar options to include executive self defense lessons in Ottawa, ON.

SAFE International realizes that busy executives don’t necessarily want to join a martial arts club, or have the time to take a public self defense seminar. SAFE International will provide their mobile self defense right in the office. This allows SAFE International instructors to tailor the course based on the specific needs and concerns of the client. Self defense training in the office allows the client to be completely relaxed and comfortable training even with their busy and hectic schedules.

One of the reasons that SAFE International enjoys teaching executive personal protection Ottawa, is how receptive men and women are to the skills that the SAFE International instructors provide. SAFE International teaches self defense concepts, rather than techniques. This allows the client to learn in a much shorter time. While some people have hours to dedicate to training, SAFE International can offer some basic, but effective self defense concepts in just a few hours.

SAFE International always covers Awareness and Avoidance strategies which are based on one’s daily routines such as using elevators, car safety, home safety, plus much more.  We examine what an attacker looks for, what an attacker wants and doesn’t want in confrontation. One of the biggest topics we explore is how most people are too polite, even when their intuition is telling them the complete opposite.  We cover the most common distraction techniques an attacker will use to gain an advantage such as asking for directions or the time. The next stage is verbal strategies in the event that avoidance is no longer possible.  Rather than just teaching to yell at a potential attacker, SAFE International covers a few verbal strategies based on the aggressor and the scenario.

The third step is addressing the physical aspect of Ottawa executive self defense lessons. Instructors begin with the advantages of adopting a passive stance rather than an aggressive stance.  SAFE teaches gross motor strikes due to the adrenal rush one gets when they are in a highly stressful state such as an attack scenario.  Complex skills are proven to be ineffective in the high stress of real violence. The main philosophy taught is to “Attack the Attacker” which reverses one from being the Prey, to that of being the Predator.

SAFE International does not teach martial arts, but rather, practical, easy to adopt and highly effective concepts. Ottawa Personal Protection for executives is available one on one or to a small group right at your location/office.

SAFE International has taught more than 175,000 clients including many in the corporate environment. To contact SAFE International and Chris Roberts to schedule your Self Defense lessons for executives, you can visit their main site at www.safeinternational.biz

You can also reach Chris Roberts toll free at 1-800-465-5972 or by email at chrisroberts@safeinternational.biz

Contact:
Chris Roberts
SAFE International™
15535 Cooper Rd.
Lunenburg, ON
Canada K0C 1R0
1 800 465-5972
chrisroberts@safeinternational.biz
http://www.safeinternational.biz

United Way Re-Opens SparkPoint Oakland Financial Help Center for Low-Income Residents

Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Oakland Mayor Jean Quan Attend Re-Opening of SparkPoint Financial Education Center.

OAKLAND, CA, USA (January 31, 2013) — The United Way of the Bay Area will hold an Open House and Ribbon-Cutting today, Thursday, January 31, from 3:00 to 5:30 p.m., to celebrate the new downtown Oakland location for SparkPoint, the financial education center that offers a wide range of services to help people achieve financial stability. Scheduled to be on hand for the ribbon cutting are Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, and Councilperson Desley Brooks.

The SparkPoint program now has 10 Bay Area locations, as well as three locations in Fresno and Orange County. Today’s ribbon-cutting on the Oakland SparkPoint center at Eastmont Town Center is partly a celebration of the first SparkPoint Center that opened in Oakland in March 2009. With the relocation to the Eastmont Town Center, SparkPoint now has a larger facility in a permanent home ready to assist East Bay residents.

The SparkPoint Centers have offered a model for community outreach to assist families in achieving financial sustainability. SparkPoint brings together non-profit and government partners to help its clients increase their income, build assets, and manage their debt. Clients are assigned a financial coach who works with them for two to three years to help them achieve financial stability.

Since it was founded, more than 8,000 individuals have received assistance from SparkPoint Oakland. The typical SparkPoint client is female, head of household, earning $30,000 or less. With the aid of SparkPoint services, the average client is able to raise his or her credit score by 80 points, increase savings $215, reduce debt by $1,710, and increase annual income by $9,132.

“Finding a permanent home for SparkPoint Oakland has always been our goal, and with the move to Eastmont Town Center, we now have a central location that will make our services more accessible to better serve the community,” said Lorne Needle, Chief Community Investment Officer for United Way of the Bay Area. “Seventeen and one-half percent of Oakland residents currently live below the poverty line. With support from services such as SparkPoint, we hope to be able to help low-income residents achieve financial stability. Already our clients tell us they love the new location, and we are seeing more new clients than ever.”

The SparkPoint initiative is part of the United Way’s response to address the systemic issues that keep families in poverty. The United Way’s goal is to reduce poverty in the Bay Area by 50 percent by the year 2020. To achieve that goal, the initiative has targeted four at-risk groups: female-headed households, families with young children, linguistically isolated individuals, and those with a high school diploma or less.

Major funding for the SparkPoint Oakland and for other SparkPoint programs in the Bay Area comes from generous donations by Chevron and Wells Fargo.

About SparkPoint Centers
Created by United Way of the Bay Area, SparkPoint Centers are one-stop, financial education centers that help individuals and families who are struggling to make ends meet. SparkPoint helps clients address immediate financial crises, get back on their feet, and build financially secure futures. Each center brings together a full range of services at one convenient location, including job training, career development, and financial coaching, as well as access to higher education and savings accounts. Every SparkPoint client is provided a coach who helps create a step-by-step plan to set and achieve financial goals. United Way’s SparkPoint model has garnered both national and international attention with poverty experts traveling from around the country and as far away as the Netherlands to study it. Learn more at http://www.sparkpointcenters.org.

About United Way of the Bay Area
United Way of the Bay Area is a nonprofit organization, leading a movement to cut Bay Area poverty in half by 2020. We’re harnessing the collective power of nonprofits, government, corporations, labor and thousands of individuals to create change through giving, advocating, and volunteering. Every year, our programs – SparkPoint, Earn It! Keep It! Save It!, 211, MatchBridge and Community Schools – help more than 250,000 Bay Area residents. We connect people to food and shelter, put people back to work, bring tax dollars back to our community, help youth succeed in school and in the workplace, and move people toward financial stability. Founded in 1922, United Way of the Bay Area serves Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Solano Counties. For more information, visit http://www.uwba.org.

Media Contact:
Micheline Savarin
United Way of the Bay Area
221 Main Street, Suite 300
San Francisco, CA 94105
415-808-4409
msavarin@uwba.org
http://www.uwba.org

Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery Creates New Award Category

Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery is pleased to announce that they have created a new award category for their future art competitions.

Jupiter, Florida, USA – January 31, 2013 — Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery is pleased to announce that they have created a new award category for their future art competitions. The award category that was has been created is called “Special Merit” and its purpose is primarily for artists who were being excluded from being recognized further for outstanding art due to size limitations for each of the gallery’s monthly exhibitions.

John R. Math, Gallery Director states this about this new category, “Since we started the Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery we were always frustrated that we were unable to include more artists in the top tier of our media categories. There always seemed to be several special pieces that we thought could easily been included but were not, due to the competition’s size constraints.”

Math continues with his thoughts about the award, “The art which will be selected for this category is art that could have been placed in the top tier of the entries selected from the various media categories. The only reason that any of this art was being excluded from the top tier was due to the size constraints of that particular competition. Otherwise, the Special Merit art, in many cases, is interchangeable with the best art that we select for any of our shows.” The Special Merit awards will be selected from the Special Recognition art.

Each month Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery conducts themed online art competitions for 2D artists. All participating winners of each competition have their artwork exposed and promoted online through the online gallery to thousands of visitors each month. If you know of a talented 2D artist who may benefit from the exposure and the publicity that the gallery can provide to them, please forward this press release to them.

About Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery

Light Space & Time Online Art Gallery offers monthly art competitions and monthly art exhibitions for new and emerging artists. Light Space & Time’s intention is to showcase this incredible talent in a series of monthly themed art competitions and art exhibitions by marketing and displaying the exceptional abilities of these artists.

The art gallery website can be viewed here: http://www.lightspacetime.com

Media Contact:
John R. Math
Light Space & Time Online Gallery
118 Poinciana Drive
Jupiter, FL 33458
888-490-3530
info@lightspacetime.com
http://www.lightspacetime.com

FPL launches PoweringFlorida.com – a new online resource to help strengthen Florida’s competitive business advantage and grow the state’s economy

FPL President Eric Silagy said, “as the largest electric utility and one of the largest companies in Florida, we believe we have a responsibility to help grow our state’s economy and create jobs for our fellow Floridians. When Florida’s economy grows, everyone wins.”

JUNO BEACH, Fla., Jan. 31, 2013 — Florida Power & Light Company’s Office of Economic Development today announced the launch of PoweringFlorida.com – a new online resource dedicated to helping businesses start up, expand or relocate their operations in Florida.

The initiative builds on FPL’s existing economic development efforts, which include special discounted electric rates to promote Florida to new and expanding businesses that create jobs for Floridians.

“As the largest electric utility and one of the largest companies in Florida, we believe we have a responsibility to help grow our state’s economy and create jobs for our fellow Floridians. When Florida’s economy grows, everyone wins,” said FPL President Eric Silagy. “A discount on FPL’s already-low rates can help businesses set up shop and expand in our service territory, which covers about half the state, but PoweringFlorida.com is designed to help expand the economy across the entire state.”

PoweringFlorida.com showcases the diverse benefits that Florida has to offer and empowers all of our local communities with tools to help them to market the unique values that each corner of the state has to offer,” Silagy said.

“Economic development is a team sport. I am grateful to FPL for providing a product to enhance not only the competitiveness of the communities in their territory but also in the entire state. These strategic partnerships are critical to getting Floridians back to work,” said Florida Secretary of Commerce Gray Swoope, president and CEO of Enterprise Florida Inc., the state’s principal economic development organization.

PoweringFlorida.com offers two sets of services:

• One-Stop Shop for Site Selectors: PoweringFlorida.com provides thousands of site-selection experts across the globe with direct access to information about Florida’s workforce, available real estate, utility rate options and potential discounts and incentives – all information that is essential to selecting a location for new or expanding business operations.

• Market Resource Center for Local Economic Development Organizations: PoweringFlorida.com also provides local agencies in Florida tailored data about their communities that can help them better market their strengths and target businesses best-suited for their specific economic and workforce profiles.

“Never before has all this information existed in one place,” said Lynn Pitts, director of FPL’s Office of Economic Development. “It’s taken many months to build, but the benefits are limitless.”

For the first time together on one site, PoweringFlorida.com integrates independent third-party data from GIS Planning and Economic Modeling Specialists Intl. (EMSI), specialists in location scouting and workforce evaluation, respectively. FPL is providing access free-of-charge for local economic development agencies in Florida that do not currently have these capabilities.

“Across the country, companies looking to expand are demanding reliable and accessible information to guide their decisions, and to maximize their investments,” said Del Boyette, president and CEO of Boyette Strategic Advisors, a leading site consulting firm. “PoweringFlorida.com has achieved a first: bringing the best planning and workforce data together in one click. What that means for companies and their site selectors is unfiltered and unparalleled insight – county by county and block by block. What that means for Florida is a competitive advantage for the right types of jobs and investment.”

“We greatly benefit from a strong partnership with FPL and its Office of Economic Development. FPL’s enhanced marketing efforts and resources provided to economic development organizations and the state are proving to be valuable assets for attracting and expanding business in Florida,” said Kelly Smallridge, president and CEO of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County.

“FPL is a strong economic development partner in the Northeast Florida region. Beyond providing a discounted rate incentive, the FPL team is aggressively marketing the state to attract economic development projects. We appreciate the assistance and support that FPL provides to our partner counties to grow our region’s economy,” said Jerry Mallot, president of JAXUSA Partnership of the Greater Jacksonville Region.

PoweringFlorida.com is live now for site selectors worldwide and local economic development organizations in Florida. FPL plans to demonstrate the website’s functions to local economic development stakeholders at Enterprise Florida Inc.’s meeting in Tallahassee later this week.

Visit PoweringFlorida.com to learn more.

Florida Power & Light Company
Florida Power & Light Company is the largest electric utility in Florida and one of the largest rate-regulated utilities in the United States. FPL serves approximately 4.6 million customer accounts and is a leading Florida employer with approximately 10,000 employees. The company consistently outperforms national averages for service reliability while its typical residential customer bills, based on data available in December 2011, are about 25 percent below the national average. A clean energy leader, FPL has one of the lowest emissions profiles and one of the leading energy efficiency programs among utilities nationwide. FPL is a subsidiary of Juno Beach, Fla.-based NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information, visit http://www.FPL.com.

Media Contact:
FPL Media Line
Florida Power & Light Company
700 Universe Blvd.
Juno Beach, FL 33408
305-552-3888
amelia.gomez@rbbpr.com
For more information, visit: http://www.poweringflorida.com