PPAF February 2012 Newsletter

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2nd Annual Promotional Products Day in Tallahassee

Promotional Products Day

January 23^rd and 24th, 2012

On January 23^rd and 24^th an outstanding team of Supplier and Distributor volunteers and members of PPAF converged in our state capitol to accomplish two objectives:

1)  Enlighten our legislators as to the significance of the promotional products industry in the state     of Florida;

2) Garner support for Bills HR621 and SB482 as they move through committees.

PPAF lobbyist Mary Anne Stiles and our volunteers made terrific in-roads in accomplishing our goals. 

On Monday, Senator Jack Latvala, our Senate sponsor, met us.  Senator Latvala has been the guiding force behind our efforts in Tallahassee. He has taken the time to tour one of our supplier’s facilities, talked up our industry among colleagues, and even introduced an amendment on a bill specifically saying that it was not a Promotional Products amendment, but rather a Jack Latvala amendment because the issue affects workers in his home district. He has worked tirelessly on our behalf. Senator Latvala’s district includes a large part of both Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

Monday evening Ms. Stiles arranged a very personal and intimate gathering with Representative Jim Frishe .    Representative Frishe is the sponsor of our house bill.  He’s from the St. Pete Beach area and is a real friend of ours. We were very fortunate to have approximately 45 minutes of his undivided attention.  This time was very valuable as he is now able to put faces on our industry.  We as individuals, and our industry, are more than mere words in a bill. 

Watch for these two names as they know us and know our needs as an industry.

Tuesday morning quickly came and with the sun at our backs and full of enthusiasm for the day’ events our team arrived and quickly setup in the 3^rd floor lobby.  Display tables by Norwood/Bic, Hit Promotional Products, Camsing Global and TSF Sportswear were staffed by their representatives. 

For the first time we sent an intrepid team into the belly of the machine to visit with various staff members in both the Senate and House sides.   It worked!   Our team had very short, informative sessions to educate Representatives and Senators about our industry.  They all understood and were pleasantly surprised to learn about…the tens of thousands of individuals working in the promotional products industry in Florida. 

Many thanks to Norwood/BIC- Alissa Succi and Eileen Lynch, Hit Promotional Products- Teresa Eberling, TSF Sportswear – Ofelia Minagorri, Camsing Global – Mr. Nick Cappiello and the combined teams of PPAF and GCPPA, including Joe and Marsha Miller, Wayne Greenberg, and me.

If you have any contact or relationship with a member of the House, or a member of the Senate, please let us know.  You can be a contributor to beneficial legislation for our industry, and for you.

Yours truly,

John Houser

President, PPAF 2012

Promotional Products Day in Tallahassee

PPAF will be partnering with Give Kids The World in 2012 by adopting a villa.

PPAF Donates $500.00 to Gold Shield Foundation

In lieu of an annual holiday party for 2011, the Promotional Products Association of Florida gave back to the community by donating $500 to the Gold Shield Foundation.

The Gold Shield Foundation provides immediate financial assistance and insures a college education or vocational training for the spouse and dependent children of Florida law enforcement officers and firefighters of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Polk and Marion Counties killed in the line of duty. For more information on the Gold Shield Foundation please visit their website at www.goldshieldfoundation.com

DST Logo File available for download

For those Members requesting access to our logo dst file, click on this line to download.

http://ovr101.com/W413323A.DST