A year ago, Falaniko Penesa, 26, of Upolu, Apia, Samoa, finished second in the World Fireknife Championship, losing out to five-time champion Mikaele Oloa of Waialua, Hawaii.
Penesa spent the past year “practicing every day to make my moves flow” and the hard work paid off, as he won the 25th Annual World Fireknife Championship on Saturday night (May 13), beating out Oloa by one point on the combined scorecards of the seven judges. Kepanipaa Damaso of Waikoloa, Hawaii finished third.
Penesa, who performs at Hong Kong Disneyland, dazzled the sold-out crowd at the Polynesian Cultural Center’s Pacific Theater with an amazing routine that had him spinning, twirling and juggling one and two fireknives at lightning-fast speed, often behind his back and overhead.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8105951-world-fireknife-championship-falaniko-penesa/
New survey results from Connections Academy, http://www.connectionsacademy.com, one of the country’s leading providers of full-time online school for students in grades K through 12, reveals the reasons parents enroll their children in online schools. The results are from the Connections Academy 2014 Parent Satisfaction Survey, an annual third-party survey now in its twelfth year. All families with students enrolled at the time of the survey were invited to participate – 45% of the families responded to the survey, totaling more than 18,000 respondents. The survey results suggest key explanations for the continuing growth of virtual schooling in the United States.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7067853-connections-academy-parent-survey-why-k-12-students-attend-online-schools-full-time/
Continuing a multi-year string of quality and reliability awards and accolades, J.D. Power’s 2017 Initial Quality Study (IQS) today recognized Kia Motors as the highest-ranking nameplate in the United States for the second year in a row. Kia’s improvement to 72 problems per 100 vehicles marks the best nameplate performance within the last 20 years of the study, driven by five segment awards – the most of any nameplate — for the Soul (Compact Multi-Purpose Vehicle), Forte (Compact Car), Cadenza (Large Car), Niro (Small SUV) and Sorento (Midsize SUV). The Kia Soul took home an IQS award for the third consecutive year while Kia’s two newest models, Cadenza and Niro, were outstanding performers in their first model year, with the Kia Cadenza earning the top score among all models ranked in the study. Together with the Optima and Sportage , each of the seven award eligible Kia models included in the 2017 IQS study finished first or second in their respective categories.
To view the multimedia release go to:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8016954-kia-j-d-power-initial-quality-study/
Debt is a buzzword for politicians, a burden for students, a necessity for most homeowners and a reality for 70 percent of Americans.
But despite this fact, 30 percent of those in debt have no plan to pay it off, according to a recent survey conducted by Fifth Third Bank (NASDAQ: FITB).
Fifth Third commissioned the national survey to examine the financial beliefs and behaviors of American adults. The results provided a snapshot of our nation’s financial literacy, with 82 percent of respondents citing financial independence as a goal in their lives. The survey also revealed how the three largest generations in America differ in their understanding and management of savings, budgeting, retirement planning and credit.
“At Fifth Third, we were curious to discover how knowledgeable Americans are about their personal finances,” said Jada Grandy, senior vice president and Community Reinvestment Act strategies director, Fifth Third Bank. “The results of this survey give insight into financial literacy in America, as well as the needs of customers at different key stages of their lives. This knowledge arms Fifth Third with the tools to support our customers at every step on their journey to financial independence.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7723851-fifth-third-bank-life/
https://youtu.be/q99R4eCNneY Website visitors are more likely to become buying customers if you have live chat, according to a recent survey that found that “31% of online shoppers said they would be more likely to buy after having a live chat conversation”. That means you have the chance to increase conversions by almost one-third simply by adding live chat to your customer support benefits. Watch this video for 6 powerful ways Rhino Support Live Chat will make your life easier.
Only twenty nine percent of Hispanics who rent their homes report having renters insurance, according to a new survey by State Farm. In fact, among respondents without renters insurance more than one third (34%) said they had never heard of renters insurance. Further, most overestimated the cost of coverage and underestimated the value of their property. Not having renters insurance could leave Hispanic families vulnerable to a financial catastrophe especially during the holiday season.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/72928515-state-farm-hispanic-renters-survey/
The European Head and Neck Society (EHNS) and the Make Sense Campaign, today announced the launch of the Third Annual Head and Neck Cancer Awareness week (21–25 September). Through the pan-European Awareness Week, the EHNS and Make Sense Campaign promote education on head and neck cancer risk factors, disease prevention and disease signs and symptoms for both patients and healthcare professionals.
“Each year 350,000 people are diagnosed with head and neck cancer across Europe, and over half will not be alive after five years. However, if diagnosed and treated earlier, patients can have an 80 – 90% survival rate.” said Professor René Leemans, President of the EHNS and Professor and Chief of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at VU University Medical Centre. “Through the Make Sense Campaign we are educating people about the early signs of the disease and encouraging them to seek professional help in a timely manner. Additionally, we are advocating for the best possible standards of patient care so that their outcomes can be optimised once they have been diagnosed with the disease.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/7628151-support-head-neck-cancer-patients/
As of this weekend, the City of Essen is officially the European Green Capital. The Lord Mayor of Essen Thomas Kufen launched the title year together with the EU Environment Commissioner Karmenu Vella during a creative orchestrated stage show. Other well-known guests included representatives from the EU, the Federal Government and the State of NRW, such as German Federal Minister for Environment Dr Barbara Hendricks and Minister for Environment for North Rhine-Westphalia Johannes Remmel. Many thousands of visitors came to the subsequent Culture and Families Festival in the Grugapark.
The Lord Mayor of Essen Thomas Kufen emphasised: “Our motto for 2017 is to ‘experience your green miracle’. We would like to invite people from Europe and across the globe to visit us in 2017 and experience their own green miracle. Our city offers many surprises - the opening weekend proved this impressively.” The third greenest city in Germany showed what it was capable of during the Culture and Families Festival. The themes accompanying the City of Essen throughout the title year turned into life in the form of illuminations, dance, theatre, sound installation, light labyrinth, walking acts, exhibitions and much more.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8024151-european-green-capital-essen-2017-launched/
Drivers of late-model pickup trucks are likely to find themselves squinting into the darkness or temporarily blinding other drivers, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's latest headlight ratings show.
All four small pickups evaluated are available only with headlights that earn a poor rating. The same goes for 3 out of 7 large pickups. Only one large pickup, the Honda Ridgeline, is available with good-rated headlights, though all but the most expensive trim levels come with poor ones.
Pickups are the third vehicle category to be put through the IIHS headlight evaluations. Midsize cars were the first in March, followed by small SUVs in July.
IIHS launched its headlight ratings after finding that government standards based on laboratory tests allow for huge variation in the amount of illumination headlights provide in on-road driving. In the Institute's evaluations, engineers measure how far light is projected from a vehicle's low beams and high beams as the vehicle travels straight and on curves. Glare from low beams for oncoming drivers also is measured.
Today, Fifth Third Bancorp and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) signed a landmark $30 billion community development plan through 2020. The plan builds on the $27.5 billion community commitment that Fifth Third announced in February 2016, and is the largest by a single bank in recent history.
A detailed summary of the agreement can be accessed at www.53.com/commitment.
The plan covers the 10 states in which Fifth Third has branches and follows weeks of discussions and six meetings between Fifth Third and community groups working with NCRC in Chicago, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Tampa Bay, and Washington, D.C. All told, Fifth Third met with more than 200 community-based organizations.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7723855-fifth-third-bank-ncrc-community-commitment/
Third Box, a new resource for the unsure women in an unintended pregnancy, today announced results of a recent survey demonstrating that despite the current polarizing two-box political approaches, one in four women in unintended pregnancies are unsure of what to do. This data corresponds with the organization’s expansion of its reach to women in California regions, and its footprint across the country providing free medical and emotional care, in a space apart from ideology or politics, with no bias toward outcome.
To view the Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7339251-third-box-sponsored-study-women-in-unintended-pregnancies-uncertain-national-expansion-campaign/
Being a professional financial planner requires more than just being good with numbers. Today’s advisors must develop skills that can help them build personal ties with clients, understand their needs and create a strategy to help families pursue their goals.
Eager to produce “job ready” graduates, many universities and colleges are teaching the real world skills young advisors need in the workplace. And to help more schools take their programs to the next level, TD Ameritrade Institutional1 has awarded its third annual Next Gen Financial Planning Grants: a $50,000 grant to the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas, to expand an existing financial planning degree program, and $25,000 to Temple University in Philadelphia to foster development of a new program.
To view the multimedia news release visit
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7559051-td-ameritrade-scholarship-winners/
