Daily Archives: February 7, 2017

For Old Dominion, the thrill of making its first bowl appearance might have been tempered by the fear of losing money.

ODU wouldn't have been the first to end up in the red on a bowl trip, especially with international travel involved.

Instead, thanks to help from Conference USA and fundraising efforts, the Monarchs will land in the black. Athletic Director Wood Selig said when the numbers are finalized, he expects the trip to the Bahamas Bowl to have generated as much as $250,000.

"Everybody assumes that we took a beating financially going to this bowl game in the Bahamas," Selig said. "We're going to make money, and not just five or ten dollars. It'll be six figures that we'll benefit financially from this bowl experience. It exceeded all expectations."

To be sure, sending 200 people to Nassau for five days isn't cheap. In December, the Virginian-Pilot reported that ODU's expenses for the trip were expected to be nearly $587,000. That's in line with what Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky spent when they went to the Bahamas Bowl in 2015 and '14.

But Conference USA made things considerably easier by cutting ODU a check for almost $590,000. That was enough to cover two charter planes, 140 hotel rooms, and per-diems for 200 members of the Monarchs' travel party.

"We had a lot of our expenses covered up front as part of a really unique finance plan that Conference USA has implemented so that you don't go broke with the success of going to a bowl game," Selig said. "We did very well financially because the way the conference is set up."

Not every conference is as helpful. Two years ago, Central Michigan played WKU in the inaugural Bahamas Bowl. The Mid-American Conference fronted the school $450,000, but an Associated Press story reported that CMU claimed a loss of $145,000.

C-USA also allows each bowl participant to keep the first $100,000 it generates in ticket money with the remainder being split among membership. Old Dominion sold 1,786 tickets (including proxies) at $50 per. That's $89,300, all of which ODU was able to keep.

Old Dominion also received significant help from fans and boosters who wanted to help the football program make history. The Old Dominion Athletic Foundation's #ODUBowlBoundFund raised $160,000.

"That was a result of our donors saying, 'Hey, I'm so excited about the direction the program is going, I'm going to write you an extra check before the end of the year,'" Selig said. "People were underwriting dinners for the team. They were contributing to the travel costs and expense of the bowl."

Also beneficial to the football program and the university, for that matter was media exposure.

According to sportstvratings.com, the Bahamas Bowl was viewed in 1.37 million households. The 2010 Census concluded the average household has 2.58 people, so it can be estimated the game had more than 3 million viewers.

Played on Dec. 23, a Friday, and televised by ESPN, the Bahamas Bowl was the only game in the 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. slot. It led up to the Navy-Louisiana Tech game in the Armed Forces Bowl (which was viewed in 2.3 million households).

"It was a three-and-a-half-hour infomercial for Old Dominion University, for ODU athletics, for ODU football," Selig said. "The announcers were extremely positive about Coach (Bobby) Wilder, about the university, about the direction of our football program."

The bowl itself generated excitement among Monarch fans and alumni, but ODU's 24-20 win over Eastern Michigan provided even more. The university bookstore has sold 2,000 T-shirts, including several with "Bahamas Bowl Champions" in large print.

"I think I underestimated the value of winning a bowl game," Selig said. "Had we not won the game, people would have still recognized us and remembered the game. But because we actually won the game, that went further to advance ODU's brand."

Johnson can be reached by phone at 757-247-4649.

Here is the original post:

Conference USA helps Old Dominion make money on Bahamas Bowl trip - Daily Press

The BahamasPress.com is an online news operation in the Bahamas. On December 27, it reported, "Lyford Cay resident Papa Doug Manchester is being tipped as the next U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas under a Trump Administration." (Lyford Cay is a gated community on New Providence Island, Bahamas, considered one of the most affluent and exclusive communities in the world.)

I cannot find that other media have followed this or whether BahamasPress.com covered it again. I phoned Manchester's office and asked one of his assistants if he is in the running for ambassador to the Bahamas. She replied, "Not to my knowledge, no." She quickly added, "I don't want to discuss this with you" and hung up. I have not heard back from the Bahamas government.

Manchester is a multimillionaire real estate developer who once owned the San Diego Union-Tribune.

After Fidel Castro drove the American Mafia out of Cuba in the late 1950s and early 1960s, gangsters decided to make the Bahamas their next offshore gambling haven. Mob financier Meyer Lansky was the major planner. Casinos were set up in the Bahamas. But after the Bahamas got their freedom from Great Britain in 1973, the islands were not so friendly to mobsters, who moved their banking to the Cayman Islands.

The Bahamas were one of the early offshore banking havens. In 2009, when many nations were cracking down on offshore havens, Prime minister Hubert Ingraham said that banking secrecy was one of the pillars of the 50-year-old financial services sector, and there is no plan to change them. However, the Bahamas are not now considered one of the major bank-secrecy havens. Under certain circumstances, it will provide information to foreign governments.

Continued here:

Doug Manchester to be Bahama Papa for US? - San Diego Reader

By Local Organising Committee

IAAF World Relays

Bahamas 2017

A MAJOR sporting event such as the IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2017 can only be successful with the integration of volunteers.

For this years event the LOC is expecting more than 800 volunteers who will give of their time and talent to make the 2017 edition the best edition of the world event.

The hundreds of volunteers have been busy ironing out the logistical details for the relays including accreditation, attachs, translators, helpers and the like.

An event of this magnitude just doesnt happen, said Jerome Sawyer, IAAF World Relays communication director.

It is an intricate dance where many different partners and volunteers are a major participant in this dance. Without them we cant have a successful event.

Many of the volunteers are never seen and some are never at the track.

There are volunteer translators in the four major languages for the event - Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch - who will only be at the host hotels assisting athletes and will never be at the track and their service is just as important as the volunteers who run the athletes clothes baskets around the track, Sawyer added.

Many of the volunteers will be outfitted by the athletic equipment company ASICS which is the new uniform sponsor for volunteers.

The companys name is actually an acronym for the Latin phrase anima sana in corpore sano, which translates roughly as a healthy soul in a healthy body.

We have ordered a full complement of uniforms for our volunteers, said IAAF World Relays volunteer coordinator, Tarahan Mackey.

To make sure there they have everything needed for the IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2017, the LOC will use the Bahamas High school relays March 18-19 as a test event for the World Relays Bahamas 2017.

It will be a test to see if we have the full complement of our volunteers, staff and then we know we are going to work and how it will run functionally, Mackey added.

There will also be four classes for volunteers leading up to the main event in an effort to streamline the functionality of the volunteers.

We are hoping that the classes are filled, Mackey said. Hospitality is the only thing that we have, we have to be proponents of great and excellent service.

The 2017 programme for the IAAF World Relays includes heats and finals for the 4x100m, 4x200m, 4x400m, and the 4x800m for both men and women over the two days of competition.

Runners will also contest a mixed gender 4x400m event. The 2017 Relays are also included in the IAAF World Athletics Series of events.

The single session ticket prices for general admission is $15. Costs for the Silver section is $50, Bronze is $40 and the Gold section is $70.

Tickets are available for the relays online at NSA-Bahamas.com and at the box office at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

See more here:

Volunteers 'Good To Go' For Iaaf World Relays Bahamas - Bahamas Tribune

Tuesday, February 07, 2017 by: Sharell Lockhart, News Reporter - Published Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Lupus Bahamas President C. Tamika Lightbourne (left) thanked SpeedX Courier and Freight Services CEO Darrin Williams (right), for assisting the organization with securing new Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets for distribution throughout the Grand Bahama community.(PHOTO: JENN ...

Lupus Bahamas President C. Tamika Lightbourne thanked SpeedX Courier and Freight Services CEO Darrin Williams, for assisting the organization with securing new Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets for distribution throughout the Grand Bahama community.

The Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets is the second to be released of the Lupus Bahamas Organization six-part pamphlets series, which will provide factual information on the affects of Lupus, as well as symptoms, diagnosis and treatment availability.

According to Lightbourne, Today (Thursday, February 2), Lupus Bahamas is elated to have in hand a new educational pamphlet that is the second in our six-part Lets Unite & Fight Lupus Awareness Campaign.

Over the course of the next few months, the Lupus Bahamas organization will distribute the new Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets at public and private community clinics island-wide.

Lightbourne added that the organizations previous pamphlet provided general information about Lupus Bahamas, which is a non-profit organization. It also explained exactly what lupus is, its symptoms, categories and possible treatment options.

Additionally, it helped to explain Lupus Bahamas Vision, which is to constantly strive to empower and encourage those living with Lupus; to be a recognized organization inspired by passion for helping all affected by lupus continue to live great quality lives.

The Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlet is quite important as an estimated one-third to one-half of lupus patients develop lupus nephritis within the first six months to three years of their lupus diagnosis, which involves inflammation of the kidney that is caused by systemic lupus erythematous (SLE) and is an autoimmune disease in which the bodys immune system targets its own healthy body tissues.

Each year since the inception of Lupus Bahamas, organization members have traveled around the island speaking at various civic agencies, including the Rotary Club of Grand Bahama Sunrise informing the populous of its mission, which is to place priority on education and awareness through research and literature, believing that quality information is essential for improved health.

And also to foster learning and research success by working with doctors and medical professionals to promote proper and accurate diagnosis, which will further enhance the quality of treatments and health care throughout The Bahamas, revealed the Lupus Bahamas president.

During a speaking engagement at the Rotary Club of Grand Bahama Sunrise of which SpeedX Courier and Freight Services CEO Williams is an active member, Lupus Bahamas was able to strike a partnership with the businessman, who offered his companys courier service to bring in the new Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets.

Fervently in his belief that it is important for every business corporation to give back to the wider community, Williams said, Certainly is an honor for SpeedX to partner with Ms. Lightbourne and the Lupus Bahamas organization, which aims to enhance the Grand Bahama communitys education about lupus.

Definitely, I was impressed by the presentation made by Lupus Bahamas at the Rotary Club of Grand Bahama Sunrise meeting and following it, I sought to provide assistance to the organization through my company offering shipping and courier services to help lighten the load oftentimes placed upon the non-profit agencys finances.

SpeedX Courier and Freight Services has been operating on Grand Bahama for the past three years and I have always felt that companies across the island should step up to the plate and positively contribute to the community in which it earns profits.

Whenever possible, I do my best to help out various civic organizations in the community like Lupus Bahamas in fact, we are grateful to have provided aid to the Grand Bahama Childrens Home, as well as other community outreach projects for the benefit of the islands populous.

It is my intention to continue to help the Lupus Bahamas organization particularly as it involves shipping of their educational pamphlets and I urge the community to support all their initiatives and become more informed about the disease.

For further information about Lupus Bahamas and the Lupus and the Kidneys Educational Pamphlets Lightbourne encouraged interested persons to send an email to lupusbahamas.gb@gmail.com or telephone 1-242-439-6208.

Published Tuesday, February 7, 2017

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Mix and Mingle

Non members are welcome!

American Independence Celebration

Come celebrate the American Independence with us. Live music, food and fire works.

14th Annual Southfest Community Festival

GB Chamber of Commerce Business Luncheon

The Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce Monthly Business Luncheon Meeting.

Atlantic Medical Fun Walk

The Fun Walk starts from Jasmine Corporate Center to the Lucayan Circle and back.

Coconut Festival

The 16th Annual Pelican Point Coconut Festival, Easter Monday.

Good Friday Holiday

GB Business Outlook

TBA

Annual Conch Festival

3rd Annual Conch Festival hosted by Rotary Club of Grand Bahama Sunrise.

Spring Break Bahamas

3 days of excitement with Youth Explosion: Basketball Tournament and worship church service. Special celebrity Quest Kel Mitchell of Nickelodeon, 6 basketball teams from the waver runner sports program and many more.

Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce

Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce Monthly Business Luncheon meeting.

11th Annual Golf Classic

Grand Bahama American Women's Club 11th Annual Golf Classic.

Calvary Temple Church 45th Anniversary Service

Under the theme, "Glory is Here," Rev. and Mrs. Ernie Deloach will be guest speakers at this event.

Calvary Temple Church 45th Anniversary Banquet

Elder George Cooper will be honored for his years of dedicated service to the Assemblies of God. Contact the church for tickets.

"Da Market"

Reach Autism Meeting

All persons are asked to attend and be on time.

The Northern Region Public Service Week Planning Committee

Chicken and Steak out

The Bahamas Constitution Review event

A review of the proposed amendments to the Bahamas Constitution... What is it? How it impacts this country in the future? Get all your questions answered surrounding this issue.

The 2013 Miss Grand Bahama Beauty Pageant

Pre-show at 8:15 PM.

Sunday Jazz with CaY

Entertainment, food, drinks & bouncing castle.

"IT'S A SPRING CELEBRATION"

The downtown stores along with the GBPA Downtown Junkanoo Festival

Stores remain open late, Bahamian food, Junkanoo rush-out. All day event ending with Junkanoo!

Miss Grand Bahama Costume Competition

Leaving from the YMCA and finishing at Port Lucaya Marina for judging of costumes.

Cooling Waters Post Mothers Day Concert

Special Guests: The Rahming Brothers

Miss Grand Bahama evening gown and swimsuit competition

Poolside

Julien Believe Single Release Party & Birthday Bash

First Baptist Church Women's Ministry

(Sisters in The Spirit) Annual Women's Conference Theme: The Power of a Praying Woman/Mother. "Scripture 1st Samuel chapter 1.

GB Diabetic Support Group

All interested persons are asked to attend, please be on time.

Pilot Club of Lucaya Meeting

International Federation of Women Lawyers, GB Chapter (FIDA) Meeting

All persons are asked to attend and be on time

Retired Educators Monthly Meeting

All retired educators are invited to attend. Refreshments will be served during the meeting.

Toastmasters Club Destiny Meeting

Toastmasters Club Destiny Meeting

Kingdom Culture Junkanoo Group Monthly Meeting

All members are asked to attend

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Omircon Pi Sigma Chapter monthly meeting

All members are asked to attend and be on time.

Lupus Bahamas Monthly Meeting

The rest is here:

Lupus Bahamas releases new 'Lupus and the Kidneys' Educational Pamphlet - The Freeport News