Goderich Tornado ReLeaf Program replaces trees destroyed by tornado

GODERICH, ON, May 19, 2012 /CNW/ – Home Hardware Stores Limited and Tree Canada came together today to re-beautify an area of Goderich heavily affected by the devastating F3 tornado that struck the Southwestern Ontario town last August.

The area, which borders the Maitland River, was once home to scenic walking trails populated with century old trees ranging from sugar maple to white pine. Uprooting and killing trees in its path, the tornado left the site completely destroyed.

Over the past 13 years, Home Hardware has partnered with Tree Canada to improve green spaces across the country planting 16,000 trees and shrubs totaling more than $700,000. Home Hardware has committed to replace the trees that were lost in the storm as part of Tree Canada’s ‘Goderich Tornado ReLeaf’ program.

To celebrate the re-beautification of the site, a public ceremony marked the planting of 67 large trees, measuring between 6-15 feet in height including sugar maple, red oak and white birch, by a team led by new local Home Hardware Dealer-Owner Norm Watson of Watson’s Home Hardware.

“At Watson’s Home Hardware we operate on the business philosophy of ‘Home Owners helping homeowners’ and as one of Tree Canada’s long time partners, we are thrilled to help re-beautify Goderich with this tree planting,” said Norm Watson. “This initiative allows Home Owners from coast-to-coast to help this community in a very real and tangible way.”

The ceremony, which included speeches from local dignitaries, concluded with the unveiling of the ‘Home Hardware Tree Grove’ sign to commemorate the planting.

“The spirit in which our entire community continues to come together to rebuild our town remains strong and has shown us how much optimism and positivity can come from the darkest of days,” said Mayor of Goderich, Delbert (Deb) Shewfelt. “On behalf of the ‘Prettiest town in Canada,’ I’d like to thank Home Hardware and Tree Canada for restoring this area so that it may be enjoyed by the deserving residents of Goderich for years to come.”

The event was preceded by Goderich Communities in Bloom’s Get Bloomin’ Spring Garden Symposium that featured speakers including Home Hardware’s gardening expert Mark Cullen and Denis Flanagan, Manager at Landscape Ontario and HGTV host.The workshop provided gardening techniques and trends for all Goderich residents who, as a result of the tornado, are starting over with their landscaping and gardens.

About Home Hardware Stores Limited
100% Canadian owned and operated, Home Hardware Stores Limited has a presence in every Canadian province and territory and is the country’s largest independent, Dealer-owned hardware, lumber, building materials and furniture cooperative. Founded on January 1, 1964 by 122 independent hardware Dealers, the cooperative now includes more than 1,080 stores, under the Home Hardware, Home Building Centre, Home Hardware Building Centre and Home Furniture banners, with annual collective retail sales of more than $5 billion. Home Hardware’s independent Dealer-Owners, recognized by the North American Retail Hardware Association as Canada’s best-trained Dealer group, have access to 100,000 quality brand name and private label products, a world-class distribution system and draw upon the power of Home Hardware’s network to provide their local communities with top quality products and services at competitive prices.

FORT WORTH, Texas, May 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) and the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) have ratified new labor agreements with Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] Aeronautics in Fort Worth.  The new agreements become effective Monday, May 21, 2012 and will extend for four and five years, respectively.

The IBEW members approved their agreement in a vote on Friday, May 18, and the OPEIU members approved their agreement today.  The IBEW represents about 70 employees at the company’s Fort Worth site, while the OPEIU represents about 430. The unions and company have been negotiating for the past month.

“We’re pleased the union members ratified these new agreements.  Our employees perform a critical task for our customers and the nation through their work supporting the F-35, F-16 and other business programs, and these new agreements will allow us to sustain those activities while also positioning the company for efficiency and affordability,” said Bridget Lauderdale, vice president of Aeronautics Operations for Lockheed Martin.

The union members will each receive a $3,000 ratification bonus and general wage increases over the term of the agreements. The agreements also include Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) provisions and will increase future pension benefits by 14 percent, to $90 per month per year of credited service for eligible current employees. These new agreements offer a choice of two health insurance options: the LM HealthWorks plan which is standard throughout Lockheed Martin, or an Aetna HMO.

These ratified contracts also include a defined contribution pension plan for new hire employees in lieu of a defined benefit pension plan. These terms are similar to what Lockheed Martin offered to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) in Fort Worth, at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., and Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., which the IAM rejected on April 22, resulting in the ongoing strike.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs about 123,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The Corporation’s net sales for 2011 were $46.5 billion.

SOURCE Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company

MONTREAL y BARBADOS, 19 de mayo de 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Irosoft Inc., líder mundial en soluciones para la gestión de leyes y legislación derivada, en alianza con ESI Technologies Inc., se enorgullece en anunciar la exitosa implementación de sus soluciones LIMS para la redacción y consolidación de leyes para el gobierno de Barbados.

“Nos sentimos honrados de haber sido parte del proyecto LIMS en Barbados por muchas razones”, afirmó René-Luc Morin, vicepresidente y cofundador de Irosoft que estuvo en Bridgetown para la culminación de esta tarea y a fin de asistir al lanzamiento oficial del sistema por parte del procurador general y ministro de asuntos internos, Ilmo. Adriel D. Brathwaite.

“Ahora Barbados puede gestionar su legislación con el sistema más innovador, avanzado y totalmente integrado del mercado”, añadió Morin. “La implementación de nuestras soluciones LIMS Irosoft ya es totalmente operativa en Barbados, y los responsables de las propuestas de ley ya empiezan a ver los beneficios de no tener que lidiar con numerosas labores repetitivas y tediosas. Quienes participan en el proceso de consolidación ahora cuentan con un sistema fácil de usar y semiautomático que respeta el principio legal de ‘momento puntual’.

“Lo más destacable es que tuvimos el privilegio de trabajar con profesionales del más alto nivel que han hecho de nuestra labor algo más sencillo. Con el apoyo de una sólida gestión de proyecto a cargo de Michael Forde de NexLevel Info por parte del cliente y de la abogada Chantal Lamarre por parte de Irosoft, pudimos terminar el proyecto a tiempo y conforme al presupuesto, como siempre”.

El gerente de proyecto Michael Forde comentó: “En gran medida nuestro éxito obedece al trabajo arduo, la profesionalidad y la dedicación de los responsables de la redacción legislativa y el resto del personal de la oficina de la Fiscalía del Parlamento. Quiero reconocer su gran esfuerzo. Desde luego, nuestro éxito también fue posible gracias a la pericia del equipo de Irosoft, su manera de comprender los procesos legislativos en nuestra jurisdicción y la calidad de su producto LIMS”.

“Veo beneficios directos para una amplia gama transversal de usuarios”, afirmó el procurador general, Ilmo. Adriel D. Brathwaite, “desde la persona común y corriente hasta los jueces, los procuradores y nosotros mismos y, desde luego, los responsables de la redacción legal. LIMS les aporta enormes beneficios. No solo les ayuda en la labor de investigación; además, les asiste sin duda en lo que respecta a la actualización de otras leyes que podrían verse afectadas por determinada legislación. Ese aspecto de su trabajo será mucho más sencillo”.

“Ya hemos implementado nuestro producto LIMS en tres países de esta región del mundo”, concluyó René-Luc Morin, “y esperamos con gran interés consolidar muchas otras implementaciones exitosas en el futuro inmediato”.

Acerca de Irosoft Inc.

Irosoft, fundada en 1995, es un líder mundial en gestión de documentos y registros y gestión de información legal. Como especialista en gestión de contenidos integrados, Irosoft ofrece soluciones innovadoras y fáciles de usar, de manera que los clientes puedan desarrollar, organizar, explotar y preservar con facilidad y eficacia su capital de información. A la fecha, más de 100 organizaciones nacionales e internacionales (departamentos y agencias gubernamentales, municipalidades y empresas privadas) han acudido a Irosoft para llevar a cabo proyectos de gestión de contenidos de gran escala.

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Playground to enhance family well-being

HOUSTON, May 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – A dream is now a reality for children in the Aldine neighborhood of Houston as their drawings were turned into a new playground today. In less than eight hours, the play space was built with the help of more than 200 volunteers from Foresters^TM, the Greenridge Townhouse Homeowners Association and non-profit KaBOOM!. The new playground will serve 8,800 children and their families in the community for years to come.

“Foresters believes in providing opportunities for families to spend quality time together,” said Bob Pashby, Foresters National Sales Manager. “A playground is an important piece for the revitalization of a community. Not only does it provide a first step towards keeping children healthy, but it’s a safe, central location for the entire neighborhood to get together.”

Planning for the playground began at a Design Day event held in March when local children and community leaders met with organizers from KaBOOM! and Foresters to design their dream playground. The children’s drawings were then used to create the final playground design.

Since 2006, Foresters has invested over $7 million with KaBOOM! with almost 100 playgrounds built or planned across the U.S. and Canada. Over their 15 year lifespan, these playgrounds will provide more than 2.6 million children and their families with an opportunity to spend quality time together. Foresters is a KaBOOM! National Partner and a founding member of the KaBOOM! Leadership Circle – a group of organizations providing long-term guidance and support to KaBOOM! and its mission.

“Greenridge Townhouses is a wonderful community, but before today, we did not have a place for all of our children to play,” said Ana Ramos, Greenridge Townhouses Homeowners Association Secretary. “Thanks to Foresters and KaBOOM!, we now have a place for families to spend time together so that they can be active and lead healthy lifestyles.”

Thanks to the work of Foresters, the Greenridge Townhouse Homeowners Association and KaBOOM!, children and their families now have a 2,392 square-foot playground to call home that includes features such as a Triple Racer Slide, Swing Sets and a Vine Climber.

About Greenridge Townhouse Homeowners Association
The Greenridge Townhomes community is a family complex, with most of the residents being young families with children.  Children at Greenridge do not have a set place to play after school and during the summer break and many are limited to playing in the carports and driveways.  As the safety and happiness of our children is very important to Greenridge Townhomes Association, we are thankful to Foresters and KaBOOM! for helping in revitalizing our community.