With this commitment, Neotrope aligns itself with the PPM in educating and entertaining children and adults through the preservation of pinball, while making eight decades of games available to be played by everyone.

The museum accomplishes this through the operation of the Pacific Pinball Museum, a beautifully maintained selection of 90 fully playable pinball machines. In addition, PPM hosts the world’s largest pinball show: the Pacific Pinball Exposition once a year. PPM also furthers its mission through the creation of traveling pinball art and science exhibits that capture the amazing visuals and communicate the basics of physics and electricity used in pinball.

“Neotrope’s recognition of PPM’s dedication and focus in addition to their work with other charities and nonprofits is truly appreciated. Neotrope will be invaluable as we plan the world’s largest pinball show: our sixth annual Pacific Pinball Exposition for September 21-23, 2012,” said Larry Zartarian, the Museum’s Chairman of the Board.

Americans instantly recognize pinball as an American icon along with Jazz, Coca-Cola(R), the jukebox and Elvis. The PPM ensures future generations can appreciate the American ingenuity and creativity that fueled an entire pinball industry for years to come. The museum is currently developing curriculum for students of all ages to learn the basic theories behind pinball mechanisms and concepts such as gravity, momentum and acceleration.

As part of this grant program, Neotrope is providing PR solutions, news dissemination (through its Send2Press(R) Newswire service), and search marketing for the PPM to help raise awareness of its efforts in education, community service, science, art and fundraising. The museum’s goal is to move to a permanent location that can house its collection of 900-plus machines, offer larger teaching and restoration facilities, and expand its art gallery that features local and international artists.

“Having Neotrope aboard will help drive and refine our vision to become the Smithsonian of Pinball,” said Michael Schiess, PPM Founder and Director. “Our growing team of artists, technicians, volunteers, enthusiasts and visionaries will now be able to spread the word and scope of their efforts.”

“We’re honored to be providing assistance to the Pacific Pinball Museum, in both keeping alive eight decades of pinball history, and building educational art, science and historical programs that spark interest in intellectual pursuit,” said Christopher Laird Simmons, CEO of Neotrope(R).

About the Pacific Pinball Museum (PPM):

PPM unlocks the imagination of visitors with pinball back glass art that features themes such as fantasies of the future, beautiful women, sports heroics, outer space, the Wild West and many more. A key member of the museum’s collection of one-of-a-kind exhibits is the Visible Pinball, a fully functional pinball machine housed in a clear cabinet. The Visible Pin mesmerizes anyone who has ever wondered what goes on inside a machine while it’s being played and gives instructors an opportunity to point out the details of the machine’s operation while it is being used. Other exhibits discuss magnetism, momentum, statistics and the patented inventions that several ingenious Americans have devised just for pinball.

Giant (sometimes 10-foot by 10-foot) hand-painted acrylic mural reproductions of original pinball back glass art cover vast swaths of PPM’s walls. From Space Ship to Sea Ray, from Majorettes to Jungle Princess, these unique pieces of art created just for PPM are also available as an off-site exhibit or simply as an eye-popping example of the depth of skill pinball artists and designers employ while promoting individual games. Artists working at pinball companies Gottlieb, Williams and Bally unintentionally captured highlights of history while designing the art that decorate pinball games.

Christian Marche’s pointy people and Gordon Morison’s over-the-top psychedelia capture the mood of the ’60s and ’70s while the content of various pinball artists’ work often captures historic moments like the moon shot, the British rock invasion or the patriotic spirit following World War II.

PPM is popular with families, couples on their first date, school groups and local companies who hold special occasion parties there. The museum offers a party room for rent by the hour while guests enjoy the historical selection of games that range from 1878 to 2012. Parties at PPM are like having access to an entire arcade or someone’s massive game room to celebrate a personal occasion. Also among the regulars at PPM are some of the world’s highest-ranked pinball players and most experienced repair technicians.

For more information on the Pacific Pinball Museum, located at 1510 Webster Street, Alameda, CA, 94501, visit www.pacificpinball.org or write to mschiess@pacificpinball.org or call 205-9793. For more information on the Pacific Pinball Exposition, visit: http://pacificpinball.org/events/ .

About Neotrope:

Since 1983 Neotrope(R) has delivered services to raise organization awareness including brand identity, marketing, public relations (PR), and SEO services. Neotrope is also an entertainment publishing company involved in books, music, software, and online content portals. Neotrope also offers targeted news dissemination and press release writing through its unit, Send2Press(R) Newswire (Send2Press.com). The company pioneered the concept of search optimization of press release content back in 1997 (verifiable via archive-dot-org). Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 company in 2009. More information: www.Neotrope.com .

Neotrope’s annual Non-Profit PR Grants(TM) Program was originally launched in 2000 by company founders Christopher Simmons and the late Dr. JL Simmons, with the goal of providing a “better donation” for worthy U.S. charitable 501(c)3 non-profits than simply writing a small check; instead utilizing the company’s capabilities to grow awareness to media and the public, attract halo sponsors/donors, and bring together disparate resources not generally affordable to small organizations.

Additional information regarding the Neotrope 2012 PR Grants for U.S. charitable non-profits and grant recipients can be found at: http://send2press.com/non-profit/index.shtml .

“Just by visiting the Internet, you have been influenced by our work,” states the head of G-Man Marketing (www.gmanmarketing.com). “We create and publish media announcements, press alerts, video messaging, social networking communication, and what I call ghost marketing.”

The concept of “ghost marketing” is not new, G admits. “In addition to books I’ve ghost-written, some of my most effective work has been behind-the-scenes, writing or contributing to articles or in disseminating items for others to post. Clients, especially artists, don’t have time to continually look for these opportunities online, but it’s one of the things we do. It’s time-consuming, but there’s a definite payoff if you keep at it.”

Current clients of G-Man Marketing include Shady Hill Records’ country artist Sandra Piller. “This is a terrific account because of the variety of great songs Sandra performs,” G states. “She works with writer/producer Jane Bach (hits with Reba McEntire and Jo Dee Messina among others) and there are videos of Sandra doing songs by The Doors and Fleetwood Mac. Her cool country version of ‘Love Me Two Times’ is a trip!”

Within the past year, G has worked with Larisa Stow, Robin Hood Music, Golosio Publishing, Goodnight Kiss Music, Anisound Mixing/Mastering, FookMovie, Phil Hatten Design, Carnyville, Bella Swan Bass Society (BSBS), and Paula Franceschi. “We’re starting on a Christian music video for ‘Amazed by the Light that is You,’ a new area for us.”

The sounds of BSBS are in a series of humorous commercials airing during the Sheena Metal programs on the LATalkRadio network. The spots are for non-existent products called “Androyx,” like an Androyx energy drink and an Androyx phone (“Forget 3G, 4G or 5G, Androyx offers 157G!”).

“I love spreading the word for music, products, speeches, and events,” G says. “This work is exciting and gratifying, which makes it fulfilling to start every day!”

Learn more at: http://www.gmanmarketing.com .

“We’ve very happy to again be able to offer this program to charitable causes that are doing good,” said Neotrope CEO, Christopher Simmons; a member of PRSA and ASCAP. “This year we have again a very diverse selection of 501(c)3 charities with whom we will be working. We’re honored to be able to do our small part in helping raise their awareness to the public, supporters, potential sponsors, and of course the media.”

Neotrope launched its Non-Profit PR Grant Program (www.send2press.com/non-profit) in 2000 and has provided discounted or free services to non-profits for almost 30 years. Neotrope’s Send2Press® Newswire service provides the news dissemination component of the grants program for getting press releases in front of interested media. Online marketing across the Neotrope News Network will also help reach up to 10 million eyeballs per month via banner advertising, included in this year’s grant.

Past recipients of the NonProfit PR Grant Program include Children Awaiting Parents, Girls Write Now, Paws of Life Foundation, Special Equestrians, The Bob Moog Foundation, The Starlight Children’s Foundation, The Native Voices Foundation, World Savvy, and many others.

2012 NON-PROFIT PR GRANT RECIPIENTS:

1) The Story Project (www.StoryProject.org) uses entertainment-arts curriculum to engage under-served and at-risk middle-school students through digital, media-based projects that educate, empower and inspire. Every production addresses conflict resolution and current issues students face on a daily basis while building literacy, communication, problem solving and teamwork skills that end in a tangible result. TSP works with students at their school over the duration of 12-14 weeks during their regularly scheduled school day for approximately 2 hours once a week to see a project from inception through delivery. We use teachers employed through our organization and professionals from the entertainment community who participate as mentors. Students hear others’ stories and learn to find and share their own.

2) The mission of the Pacific Pinball Museum (www.pacificpinball.org) is “To inspire an interest in science, art and history through pinball and to preserve and promote this important part of American culture.” We do this by: Maintaining and operating a Museum to display a large quantity of playable machines from all eras of pinball in an educational and entertaining manner. In addition to producing the world’s largest Pinball Event, the Pacific Pinball Exposition, we provide classes on the science of pinball, electricity and magnetism, art and history to local schools and visitors. We are a small group of dedicated individuals that are passionate about pinball and our desire to share it with the world. We are becoming the “Smithsonian of Pinball.”

3) Camp Blue Skies Foundation (www.campblueskies.org) provides week-long residential camps for adults with developmental disabilities. Camp Blue Skies fills a gap for a population that has few recreational opportunities offered to them once they are out of the school system. The camp experience has a profound impact and life changing effect on not only campers, but caregivers, counselors and volunteers. Camp sessions are currently offered in NC and GA. Over 150 adults with intellectual challenges have been served to date and 180 loyal volunteers have committed their personal time to assist at camp. “Our vision is to continue to develop and improve the programs we offer and broaden the population we serve by offering more sessions throughout the southeast region and hopefully beyond in the future.”

4) Move For Hunger (www.moveforhunger.org) is a non-profit organization that works with moving companies across the country to pick up unwanted, unopened food from those who are relocating and deliver it to local food banks across the country. Many people throw out a good deal of “stuff” when they move. Unfortunately, a lot of this “stuff” is food that could be delivered to a family in need rather than thrown away. “That’s where we come in: our movers offer to pick up unwanted, non-perishable food items during the moving process and deliver it to local food banks. To date we are working with over 200 moving companies in 37 states. Together we have collected 400,000 lbs. of food for food banks across America.”

5) Fresh Start Surgical Gifts (www.freshstart.org) transforms the lives of disadvantaged infants, children, and teens with physical deformities caused by birth defects, accidents, abuse, or disease through the gift of reconstructive surgery and related healthcare services. The Surgery Weekend Program is Fresh Start’s largest project of each year, with six weekends of intensive reconstructive surgery as well as frequent dental clinics, laser treatments, and speech therapy services. Fresh Start’s Surgery Weekend Program provides access to comprehensive, free healthcare for low-income, uninsured, and underinsured children suffering from physical deformities and other conditions. Throughout the interim between these intensive marathon Surgery Weekends, Fresh Start also hosts speech therapy clinics, dental clinics, and laser treatments to ensure a comprehensive treatment plan for each patient.

6) CITYarts, Inc. (www.cityarts.org) empowers children and youth by bringing them together with professional artists to create public art that addresses civic and social issues, impacts lives, and transforms their communities. Thinking globally and acting locally, CITYarts’ projects build bridges of cultural understanding, giving youth the opportunity to take an active role in shaping their own future. Since 1968, CITYarts has created over 284 projects that have transformed communities and impacted over 100,000 kids, collaborated with more than 500 artists, partnered with over 1,500 sponsors, and engaged over 500,000 volunteers in the process. CITYarts’ projects frequently foster community revitalization by galvanizing businesses, schools, and community organizations into developing youth programs and constructing playgrounds and gardens.

7) Launched in 2000, WEST: Women Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology (www.westorg.org), provides a forum for women in science, engineering and technology industries to develop their careers and leadership through networking and information sharing. Uniquely tied to this highly educated, influential community, the WEST leadership has long provided a supportive environment for early, mid and senior career women in these vital sectors, allowing them an exceptional opportunity to acquire the skills necessary to become business leaders in their fields. “Our goal is to improve the leadership status of women in science, engineering and technology by inspiring them to achieve success in their organizations and create a positive impact in their communities.” WEST offers a rich and thriving community that provides support, guidance, and professional development for professionals in science, engineering and technology.

8) Cave Canem Foundation, Inc. (www.cavecanempoets.org) was founded in 1996 by poets Toi Derricotte and Cornelius Eady to remedy the under-representation and isolation experienced by African American poets in writing workshops and MFA programs, Cave Canem is a home for the many voices of African American poetry and is committed to cultivating the artistic and professional growth of African American poets. Awards garnered by Cave Canem fellows include the Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers’ Award; the Whiting Writers’ Award; the NAACP Image Award; the Laughlin Award from the Academy of American Poets; National Poetry Series Selection; the Cave Canem Poetry Prize; and the Ruth Lilly Fellowship, among many others. Fellows have 170+ books in print across several genres and have gained significant footholds in academic positions across the country. Faculty member Elizabeth Alexander was named Inaugural Poet for President Obama in 2008; in faculty members Terrance Hayes and Nikky Finney won the National Book Award for Poetry in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

9) Canine Assisted Therapy (www.catdogs.org), or C.A.T., was formed to provide qualified, dependable and caring pet therapy teams to those who need comfort, companionship or the unconditional love of a dog. Specially trained teams support medical staff to promote healing. “We seek to provide superior education and support to volunteers and the facilities we serve. Our continuing education programs are open to volunteers of any pet therapy organization, for we wish to enhance the entire pet therapy community with our efforts. We provide guidance to healthcare and educational entities to implement or improve therapy animal programs within their facilities.” C.A.T. services are provided free of charge, with the highest level of professionalism and organization, and we satisfy HIPAA requirements. As a non-profit entity, we recruit and utilize volunteers to serve Florida communities. C.A.T. pet therapy volunteer corps provide both animal-assisted activities (AAA) and animal-assisted therapy (AAT).

10) Center for Student Opportunity (www.csopportunity.org) is empowering underserved, first-generation college students to and through college by providing critical information, guidance, scholarships, and ongoing support. With offices in Bethesda, Maryland and Orange County, California, CSO’s programs and resources reach nationally. They include Opportunity Scholars, supporting students across the country who aspire to be the first in their family to attend college through the college search and selection process; www.CSOCollegeCenter.org, a free online college search tool to research and connect with colleges and universities that serve and support under-served, first-generation college students; and COLLEGE ACCESS & OPPORTUNITY GUIDE, a unique college guidebook designed to help underserved, first-generation college students make their college dreams a reality. Scholarship students use our website as bloggers to diary their college experiences and offer advice to college-bound students on preparing for college.

ABOUT NEOTROPE:

Since 1983, Neotrope (www.neotrope.com) has been helping small-to-medium businesses, non-profits, and entertainment companies establish their brand and grow revenue. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 listed company in 2009. The Neotrope® team is led by Christopher Laird Simmons, an award-winning designer, photographer, musician, journalist, and digital artist. He is a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and ASCAP. Simmons has been widely interviewed in print and broadcast, and has written for numerous national print publications. Other team members include accredited public relations professionals, working journalists and SEO experts.

Neotrope® is a registered trademark and service mark in the U.S. and Europe. Send2Press® is a U.S. registered trademark of Neotrope. “Non-Profit PR Grants” is a service mark of Neotrope. All other trademarks acknowledged.

In a promotional event called “Lower the BOOM on Prices,” G-Man Marketing and their clients “have lowered pricing by 12% starting 02.12.12,” G says. “While many marketing companies raised their pricing this year by 15% or more, we took the opposite approach. We chose 02.12.12 to start the promo, as it’s one digit lower than 12.12.12, which is our way of being optimistic.”

“No matter how the world concludes this year, whether from Galactic Alignment, the Mayan Calendar, Nostradamus, or some cataclysmic combination, we will all be there for you with special reduced rates on the services you will need to get your business started again,” states John Scott G from G-Man Marketing.

G continues, “Additionally, a second part of the promotion will run from the ‘end of the world’ all the way through to the end of the year.” Among the offers that will apply from December 21 to 31, 2012, are the following: G-Man Marketing will provide public relations services for free. Send2Press.com (a service of Neotrope(R)) will disseminate the media announcements for free. Country artist Sandra Piller will sell her album at half price. Country songwriter Jane Bach will co-write a song for free. Matt Forger will mix and master a song for one-third off.

Sheena Metal, host on LATalkRadio, will create a radio commercial for your product. In addition, her Carnyville live music event will let your band play two sets for free, “even if all your fans have expired,” notes Ms. Metal.

Goodnight Kiss Music is offering half off music consultations. Robin Hood Music offers free song downloads. Phil Hatten Design will create a logo for free. FookMovie will create a free music video. And a spokesperson for Golosio, the music publishing firm, says “We will pitch your song to whatever film and TV projects are still available, although they probably will just be basic cable.”

Some restrictions apply for the second part of the promotion only: “First, the world must actually come to an end on or about December 21,” G said. “Second, you’ll have to figure out how to get in touch with us during the ten days in question because we’ve had no assurances from the phone companies that they’ll be doing anything at that time except figuring out how to charge you for unused minutes.”

For more information about all the firms and individuals in this story, please contact John Scott G of G-Man Marketing. “Please remember,” G states, “the world may end but good hype is forever.”

More info: http://www.gmanmarketing.com .

“We’re again donating $25,000 in free public relations and newswire services to worthy non-profit and charitable organizations to celebrate our 29th anniversary,” said Neotrope founder and CEO, Christopher Laird Simmons. “With this expansion, we’ve now added $25,000 in online marketing services to the program for the first time. This new component gives the grant recipients far more visibility online by running their advertising in ROS campaigns on our news network; we will even create banners for the recipients if they don’t already have them.”

Neotrope previously donated services as part of its Non-Profit PR Grants Program in 2011, 2009, 2005 and 2000. In 2010, Neotrope “adopted” various charities in lieu of providing the PR Grant program, and has provided discounted or free services to various non-profits for almost 30 years. Neotrope’s Send2Press(R) Newswire service provides the online news dissemination component of the grants program for getting press releases in front of interested media.

Past recipients of the Non-Profit PR Grant Program include Children Awaiting Parents, Girls Write Now, Paws of Life Foundation, Special Equestrians, The Bob Moog Foundation, The Starlight Children’s Foundation, The Native Voices Foundation, World Savvy, and many others.

“Neotrope has played an important role in our success in the last couple years,” said Dana Mortenson, Executive Director, World Savvy. “The Neotrope PR Service Grant in 2009 was tremendously helpful in a critical year of our growth. With Neotrope’s help spreading the word for our youth engagement programs, we were able to engage more than 6,000 youth and 1,100 educators in our programs during the 2009-2010 school year.”

“Neotrope has done more to raise our profile than we could have ever imagined, and we thoroughly enjoyed working with them,” said Tammy Westney, Executive Director, Special Equestrians.

How to Apply for 2012 Grant Program:

Non-profit organizations may apply online through January 15, 2012. Organizations will be selected by January 30, 2012, and the amount donated to each selected non-profit will vary, but typically $2,500 in PR services per recipient plus the additional online marketing/advertising component (total value approximately $5,000 per recipient; this is not a cash grant). Two of the grants will be provided to California-based non-profits, who will receive additional promotional assistance through California Newswire(R). Additionally, all 501(c)(3) organizations automatically qualify for a 15% service discount.

The 2012 Neotrope PR Grant application for U.S. based IRS recognized 501(c)3 charitable non-profits can be found at http://www.Send2Press.com/non-profit/index.shtml .

About Neotrope:

Since 1983, Neotrope (www.neotrope.com) has been helping small-to-medium businesses, non-profits, and entertainment companies establish their brand and grow revenue. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 listed company in 2009. The Neotrope(R) marketing team includes Christopher Laird Simmons, who is an award-winning designer, photographer, musician and digital artist. He is a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and ASCAP. Simmons has been widely interviewed by publications as diverse as Entrepreneur, Chicago Post Tribune, Medical Office Front Desk Pro, Monster.com, Nutraceuticals World, PCWorld, Produce Merchandising, and TrendWatch. He has written for a number of national print publications including Digital Imaging, Print on Demand Business, the Graphic Artists Guild newsletter, and he sold his first article in 1984 to Polyphony (now Electronic Musician). Other team members include accredited public relations professionals, working journalists and SEO experts.

“The U.S. economy the past two years had been hard on small business, and even harder on small charities and non-profits. This PR Grant program is our way of supporting some of the numerous smaller organizations we feel need ongoing help to ‘get the word out’ about their worthwhile efforts,” said Neotrope CEO and co-founder, Christopher Simmons. “We’ve been very helpful to numerous organizations to increase visibility both online and off, and hope to continue this program into the future.”

Founded in 1983, Neotrope has previously donated services as part of its Non-Profit PR Grants Program in 2011, 2009, 2005 and 2000, and has provided discounted or free services to various non-profits for almost 30 years.

Neotrope, and its service division Send2Press Newswire (www.Send2Press.com), have also sponsored art benefits contributing to aid efforts for the homeless in Chicago, groups providing environmentally sustainable housing in areas of the world where disaster has left people without adequate shelter; and to orgs who raise money for AIDS orphans.

How to Apply for 2012 NonProfit PR Grant Program:
Non-profit organizations may apply starting November 15, 2011 through January 15, 2012. Organizations will be selected by January 30, 2012, and the amount donated to each selected non-profit will vary, but typically $2500 in services per recipient (this is not a cash grant). Three of the grants will be provided to California-based non-profits, who will receive additional promotional assistance through California Newswire(R). Additionally, all 501(c)(3) organizations automatically qualify for a 15% service discount.

The 2012 Neotrope PR Grant application can be found at http://www.Send2Press.com/non-profit/index.shtml .

About Neotrope:
Since 1983, Neotrope (www.neotrope.com) has been helping small-to-medium businesses, non-profits, and entertainment companies establish their brand and grow revenue. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 listed company in 2009. The Neotrope(R) marketing team includes Christopher Laird Simmons, who is an award-winning designer, photographer, musician and digital artist. He is a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and ASCAP. Simmons has been widely interviewed by publications as diverse as Entrepreneur, Chicago Post Tribune, PCWorld, Monster.com, and TrendWatch. Other team members include accredited public relations professionals, working journalists and broadcast veterans.

Neotrope(R) is a registered trademark and service mark in the U.S. and Europe. Send2Press and California Newswire are registered service marks of Neotrope. All rights reserved.

“Many of our clients had great growth in the period of 2005-2008, and then when the economy tanked in 2009 and 2010, promotional budgets got constrained, and some companies had to abandon marketing and PR altogether,” said Neotrope CEO, Christopher Laird Simmons; a member of PRSA and ASCAP. “This year we’ve heard from a lot of companies coming back from the brink, and they have asked for discounts or considerations, and we have rolled back our service plan pricing where possible to accommodate our clients.”

Most Send2Press service plan pricing has been reduced back to 2008 levels, which amounts to an immediate 10 to 20% price “roll back” effective August 1, 2011, on most services.

“Many marketing firms and news services arbitrarily raise their rates 5% – 10% each year, and we followed suit this year after holding the line for many years; as it turned out, that wasn’t what our customers needed at the exact moment their budgets again allowed for marketing campaigns,” said Simmons. “This roll-back program will help those clients bring their businesses back up to speed without having to face their own debt crises like the U.S. is experiencing right now.”

About Neotrope:
Since 1983 Neotrope(R) has delivered services to raise organization awareness including brand identity, marketing, public relations (PR), and SEO services. Neotrope is also an entertainment publishing company involved in books, music, software, and online portals. The company pioneered the concept of search optimization of press release content back in 1997. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 company in 2009. More information: www.Neotrope.com .

About Send2Press:
Send2Press(R) (a service of Neotrope) offers best-in-class affordable Direct-to-Editors(TM) news distribution to working print and broadcast media, online and social media, and deep into search engines using proprietary Neotrope ContextEngine(TM) technology. Send2Press is unique because it was the first newswire service with staff entirely comprised of accredited public relations professionals, published authors, working journalists, and marketing experts. Learn more about Send2Press at www.Send2Press.com .

The program for the event, to be held May 1-3 in Washington, DC, is built around this year’s World Press Freedom Day theme, “21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers.” Dynamic conversations, commemorative, educational and interactive events will be held at the Newseum, the National Press Club, and other venues in Washington, DC. Registered attendees will have the opportunity to take part in more than 15 plenary and breakout sessions which will cover topics ranging from “Social Media: The New News Network?” and “New Barriers: Censorship in the Digital Age” to “New Frontiers: Transforming Media in the 21st Century.”

The United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) organizes World Press Freedom Day commemorations every year on May 3 worldwide. In a statement issued April 2nd, UNESCO Director-General Bokova noted, “The program for World Press Freedom Day 2011 is designed to foster a global conversation around some of the most important questions of our time and to support those around the globe who are on the front lines working to advance free expression.”

Keynote speakers at the event will include UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Judith McHale, and U.S. Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Maria Otero. Among the more than 80 additional speakers are the leading voices on the front lines advancing and protecting press freedom around the world, including Bob Woodward, Associate Editor, Washington Post ,Wael Abbas, Egyptian journalist and blogger, and John Kampfner, Index on Censorship.

Registration is free and open, but space is limited. For World Press Freedom Day 2011 event registration information, please visit www.wpfd2011.org. Many sessions will be live streamed online for those unable to attend in person. Partnerships with Washington, DC-area universities and specialized press centers will provide additional opportunities for members of the media and bloggers to engage in World Press Freedom Day activities.

As part of this grant program, Neotrope(R) is providing PR solutions, news dissemination (through its Send2Press(R) Newswire service), and search marketing for The Bob Moog Foundation to help raise awareness to both media and the public regarding their efforts in education, archiving and restoring Dr. Moog’s works, and Moogseum fundraising efforts. Part of the Foundation’s mission is to protect and restore the Bob Moog Archive, which offers a unique glimpse into electronic music history. The Foundation, based in North Carolina, is working to preserve the entirety of this invaluable collection.

“We’re grateful to have Neotrope aboard to assist our efforts to educate children and archive, rescue and share Bob’s legacy,” stated Michelle Moog-Koussa, Executive Director of The Bob Moog Foundation. “Neotrope has done great work with many other charities and non-profits, and I look forward to working with them in widening the awareness of our efforts.”

“We’re honored in providing assistance for The Bob Moog Foundation, in both keeping alive Bob’s legacy in the music industry, but also in building educational and historical programs that showcase a unique music history,” said Neotrope CEO, Christopher Laird Simmons; a member of PRSA and ASCAP. “Bob was an inspiration to me and hopefully our efforts will, in some small way, help more people learn about the foundation’s archival and educational programs, as well as fundraising for the planned Moogseum.”

Additional information regarding the Neotrope 2011 PR Grants for U.S. charitable non-profits and grant recipients can be found at: http://send2press.com/non-profit/index.shtml .

About The Bob Moog Foundation:
The Bob Moog Foundation (http://moogfoundation.org/) was created upon Bob’s passing in August 2005. After witnessing the outpouring of thousands of testimonials from people around the world who had been touched by Bob’s work, Bob’s family and colleagues established the foundation to carry on his legacy.

The Foundation officially launched a year later in August 2006, and is based in Asheville, North Carolina. After volunteering her time as director for over a year, Michelle Moog-Koussa, Bob’s third daughter became the full-time executive director in February of 2007. Over the course of the past four years, Michelle, the Board, and a team of dedicated volunteers have been leading the foundation to fulfill our goals of creating a Moogseum, preserving Bob’s archive and bringing electronic music into the schools as a vehicle to teach children about science, music and innovation.

Over the past three years, we have been supported by donors around the world who are passionate about Bob Moog’s legacy and by organizations throughout the music industry.

The Bob Moog Foundation is an independent non-profit organization which is not formally affiliated with Moog Music, Inc., the company that manufactures Moog(R) instruments. The Foundation’s Board of Directors is Chaired by Bryan Bell, creator of Synthbank .com, music technologist, producer and sound engineer.

About Neotrope:
Since 1983 Neotrope(R) has delivered services to raise organization awareness including brand identity, marketing, public relations (PR), and SEO services. Neotrope is also an entertainment publishing company involved in books, music, software, and online portals. The company pioneered the concept of search optimization of press release content back in 1997. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 company in 2009. More information: www.Neotrope.com .

As part of this grant program, Neotrope is providing PR solutions, news dissemination, and search marketing for World Savvy to help raise awareness to both media and the public regarding their programs, sponsors, partners and other activities. In 2009, World Savvy (WS) was also a recipient of Neotrope’s PR Grants program. Neotrope/Send2Press is also promoting WS to its customers and other partners in order to bring additional resources together to help WS widen its awareness in the small to medium business space.

“Neotrope has played an important role in our success in the last couple years,” stated Dana Mortenson, Executive Director of World Savvy. “The PR Service Grant in 2009 was tremendously helpful in a critical year of our growth. With Neotrope’s help spreading the word for our youth engagement programs, we were able to engage more than 6,000 youth and 1,100 educators in our programs during the 2009-2010 school year. The announcement about our annual Gala in September 2009, which Neotrope assisted us to distribute prior to the event, helped bring an incredibly generous crowd to the event, which raised a record $140,000. We are grateful for Neotrope’s contribution and look forward to growing our partnership.”

“We’ve been honored in providing assistance for World Savvy, and their work with dynamic youth engagement and teacher training programs that focus on the integration of global content in teaching and learning across disciplines,” said Neotrope CEO, Christopher Laird Simmons; a member of PRSA and ASCAP. “Hopefully our efforts have, and will continue, in some small way to help more people learn about World Savvy and their programs.”

Additional information regarding the 2011 PR Grants for U.S. charitable non-profits can be found at: http://send2press.com/non-profit/index.shtml .

About World Savvy:
World Savvy’s mission is to educate and engage youth in community and world affairs, to prepare the next generation of leaders to learn, work and live as responsible global citizens in the 21st century.

A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, World Savvy was founded in San Francisco by Dana Mortenson and Madiha Murshed in response to a critical need for youth to acquire global knowledge and 21st century skills within the conspicuous absence of global education programs in K-12 education in the United States. World Savvy’s dynamic academic and arts programs for youth and professional development services for educators help youth in middle and high school learn how to think rather than what to think about critical global and community issues, which are often complex and unaddressed in school, and have enormous implications for their local community.

These programs support systemic change in K-12 education, providing every student in every classroom with the content knowledge, skills, values and attitudes to be leaders and change makers in their diverse communities, locally and globally. Since founding, the organization has grown from serving 90 students and 20 teachers, to serving more than 6,000 youth and 1,100 teachers annually from three offices nationally: San Francisco, Minneapolis-St. Paul and New York. Cumulatively, World Savvy has worked with more than 10,000 youth and 1,400 educators in its nine-year history. More information: http://www.worldsavvy.org .

Upcoming Event:
Join World Savvy on March 5, 2011, as students from 24 schools around the Twin Cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul present their research and solutions to some of today’s most pressing issues related to food.

For more information, go to:
http://worldsavvy.org/events/minnesotas-third-annual-world-affairs-challenge/ .

About Neotrope:
Since 1983 Neotrope(R) has delivered services to raise organization awareness including brand identity, marketing, public relations (PR), and SEO services. Neotrope is also an entertainment publishing company involved in books, music, software, and online portals. The company pioneered the concept of search optimization of press release content back in 1997. Neotrope was an Inc. 5000 company in 2009. More information: http://www.Neotrope.com .