Orange County’s Public Relations Person of the Year 2005 Announced

 

Click here to read nomination.

(Orange County, CA – July 2005)  Keri Gee Semmelman may only be 4 foot 11…and ¾ inches tall, but this professional speaker and public relations go-getter – as the title on her business card states -- just earned the highest honor in the public relations profession: “The Distinguished Service Award” for the individual PR person of the year in Orange County.  The award was presented by the Orange County Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (OC/PRSA) before a group of nearly 300 public relations professionals and their colleagues who gave her a standing ovation at the Marconi Automotive Museum in Tustin.

"Besides honoring the best work performed by Orange County's public relations professionals, this year's 30th anniversary of PROTOS offered us the opportunity to recognize those people and events that have shaped our local PR community," said Daniel Rhodes, co-chair of PROTOS 2005. 

Semmelman, an Orange County native who resides in Huntington Beach, is the owner of PRIDEA, a public relations/professional speaking agency. Her slogan, “Bringing PRide and ideas together for each client’s success” is her secret to success as she offers public relations counsel, public speaking coaching, and inspirational keynote addresses to numerous audiences.

 This habitual leader, both personally and professionally, has had many successes. She received a commendation from former first lady, Barbara Bush, for being the brainchild and coordinator of a highly successful PR campaign called TLC - The Literacy Celebration. Gayle Wilson, wife of former Governor Pete Wilson, chose a community event Semmelman innovated and coordinated for the American Cancer Society to unveil the well-known 5-a-day plan to Californians. The event was called "The World's Longest Salad Bar" that taught kids about healthy eating. She also is credited with launching a nationwide search for "America's Funnest Kid," a public relations campaign for LoLo, a San Diego based toy company. The Legacy Award program she created for Ilona & Company at RE/MAX Real Estate Services to recognize family run businesses is now an annual tradition in Huntington Beach.

The OC/PRSA knows her well. She has actively served on their board ten different years during her more than two decades in the industry. Currently she heads up the organization’s community service committee, which is providing pro bono public relations assistance to the SeaStar Brain Injury Foundation and to a collaboration of eight foster care/adoption agencies. Her work has garnered her many awards.  She earned two PROTOS awards from PRSA/OC for a "Success Starts Here" statewide public education campaign she chaired for the California Association of Regional Occupational Centers and Programs (ROCP). Within the general community, she previously earned the Marketing Volunteer of the Year award for both the American Cancer Society and the Camp Fire Boys & Girls, and the Touched By An Angel award from O.C. On Track.

Semmelman was nominated for the award by Janell Shearer, the professor at Chapman University who originally recruited Semmelman to serve on their faculty. Shearer says, “In every way, Keri Gee Semmelman is an outstanding candidate for the Orange County PRSA Chapter’s Distinguished Service Individual Award.  Her enthusiasm for public relations, for service to her community, and for life in general set a standard we would all do well to emulate.”  Semmelman is an adjunct professor at Chapman University where she teaches public relations and business presentations courses. 

Closest to Semmelman’s heart is that of helping others.  Evidence of this is a "Heart & SOLE" project she initiated whereby she collected and donated nearly 300 pairs of tennis shoes to homeless shelters so the homeless wouldn’t have to walk barefoot.  She was the first-ever co-chairman in California 12 years ago for the American Cancer Society Relay For Life and went on to chair the event three times and was a team captain five times. She volunteers her public relations expertise to the Parkinson’s and Movement Disorder Foundation (PMDF) and Humor Helping Humanity, among others.  According to Shearer, Semmelman also is a tremendous help to students. “She serves as advisor to student interns and goes out of her way to offer extracurricular help to her students wherever they need it, from improving their writing and speaking to finding internships and jobs.  She is a wonderful teacher and mentor to our students in every way.” 

Leadership has always been in her blood, from being senior class president at Los Alamitos High School in 1979 to the commissioner of cultural events at California State University, Long Beach where she double majored in Recreation Leadership and Journalism/Public Relations. Not too long ago, she actively served on ten different community boards for organizations such as the Bureau of Jewish Education, the Volunteer Center, and Gamma Phi Beta Alumni.  Her most recent achievement, aside form the PR award, is graduating from the first-annual Robert Mayer Leadership Academy coordinated through the Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce. 

"I am so thankful for the freedom of speech and for the creative ability to use it to help my clients and so many worthy non-profits to reach even greater success,” exclaimed Semmelman. “I am honored to receive an award for something that I love to do...help people,” she added.

 According to an OC/PRSA spokesperson, Semmelman’s dedication to the field of public relations has advanced the excellence of the communications industry, and her work as OC/PRSA’s Community Service Chair has garnered industry-wide praise.

 

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