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The Ultimate Funjetter - Melissa Newton - Smuzynski

Funjet has named its Melissa Newton - Smuzynski one of five finalists as it prepares to award one lucky person the Ultimate Funjetter blog. Check out Melissa's video of why she is the best person for the job!

Helicopter Easter Egg Scramble

Look, its a bird, a plane, no its Epic Helicopters here to save the day - actually flying in to Prestonwood Baptist Church campuses across Dallas/Fort Worth to drop about 90,000 eggs at three locations. Be sure to check this video out from last year!

TEXAN’S “REMEMBERING OUR FALLEN” EXHIBIT DEBUTS

AUSTIN, TEXAS - Texas gold star families gathered to remember family members today at the Bullock, Texas State History Museum in Austin, where a new photo memorial honoring almost 600 fallen Texans debuted. “Remembering Our Fallen” is a photo memorial honoring those who have made the ultimate sacrifice since the war on terror began. The memorial itself measures 200-linear-feet with an American flag backdrop and images of the fallen military in uniform as well as in their civilian lives.

Boston Marathon Crisis Communication!

The Boston Marathon has suffered a tragic set of events today that may turn out to be terrorism. During this time of crisis it becomes critical that the Marathon organizers provide information via their communications mediums – Twitter, Facebook, Blog or their home page. So far, the Marathon has issued at least some communications since the events took place. At an hour and twenty minutes out from the event the Boston Marathon had not posted a message to its audience. Approximately 12 minutes after my tweet (coincidence, I am sure) to them, they updated their Twitter account. The message should be short, clear and updated routinely to ensure that the audience continues to feel informed and reduces the speculation that might otherwise begin to circle. Lack of information and fear have already driven increased security in Washington D.C., New York and in other high profile cities, despite the lack of knowledge that is publicly available. The better the information, the better the response! At this time the Boston Police Department is schedule to hold a press conference at 4:30 p.m., which is just two hours since the event began, but look for what can be said earlier. My question for the Marathon organizers include: Do they have a crisis communications plan? Did it include explosions or terrorism as a possibility? How often have they practiced their communications plan? Do they have individuals identified to ensure that communications are fluid and accurate? Did you have sample messages ready to issue in the event of an emergency that were all but approved? Sincerely, hoping the human impact is not great.

Why Media Cover The Sandy Hook Tragedy

Students from Sandy Hook Elementary School returned to school yesterday after less than a month since Adam Lanza took the lives of 20 students and 7 adults in Newtown, Conn. Many people have asked why the media have covered the tragedy the way they have. In some cases the media has followed the debate over gun control, while other media have followed the intimate detail of what happened on that horrible day, including a real focus on the perpetrator – Adam Lanza. As I have learned over the past 15 years, the media covers what they believe is most relevant to their audience.

5-Year-Old Cancer Patient Takes Holiday Lights Tour Aboard Epic Helicopters

Five-year-old Zachary McBride, who is fighting Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, joined by his mother Michelle Fay, received a Santa's eye view of Fort Worth's magical twinkling holiday lights aboard Epic Helicopters December 5, 2012. The 20-minute tour included a view of the downtown Christmas Tree, Sundance Square, the Ronald McDonald House as well as dozens of neighborhood light displays. Check out the CBSDFW.com story here.