Celebrating 20 Years in Business with 20 Random Acts of Kindness

Risa Hoag of GMG Public Relations is celebrating 20 years providing award-wining public relations and marketing services by giving back to others, this week she's giving away tickets to Harry Potter at the IMAX Theatre at Palisades Center.

Risa Hoag has been at the helm of GMG Public Relations for 20 years. To celebrate this milestone, she is spearheading a campaign to provide 20 random acts of kindness which began last November.

"I feel extraordinarily lucky to own my own business for so long. They say if you can stick it out until your 5th year, then you are successful; 20 years later and I'm still sticking it out, so I feel very fortunate and I wanted to find a way to give back," says Hoag.

So far the company has completed 8 random acts of kindness and they are about to complete number 9. The first random act included purchasing movie tickets for volunteers of People to People in Rockland County. "I know how hard that organization works to help those less fortunate so I wanted to offer some sort of thank you gesture for the volunteers." The 2nd act was purchasing a Thanksgiving turkey last year for a family in need. Over the holidays, Hoag also donated money to Heifer International specifically to purchase a goat, baby chicks and honeybees to help families who rely on those animals to make a living. For the 4th good deed, Hoag helped two local organizations secure grants to fill up their food pantries, and, spontaneously driving an elderly woman to an appointment, was number 5. Hoag notes that while it is okay to blow your horn once in a while, she would rather keep numbers 6, 7, and 8 a secret.

For number 9, Hoag will be giving away two sets of tickets for the final Harry Potter film on opening day at the IMAX Theatre at Palisades Center in West Nyack. More information, including how to enter, can be found on the GMG Public Relations website (www.gmgpr.com)

Hoag has begun to chronicle some of her PR and business stories from the past 20 years on her website including a story about meeting actor Sean Connery when she handled the public relations for Scotland and a trade show disaster story that would make any hardened business professional cringe.

Founded by Hoag in 1991, GMG Public Relations is the only agency to twice have been awarded the coveted Gannett Best of Show award at the Advertising Club of Westchester beating over 650 other entries. Prior to founding GMG Public Relations Hoag was Director of Public Relations with Ernst & Young in White Plains. She has been active with several not-for-profit organizations including the Westchester Association of Women Business Owners (WAWBO), where she held numerous board positions over a fifteen year period, including President, and twice received the organization’s Presidential Award. She has also served as Vice President for the WAWBO Education Fund and for the Partnership for a Better Westchester, an organization she helped found. She is a past Public Relations Chairperson for the Advertising Club of Westchester as well as a past Vice President of the Nanuet Chamber of Commerce and the Tappan Zee International Trade Association in Rockland County. She currently serves on the board of Beth Am Temple, is a member of the Orange & Rockland Utilities Community Investment Grant Committee, and is a board member of the Hudson Valley Visiting Pet Program and provides pet therapy visits for children and the elderly.

As a teacher certified by the State of New York and a seminar leader, Risa has presented numerous public relations and marketing seminars and workshops to business organizations and area colleges and was the keynote speaker at a recent graduation ceremony for the Westchester Business Institute. In 2010 Risa received the Inbound Marketing Certification awarded by Inbound Marketing University as part of its comprehensive Internet marketing training program. This certification acknowledges her proficiency in inbound marketing principles and best practices including blogging, search engine optimization, social media, lead conversion, lead nurturing and closed-loop analysis. Risa joins an elite group of only 15% of professionals to achieve this certification with Honors.

GMG Public Relations provides marketing plan development, creative marketing and promotions campaigns, event planning, and placement of feature stories with print and broadcast media worldwide, writing of press releases, speeches, corporate brochures, newsletters, video scripts and websites. GMG also offers advertising services including media planning and buying, graphic design and Emmy-award winning video services. They work with a variety of industries including B2B, retail, consumer products and services, not-for-profit, education, and real estate.

GMG Public Relations is the only PR agency in the Rockland, Orange, Westchester, Manhattan, Putnam, and Dutchess area to be accredited by the Better Business Bureau and has received an A+ rating.

Representative clients include Morton's The Steakhouse, The IMAX Theatre at Palisades Center, The Sidney Kimmel Foundation for Cancer Research, Dary Rees International, Magjak Communications, Portraits of Hope, Rockland County Builders & Remodelers Association, A&J Reliable, DJC Enterprises, PLI Realty, Teikyo Post University, The Children's Dream Foundation, Harquin Creative Group, The Juvenile Bipolar Disorder Foundation, VisitScotland, and Madison Skin and Laser Center.

For more information call 845-627-3000, email Risa at risa@gmgpr.com or visit the company's website at www.gmgpr.com.

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