SAN DIEGO, Calif. (OCTOBER 17, 2008) – A Cook & Schmid multi-year public affairs campaign developed for the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce (MAST) in San Bernardino County was honored with two awards by the San Diego chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). The program previously has been recognized with 11 awards by PRSA national, the American Marketing Association, and the Missouri School of Journalism, among others.
Cook & Schmid received the Silver Bernays Award of Merit for its public education program that informed residents of the San Bernardino Mountains about measures they could take to reduce fire risk. The program included the implementation of a variety of tactics, including direct mail calendars and newsletter, posters, brochures, booth presence at fairs and festivals, media relations, and direct outreach to residents through the region’s Community Notification System.
The firm won a Bronze Bernays Award of Excellence in the Special Purpose Publications category for the 2008 MAST calendar which communicates a different fire safety message each month and features the distinctive brand that Cook & Schmid created for the MAST program. The brand evokes WPA art from the 1930s and 1940s and the graphics of the golden age of the travel poster. Previously, the calendar received honorable mention in its category for the Hermes Creative Awards.
The MAST brand appeals to mountain residents’ sense of pride in the region’s history and encourages shared responsibility for protecting the mountain communities from the risk of catastrophic wildfires.
“As our region battles with drought conditions and home construction in more remote areas, wildfire is an issue that won’t go away,” said Jon Schmid, Cook & Schmid partner and supervisor on the MAST account. “Our research-based strategic program has had measurable impact in changing behavior and protecting homes from wildfire.”
The Cook & Schmid program has demonstrably motivated mountain residents to reduce fire risk on their properties.
The 2008 Bernays Awards were held at the San Diego Natural History Museum on October 16, 2008. A total of 66 awards were presented and recognized the industry’s finest public relations campaigns, tactics and professionals, in categories including media relations, community relations, crisis communications and special events and put on by the San Diego Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).
ABOUT COOK & SCHMID
Cook & Schmid, a San Diego public relations, advertising and marketing firm, specializes in reputation and issues management, marketing and advertising forprivate and public companies, organizations and government agencies, ranging from start-ups to Fortune 100 companies.Cook & Schmid partners personally manage each program and lead expert teams to ensure measurable success, from positioning a new company, launching new services or products, growing a bottom line or shaping public perceptions about important community issues. The firm’s partners include a former journalist with multiple Pulitzer Prize nominations, and its senior team members boast an average of 20 years experience. |
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