A banquet, entry viewing and awards ceremony were at the Omaha Hilton.

Bootlegger Inc. won 10 awards, including a gold Addy for its new logo. The company also received nine silver Addys for posters, point-of-purchase, multimedia campaign and identity material.

Miletta Vista won a gold Addy for photography and two silvers for packaging campaign and logo design.

The Junk Jaunt won two silver Addys for poster design and photography.

Marion Bahensky of St. Paul and Peggy Haskell of Burwell were the contacts for the Junk Jaunt poster, while Miletta Vista's Mick and Loretta McDowell of St. Paul and Bootlegger's Jerry and Barb Sack and Harley and Cheryl Conway of St. Paul were contacts for their respective advertising campaigns.

These winners will now represent Nebraska at the regional level in Omaha, competing against work from Missouri, Iowa and Kansas. Should the entries win there, they would then advance on to the National Addys in Orlando.

OSHA recognizes Postal Service in Hastings for safety and health excellence

HASTINGS The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) post office in Hastings has earned membership in the Voluntary Protection Programs of the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Its membership will be at the "star," or highest, level. A recognition ceremony was on Friday at the facility in Hastings.

USPS Hastings employs 45 mail processors, dock employees, mail carriers, customer service representatives and maintenance staff.

"USPS Hastings has exhibited excellence in safety and health management," said Charles E. Adkins, OSHA's regional administrator in Kansas City, Mo. "The facility's outstanding efforts have included management commitment to safety and health, and employee involvement in safety and health programs."

More than 1,900 work sites nationwide have earned entry into OSHA's Voluntary Protection Programs. Requirements include a high degree of management support and employee involvement; a high-quality work site hazard analysis; prevention and control programs; and comprehensive safety and health training for all employees. Each of these elements must be effective, in place and in operation for at least one year before a workplace can apply to join the programs.

Information kits about the Voluntary Protection Programs' application and approval processes are available from OSHA's protection programs manager in the agency's Kansas City regional office, (816) 283-8745.

St. Francis Home Care Services ranked among top 500 providers

St. Francis Medical Center Home Care Services has been named to the 2007 HomeCare Elite, a compilation of the most successful Medicare-certified home health care providers in the United States.

The annual review identifies the top 500 agencies, ranked by an analysis of performance measures in quality outcomes, quality improvement and financial performance.

Marjorie Jones, a registered nurse and director of St. Francis Medical Center Home Care Services, credits an experienced staff of nurses, therapists and home health aides for the program's achievement.

"We are very proud of our continued high ranking with measurements of quality of care," she said.

The 2007 HomeCare Elite is the only performance recognition of its kind in the home health industry.

The 2007 HomeCare Elite is brought to the industry by OCS Inc., the leading provider of health care informatics, and DecisionHealth, publisher of home care's most respected independent newsletter, Home Health Line.

Four organizations, businesses earn 'Making a Difference' awards

The Housing Development Corp. of Grand Island, Federal Housing Administration, First Presbyterian Church of Grand Island and Charter West National Bank have received the Making a Difference Award from the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority (NIFA).

The Making a Difference Award recognizes a single transaction that was worthy of special designation. It is given to a group of partners that come together on a single deserving NIFA loan that would not have been possible without the extraordinary efforts of those involved.

The combined efforts of the Grand Island group saved a house in a historical district in Grand Island and helped a family of nine become first-time home buyers.