G.I. Love to Party! has opened in the Webb Plaza at 2418 N. Webb Road under the ownership of Jennifer Hasenauer. The business will offer party planning and consulting, with plans available to fit any budget.

Hasenauer was a floral designer for more than 15 years. She has professional experience dealing with a wide array of events and promotions. She also owned a craft business for six years and managed a convenience store for four years.

While originally from Clarksville, Tenn., Hasenauer has lived in Nebraska for 25 years. She and her husband of 30 years have two grown children and three grandchildren.

Her assistant, Anna Verplank, is a native of Grand Island and has three children.

Hasenauer will offer her party planning services from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. She can be reached at 381-1977.

Groomingdales Pet Spa to offer variety of services

Groomingdales Pet Spa has opened in the Webb Plaza at 2418 N. Webb Road, Suite M.

Owner Kirsten Haubold has 12 years of experience in grooming all breeds. Her new shop will offer a calm, relaxing atmosphere. Services will include HydroSurge therapeutic baths, Shed Patrol de-shedding techniques, tooth brushing and scraping, and nail painting.

Haubold is a graduate of Nash Academy of Animal Arts in Lexington, Ky. She was the previous owner and manager of a grooming shop in Lincoln.

For more information, call 381-9950.

Tanworld open in Grand Island

Curt and Amy Bowen of Lincoln have opened two new Tanworld locations in Grand Island and Omaha. The Grand Island location is at 2203 S. Locust St. Suite L.

These are the Bowens' eighth and ninth locations in Nebraska. They also own three salons in Omaha, two in Lincoln, one in Kearney and one in Hastings.

Cheri Cosgrove, president and founder of Tanworld, said the new Tanworld locations will offer an upscale tanning experience and will feature a line of skin care products manufactured by MR International, for whom Tanworld is an exclusive retailer.

The two new locations, along with three others recently completed, bring the total number of Tanworld franchises to 50. There are others currently under construction. Tanworld salons are located in nine states. The first Tanworld opened in Sioux City, Iowa, in 1995.

Ashley Lynn's Tanning expands to Central Nebraska

Ashley Lynn's Tanning has announced the opening of a new tanning salon in Grand Island. The new salon is at 201 Wilmar Ave., on the corner of Old Potash Road and Highway 281, and next to the new Hy-Vee.

"The addition of our Grand Island salon is a big part of our expansion plans," Executive Vice President Tracie Cunningham said. "We've been looking to expand to Grand Island for quite some time, and we're very excited to be a part of the Grand Island community. Grand Island is a growing community and serves as a big part of our regional growth goals."

The new Ashley Lynn's Tanning salon in Grand Island offers more than 20 tanning beds and four tanning levels. Day-to-day operations will be managed by Jill Hargrave, district leader. Ashley Lynn's Tanning offers no-appointment tanning seven days a week.

Omaha-based Ashley Lynn's Tanning also operates salons in Lincoln, Missouri, Iowa and Florida.

The Grand Island salon can be contacted at 384-3330.

Grand Island Sam's Club receives market, regional awards

The Grand Island Sam's Club was recognized as the Market Club of the Year and Regional Club of the Year during the company's annual meeting in February.

The Market Club of the Year award recognizes the Grand Island store as the top store in the nine-club market of Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota. The Regional Club of the Year award designates it the top store of its 187-store region. There are a total of 586 Sam's Club stores companywide.

To receive the designation, stores are rated in 10 different areas, including sales performance, profit performance, damages, the number of accident-free days and marketing, among others.

Store Manager Don Bradley said the awards show that a Sam's Club can be successful in a market the size of Grand Island's. He credited the local employees with making the recognition possible.

"It's the people that work here," Bradley said. "They are the success of this club."

St. Francis lab receives AABB accreditation

The laboratory at St. Francis Medical Center has been granted accreditation by AABB, an international organization that sets standards and accredits blood banks and transfusion services.

Accreditation follows an intensive on-site assessment by specially trained AABB assessors and establishes that the level of medical, technical and administrative performance within the facility meets or exceeds the standards set by AABB. By meeting those standards, St. Francis joins some 1,800 similar facilities in the United States and abroad that have earned AABB accreditation.

"We're very pleased with our performance," said Mary Lou Emanuel, director of pathology at St. Francis. "Blood banking and transfusion services have a big effect on our patients. We voluntarily go through the accreditation process, because we believe that it promotes a level of professional and medical expertise that contributes to quality patient care."

UPS store sponsoring Toys for Tots Literacy Program

In conjunction with UPS Stores across the country, the UPS Store at 2124 Lawrence Lane in Grand Island has teamed up with the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation to announce its first year-round initiative, the Toys for Tots Literacy Program.

This new initiative will offer the nation's most economically disadvantaged children direct access to books and educational resources that will enhance their ability to read and communicate effectively.

Throughout March, the UPS Store will be selling $1 donation cards. For every dollar donated, a book will be placed into the hands of a deserving child in the area, courtesy of Scholastic Inc. The store will continue additional fundraising activities throughout the year.

"According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 12.8 million children live in poverty. And there is a need in or near every community," said UPS Store franchisee Mike Manley. "The literacy program is the perfect way to help provide these children with the tools they need to break the cycle of poverty."

The UPS Store and Mail Boxes Etc. network is the exclusive sponsor of the Toys for Tots Literacy Program. Since 2005, the network has been a national sponsor of Toys for Tots and has raised more than $1.3 million, helping deliver more than 108,000 toys to more than 43,000 children.

For more information, visit www.toysfortotsliteracy.org, or call the UPS Store at 382-2009.