"We are honored to receive  this Communitas Award for Community Service" Sharpe stated "We represent the community... we document the community... and also get to act as a problem solver at times" Sharpe elaborated "Before the  city marketing had a new media outreach, our stories and footage were what introduced far away folk to our community here. It is  remarkable with the interconnectivity that the technology affords us... we can 'Reach Out and Touch Someone'"  

Sharpe continued "Aside from being a  usable news source, The Glendale Daily Planet is an excellent  experimental platform to  try new streaming techniques,  experiment with 3D Newscasting and other exciting evolutionally techniques. We have been some of the  first in our geographical location  to embrace many of the new technologies. Being a small organization has the advantage of allowing us to turn on a dime, change direction and try something new."   Sharpe is quick to discuss projects... "Back  even in our early days we streamed our police chief being sworn in,  the mayor's state of the city address, and ran around the Glendale Jazz Festival one year  streaming some of it to the front page of the  Glendale daily Planet form a  portable solution completely self powered and wireless... now,  many of these exploits  more common place, but back then... we got some odd looks!"

Sharpe extends thanks... "When we  started out we were lucky to have the encouragement of a select group of city personnel and  great advice from others working in the field... I was always trying to fill in gaps  so I could put a plan together and  found there were 'friends' out there that could be relied on...  now,  I am able to share  what I have learned and developed, I now can participate as an instructor in journalism workshops and also teach  various departments the usage of  video so they become more self-reliant.”

How did the Communitas awards come to be? - Communitas Awards is an outgrowth of the pro bono recognition program of the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (www.amcpros.com). a several thousand member group that honors creative achievement and fosters partnerships with charities and community organizations. As part of its mission, AMCP gives grants to community organizations and underwrites a large portion of Communitas expenses.

"By recognizing individuals, organizations and companies for their volunteerism and socially responsible business practices, we are hoping to not only bring attention to great programs, but are working with community minded leaders to make the spirit of communitas an essential element of every business," said Ed Dalheim, executive director of AMCP.