Innovators in Pediatric Cancer to Share Progress on Ground-Breaking Personalized Medicine Clinical Trial

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Dell:

WHAT The team of parents, genetic and translational medicine scientists and pediatric oncologists trailblazing personalized medicine in the treatment of deadly pediatric cancers is convening in Austin to discuss the status of the worlds first personalized medicine clinical trial for pediatric cancer and plan next steps at the NMTRC Symposium 2012. Neuroblastoma affects 1 in 100,000 children and is responsible for 1 in 7 pediatric cancer deaths.

WHO Parents, advocates, oncologists from the Neuroblastoma and Medulloblastoma Translational Research Consortium (NMTRC) and biomedical researchers from the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), who are using high performance computing and cloud technology from Dell to identify targeted treatments based on the specific genetic vulnerabilities of each childs tumoran approach that could be used to treat all pediatric and adult cancers in the future.

WHY Personalized medicinetreatment based on the specific vulnerabilities of each tumor is overcoming longstanding barriers to treatment of pediatric cancer. There has been only one new treatment for pediatric cancer approved by the FDA since the 1980s, compared to 50 treatments approved for adult cancer in this same timeframe. As a result, pediatric oncologists use treatments designed for adults to treat children, with toxic side effects that are frequently as physically detrimental to the child as the cancer itself.

WHEN The following events will be available via live-stream: May 16 1-2 pm CT: Keynote: Molecular-Profiling for Optimized Precision Therapy, Dr. Timothy Triche, University of Southern California/ Childrens Hospital Los Angeles

2-4 pm CT: Panel Discussion: Kids Cloud: Access to Data Boundaries Dr. Melinda Merchant - National Cancer Institute Dr. Gary Marchant - Arizona State University Nancy Goodman - Kids V. Cancer Foundation Patrick Lacey - Friends of Will Foundation Andy Mikulak - Maxs Ring of Fire Foundation Dr. Giselle Sholler - Van Andel Institute Dr. Spyro Mousses - Translational Genomics Research Institute Dr. James Coffin - Dell

WHERE Participate and join the conversation via the #HealthCloud hashtag on Twitter. Tune in via Live-Stream here: http://www.fittotweet.com/live/nmtrc/.

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Innovators in Pediatric Cancer to Share Progress on Ground-Breaking Personalized Medicine Clinical Trial

Sequenom Announces Coverage Agreement With Coventry Health Care For Sequenom Center For Molecular Medicine's …

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SAN DIEGO, May 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sequenom, Inc. (SQNM), a life sciences company providing innovative genetic analysis solutions, today announced that it has signed an agreement with U.S. health insurance provider Coventry Health Care National Network to provide coverage for the Sequenom Center for Molecular Medicine's (Sequenom CMM) MaterniT21 PLUS laboratory-developed test (LDT). The test detects certain fetal trisomies in women at increased risk of carrying a child with one of these chromosomal anomalies.

The agreement ensures that the 2.2 million members of the Coventry First Health PPO network will have coverage for Sequenom CMM's MaterniT21 PLUS testing service, with access to more than 5,000 hospitals and 500,000 health professionals in all 50 states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

"The coverage of the Sequenom CMM MaterniT21 PLUS LDT by the Coventry network is an important milestone, as it will ensure that doctors who are Coventry members will have access to this important testing service to help provide expectant families with important information about their pregnancy through a noninvasive, highly accurate technology," said Harry F. Hixson, Jr., Ph.D., Chairman and CEO, Sequenom, Inc.

The MaterniT21 PLUS LDT is intended for use in pregnant women at increased risk for fetal aneuploidy and can be used as early as 10 weeks gestation. In the United States, there are an estimated 750,000 high-risk pregnancies each year. Results of the MaterniT21 PLUS LDT delivered to ordering physicians will include the presence of trisomy 21, 18 or 13 for patients at increased risk of one of these anomalies. The MaterniT21 PLUS test is available through Sequenom CMM as a testing service to physicians. To learn more, please visit Sequenomcmm.com.

About Sequenom

Sequenom, Inc. (SQNM) is a life sciences company committed to improving healthcare through revolutionary genetic analysis solutions. Sequenom develops innovative technology, products and diagnostic tests that target and serve discovery and clinical research, and molecular diagnostics markets. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in San Diego, California. Sequenom maintains a Web site at http://www.sequenom.com to which Sequenom regularly posts copies of its press releases as well as additional information about Sequenom. Interested persons can subscribe on the Sequenom Web site to email alerts or RSS feeds that are sent automatically when Sequenom issues press releases, files its reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission or posts certain other information to the Web site.

Sequenom CMM, LLC

Sequenom Center for Molecular Medicine (Sequenom CMM), a CAP accredited and CLIA-certified molecular diagnostics laboratory, is developing a broad range of laboratory-developed tests with a focus on prenatal and ophthalmic diseases and conditions. These laboratory-developed tests provide beneficial patient management options for obstetricians, geneticists, maternal fetal medicine specialists, ophthalmologists and retinal specialists. Sequenom CMM is changing the landscape in genetic disorder diagnostics using proprietary cutting edge technologies.

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including statements regarding the Company's expectations and future performance under the coverage agreement with Coventry Health Care, the benefits or impact of the coverage agreement, the intended use for the MaterniT21 PLUS LDT and expectations regarding the future performance, utility, and impact of the test, the Company's commitment to improving healthcare through revolutionary genetic analysis solutions, and Sequenom CMM changing the landscape in genetic disorder diagnostics, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including the risks and uncertainties associated with market demand for and acceptance and use by customers of new products such as the MaterniT21 PLUS LDT, reliance upon the collaborative efforts of other parties, the Company's financial position, its ability to position itself for product launches and growth and develop and commercialize new technologies and products, particularly new technologies such as noninvasive prenatal diagnostics, laboratory developed tests, and genetic analysis platforms, the Company's ability to manage its existing cash resources or raise additional cash resources, competition, intellectual property protection and intellectual property rights of others, government regulation particularly with respect to diagnostic products and laboratory developed tests, obtaining or maintaining regulatory approvals, litigation involving the Company, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's most recently filed Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, and other documents subsequently filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are based on current information that may change and you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the issuance of this press release.

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New under the sun: Recurrent genetic mutations in melanoma

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Public release date: 9-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Nicole Davis ndavis@broadinstitute.org 617-714-7152 Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

Melanoma the deadliest and most aggressive form of skin cancer has long been linked to time spent in the sun. Now a team led by scientists from the Broad Institute and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has sequenced the whole genomes of 25 metastatic melanoma tumors, confirming the role of chronic sun exposure and revealing new genetic changes important in tumor formation.

In an article published online May 9 in Nature, the authors provide the first high-resolution view of the genomic landscape of human melanoma tumors. Previous genetic analyses have focused on the exomes of many types of cancer tumors, concentrating on the tiny fraction of the genome that provides the genetic code for producing proteins. Whole genomes contain a wealth of genetic information, and by sequencing and analyzing 25 metastatic melanoma tumors a significant technical and computational feat scientists can learn vastly more about the variety of genetic alterations that matter in melanoma.

"Sequencing the whole genome certainly adds a richness of discovery that can't be fully captured with a whole exome," said Levi A. Garraway, a senior associate member of the Broad Institute, an associate professor at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, and co-senior author of the paper.

"By looking across the entire genome you can more accurately determine the background mutation rate and the different classes of mutations, and more confidently describe the pattern of ultraviolet-induced mutagenesis in melanoma," said Michael F. Berger, co-first author of the paper. He worked in the Broad's cancer genome analysis group and with Garraway as a research scientist and computational biologist before moving to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

When the scientists explored the whole genome data generated and analyzed at the Broad, they found that the rates of genetic mutations rose along with chronic sun exposure in patients, confirming the role of sun damage in disease development.

"Whole-genome analysis of human melanoma tumors shows for the first time the existence of many structural rearrangements in this tumor type," said Lynda Chin, a senior associate member of the Broad and co-senior author of the paper. Formerly at Dana-Farber and Harvard Medical School, she is now chair of the Department of Genomic Medicine at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

As expected, the scientists detected known BRAF and NRAS mutations in 24 of the 25 tumors. Both genes are involved in sending signals important in cell growth.

One other gene leaped out: PREX2, previously implicated in breast cancer for blocking a tumor-suppressor pathway, was altered in 44 percent of patients. In a larger validation cohort of 107 tumors, the frequency of the mutation was 14 percent.

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New under the sun: Recurrent genetic mutations in melanoma

Can new diagnostic approaches help assess brain function in unconscious, brain-injured patients?

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Public release date: 9-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Vicki Cohn vcohn@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

New Rochelle, NY, May 9, 2012Disorders of consciousness such as coma or a vegetative state caused by severe brain injury are poorly understood and their diagnosis has relied mainly on patient responses and measures of brain activity. However, new functional and imaging-based diagnostic tests that measure communication and signaling between different brain regions may provide valuable information about the potential for consciousness in patients unable to communicate. These innovative approaches are described and compared in a Review article in the groundbreaking neuroscience journal Brain Connectivity, a bimonthly peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Brain Connectivity website at http://www.liebertpub.com/brain.

Mlanie Boly and coauthors from University of Lige (Belgium), University of Milan (Italy), and University College London (UK) compare the benefits and limitations of three methods for studying the dynamics of brain communication and connectivity in response to internal and external stimulation: functional magnetic resonance imaging f(MRI); transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) combined with electroencephalograpy (EEG); and response to neuronal perturbation, measuring, for example, sensory evoked potentials (ERP). They report their findings and propose future research directions in the article "Brain Connectivity in Disorders of Consciousness."

"In recent years, there has been a tremendous interest in gaining a better understanding of the various disorders of consciousness. A variety of methods including fMRI and PET have been used to study these disorders," says Bharat Biswal, PhD, Co-Editor-in-Chief of Brain Connectivity and Associate Professor, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. "This article provides a comprehensive analysis using three new and innovative methods to study disorders of consciousness."

###

About the Journal

Brain Connectivity is the journal of record for researchers and clinicians interested in all aspects of brain connectivity. The Journal is under the leadership of Founding and Co-Editors-in-Chief Christopher Pawela, PhD, Assistant Professor, Medical College of Wisconsin, and Bharat Biswal, PhD. It includes original peer-reviewed papers, review articles, point-counterpoint discussions on controversies in the field, and a product/technology review section. To ensure that scientific findings are rapidly disseminated, articles are published Instant Online within 72 hours of acceptance, with fully typeset, fast-track publication within 4 weeks. Tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Brain Connectivity website at http://www.liebertpub.com/brain.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Tissue Engineering, Human Gene Therapy and HGT Methods, and Rejuvenation Research. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 70 journals, newsmagazines, and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. website at http://www.liebertpub.com.

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Can new diagnostic approaches help assess brain function in unconscious, brain-injured patients?

Penn researchers report a gene-therapy success

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The study involved painstaking molecular analysis of blood samples taken annually from the patients, who participated in separate studies begun in 2000, 2002, and 2004.

"We were astonished that we could detect the modified cells for so long. It's a relatively small number of patients, but more than 500 years of patient data," said University of Pennsylvania pathologist Bruce Levine, a leader of the research. "But it's difficult to separate with certainty the effectiveness of this treatment from the antiretrovirals."

Gene therapy harnesses the insidious ability of viruses to slip their DNA into the cells they infect. By neutralizing a virus and then using it as a "vector" to insert DNA that is helpful rather than harmful, gene therapy can theoretically treat ailments ranging from arthritis to infections and cancer.

Levine, his Penn colleague Carl June, and their team have tested a variety of ways to outwit HIV with gene therapy. Their approach has focused on T cells, which are the big guns of the immune system but also the cells that HIV infects. The researchers took some of the patients' T cells and inserted a gene that makes them better at recognizing and killing HIV-infected cells. Then these super-T cells were multiplied using growth-stimulation technology and put back into the patient.

Over the years, many other research groups have tried using modified T cells, but the patient's immune system perceived them as invaders and wiped them out, sometimes within hours.

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Penn researchers report a gene-therapy success

Hazel Henderson: Reforming Markets, Metrics and Media

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Futurist and evolutionary economist Hazel Henderson is president of Ethical Markets Media (USA and Brazil), author of nine books, a syndicated and author of over 200 articles in Harvard Business Review, New York Times and other publications. She has been profiled in Wired (were she was nominated as "one of the 50 people most likely to change the world"), Christian Science Monitor, Science and ...

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Hazel Henderson: Reforming Markets, Metrics and Media

Intel futurist discusses data's secret life, 'ghost of computing'

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Science fiction serves as a inspiration for the man whose job it is envisage Intel's future and, to a large degree, the future of computing itself.

In 2010 Brian David Johnson became Intel Corp.'s first futurist, a time-honored title bestowed on prognosticating technology mavens dating back to the likes of Jules Verne and H. G. Wells. Equal parts seer and evangelist, Johnson helps map out the future of technology and then guides his company toward that destination, whether it is five years or even a decade away.

Johnson draws inspiration from science fiction but tries to ground his vision of the future in reality through speaking engagements in front of audiences most likely to be affected by Intel's technology, such as attendees of the pop culture convention Comic-Con. For an in-depth Q&A with Johnson about the future of computing and his role at Intel, read "Professional Seer" in the May issue of Scientific American. Below is a collection of questions and answers from our conversation with Johnson not included in that article.

Q: Which science fiction authors have inspired you the most? Johnson: So there's what inspired me as a kid -- the Asimov, the Bradbury, the Heinlein -- that forms the core of science fiction. As I got a little older and a little more sophisticated, it was people like Philip K. Dick, J. G. Ballard, and even more recently people like Vernor Vinge and Cory Doctorow and Charlie Stross, those types of guys. Now most of the stuff I'm inspired by is the near future that is very much based on science fact.

How does a future futurist spend his time as a kid? Johnson: Growing up, my dad was a radar-tracking engineer and my mom was a specialist [in information technology]. My pop used to come home with electrical schematics of the radar and tell me the story of how it worked. A few weeks later he would come home with an actual piece of the radar and say, "Take it apart." And then he would actually show me how to take it apart. I think about when this happened and I realize that it was around the time I was learning to read. I was learning to read schematics the same time I was learning to read, so I grew up immersed in technology.

How does one become a futurist? Can you go to school and get a degree in futurism? Johnson: No, but you can go to the college where they first taught futurism, which Alvin Toffler does at the New School [for Social Research] in New York City.

The New School is known for social research. What does a future futurist study there? Johnson: That's the lovely thing about the New School when I went, which was the late '80s, early '90s. You could take whatever you wanted. I studied a lot of computer science, but when I went to the New School it was this great mix where I could study sociology, I could study economics, I could study film, and I could go down to [New York University] and take classes. As a futurist I need the technical chops to understand what we're talking about. But I also need the research chops to be able to go out and pull this all together and then have the ability to express it.

What are some of the most important issues that you're talking to people about now when you're out on the road for Intel? Johnson: There are three main themes -- one is called the secret life of data, the second is the ghost of computing, and the third is the future of fear.

Those sound like book titles. How can data have a secret life? Johnson: The secret life of data is thinking about what it will be like to live in a world of big data. What will that feel like when we're creating so much data about ourselves through sensors and other technology that data begins to take on a life of its own? It's already starting to happen, and it's only going to get bigger. You have algorithms talking to algorithms, machines talking to machines. What does it feel like to be in that world -- No. 1? And No. 2, how do we make sure that when that data comes back to us that it's meaningful? It's not just synthesizing massive amounts of financial data and spitting me out some credit ratings. We've moved beyond that.

What do you mean when you talk about the "ghost of computing"? Johnson: Look at the microprocessor, it keeps getting smaller and smaller and smaller -- it's crazy how small it gets. If it keeps getting smaller what happens when that unit of compute gets so small that it disappears? We've been talking about that world for a while but as you get out 10 or 15 years we're getting closer and closer to it. What happens when computing is in the walls or in a table? So that's one side of it. What does the world look like when we're surrounded by intelligence?

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Intel futurist discusses data's secret life, 'ghost of computing'

Water Wars Documentary Last Call at the Oasis Keeps Dystopia Real

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Destabilizing futurism set to a pulse-pounding score isnt just for sci-fi and fantasy thrillers. It works just as well to sell documentaries like Last Call at the Oasis, which thirstily peers into our present and future water wars, as can be seen in the films trailer above.

Unlike the comic-book vision of global annihilation in The Avengers, the blockbuster whose record-setting opening drowned news of Last Call at the Oasis limited debut last week, director Jessica Yus documentary delivers a truer story of civilization on the verge of collapse.

Also unlike The Avengers: Were screwed, as hydrologist Jay Famiglietti explains in the PG-13 movie, which opens in more markets Friday.

Produced by Participant Media (Food Inc., An Inconvenient Truth, The Cove), Last Call at the Oasis joins Famiglietti with fellow science geeks like Peter Gleick and Berkeleys Einstein-quoting biologist Tyrone Hayes, as well as activists like Erin Brockovich. All drive home Last Call at the Oasis central thesis, as explained in the trailer: Its not a question of if, its a question of when.

Of when disaster strikes, to be specific. Last Call at the Oasis warns in impressive visual fashion that, as increasing water consumption continues to exceed the planets capacity to renew itself, were inevitably headed for the kind of heated dystopia we regularly associate with speculative fiction.

We just always think that cant be me, Brockovich says. It already is you.

Scott Thill covers pop, culture, tech, politics, econ, the environment and more for Wired, AlterNet, Filter, Huffington Post and others. You can sample his collected spiels at his site, Morphizm.

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Water Wars Documentary Last Call at the Oasis Keeps Dystopia Real

Dutch Techno Maverick Legowelt Revisits Rave's Glory Days with Free Track

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The SPIN Electronic Dance Music Blog

Raw Detroit unicorn futurism with a 'Star Trek' shout-out

Legowelt, a.k.a., Danny Wolfers, is a prolific sort. Slogging away in his studio in the Hague, surrounded by some of the finest (and sometimes buggiest) analog music-making implements known to humankind, he can bang out old-school synth-and-drum jams with the ease of the late Christopher Hitchens reeling off a 1,500-word diatribe about Henry Kissinger, somewhere in between the third and fourth glass of wine. Not that Wolfers necessarily imbibes with the gusto of Hitch, nor ascribes to any of his polemical ideas merely to say that the Dutch producer's prodigious output means that he can afford to give away some of the goods, every now and then.

He did this a few months back with his album The TEAC Life, a 14-track album of dreamy, dusky, Detroit-inspired techno that he offered as a pay-what-you-wish download from his own website. It's still available; I donated $10 to his PayPal for it, which seemed more than fair and he's blessing us again with a new production called "Deep Space Gazing."

The TEAC Life actually came with a brash sales pitch that Hitchens probably would have appreciated (dodgy punctuation, notwithstanding). "Ok people here it is the new Legowelt album which is free to download for u all," wrote Wolfers, proceeding to draw a line in the motherfucking sand: "Its got a hella lot deep tape saturated forest-techno tracks on it and when I say Techno i dont mean that boooooooooooring contemporary shit they call techno nowadays with overrated tallentless pretentious douchebag cunt DJs playing a few halfassed dumb mongo beats and being all arty fartsy about it. F*ck that, I am talking about: Raw as fuck autistic Star Trek 1987- Misty Forests- X-FILES,- DETROIT unicorn futurism made on cheap ass digital & analog crap synthesizers recorded in a ragtag bedroom studio on a TEAC VHX cassettedeck in DOLBY C with an unintelligible yet soulfull vivacity."

(I love that he took the trouble to asterisk out one of his swears, but not the rest.)

"Deep Space Gazing" is a less contentious proposition. Wolfers describes it as "old school U.K rave proto breakbeat techno" sourced from the Commodore Amiga, Roland R-8, and Roland MKS-100, and while I'm in no way capable of verifying his gear list I had to look up the MKS-100 he's certainly got the description down pat. With a vibe evocative of 808 State, Baby Ford, and early Warp releases, it feels like raving your face off in a remote field deep in the U.K. countryside, complete with an omnipresent layer of tape hiss settling in like frigid dew around your up-all-night feet. It's lo-fi, hi-concept, and comes with a "mandatory" Star Trek sample.

Get the goods from http://www.legowelt.com; check out The TEAC Life while you're at it, and then send him some money. Even unicorn futurists need to eat.

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Dutch Techno Maverick Legowelt Revisits Rave's Glory Days with Free Track

Freedom Does Not Mean Anarchy

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May 10, 2012: The interim government has adopted an unofficial motto; "freedom does not mean anarchy." This addresses three major problems; corruption, tribalism and quickly resorting to armed force when there is a dispute. Major violence is down, but the corruption (often outright theft of government money and property) is still abundant. Libyans are unhappy with all this, and are having a hard time fixing the problems. Then there are the armed militias, which are often the source of corruption, as well as armed anger at the corruption.

Concentrating on the armed anarchy does little for the corruption and tribalism, but you have to start somewhere. The interim government is starting with law and order. This is the first thing to disappear after a decades-old dictatorship is overthrown. Dictators get tossed out because their subjects are fed up with all the secret police and terror. But freedom brings with it a period of anarchy, with many people uncertain about how to restore order. No one wants the secret police and terror tactics (to maintain order) to return, but also don't want to live a lot of lawless armed thugs running around.The government is trying to raise a force of 30,000 police, mainly to deal with armed disputes expected during the upcoming elections.

The interim government is also passing laws to clear up the legal chaos created by Kaddafi, and the revolution last year that replaced him. For example, rebels have been exonerated for breaking any then-existing laws while participating in the revolution. The government backed off on an effort to outlaw political parties based on religion or ethnicity. There was too much popular opposition, so these laws were withdrawn a week after they were enacted.

So far this month, Lebanese police say they have intercepted two attempts to smuggle weapons from Libya to Syrian rebels. It's unclear if this is the work of gunrunners or the Libyan rebels trying to help their Syrian counterparts.

May 8, 2012: Over 200 former (and still armed) rebels tried to block access to the prime minister's office, in an attempt to extract more money and other compensation for their services. The prime minister ordered police to break up the action. This resulted in 14 arrests and several wounded.

Police also dispersed a two-week siege of the national oil company headquarters. The protestors wanted an end to corruption (especially stealing oil revenue) and more jobs for the many unemployed (Kaddafi preferred to hire foreigners to run the oil operations.)

April 27, 2012: A bomb went off in a courthouse in Benghazi, but caused no casualties. The bomb was apparently set off by Kaddafi loyalists.

April 25, 2012: The NTC (National Transitional Council) has fired the interim government cabinet, accusing the cabinet ministers of incompetence. The NTC is having problems finding replacements.

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Freedom Does Not Mean Anarchy

Freedom's Harrell inks with Greensboro College for tennis

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Credit: Tommy Fleming | The News Herald

Freedom senior Stevie Harrell recently signed a letter of intent to play tennis at Greensboro College. Flanking Harrell on the front row are her father Steve Harrill (left) and mother Joy Harrell. Standing (from left) are her sister Ashley Harrell, Freedom principal Dr. Ken Prichard, athletic director Joey Davis and sister her other Brittany Harrell.

Freedoms Stevie Harrell recalls picking up a tennis racket and hitting balls at an early age. But it was her sophomore year just two weeks prior to the start of the tennis season in August 2010 when she realized her sport was found.

I started playing on the Freedom courts at practice. I then realized This is my sport, said Harrell, whose two older sisters played softball at FHS before signing to play on the college level.

Harrell worked her way quickly from the No. 7 position into the fourth spot her sophomore year. As a junior, she played at the No. 2 singles position behind senior Bao Xiong before taking over at No. 1 her senior campaign.

On Monday, Harrills tennis journey continued as the senior signed to play at Greensboro College, an NCAA Division III program.

Im thrilled to be playing tennis at the college level. The school is small and I really liked the campus, said Harrell, who plans to work as a recreational therapist with special needs children. I visited once when the tennis team was playing a match and felt like I would be at home there.

My parents, as well as my two older sisters, encouraged and supported me in my decision-making process as I was made two offers from Division II schools. There was no pressure in that I must follow in both sisters footsteps. Im glad Im playing tennis so that I will not be compared to their softball progress at the college level.

Freedom tennis coach Wayne Giese said Harrells progress on the tennis courts has been solid during her three years.

Stevie has taken private and group lessons to improve her serving, consistency and volleying. She has played especially well in doubles at the net, Giese added. Stevie joined the USTA and played in some tournaments. She has a very competitive edge. I wish Stevie well in her future endeavors and play at Greensboro College.

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Freedom's Harrell inks with Greensboro College for tennis

Freedom Hawk Kayaks Enters Canadian Kayak Fishing Market with SAIL Outdoors Inc. Partnership

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A new international retail partnership has introduced stand-up kayaking and patented stand-up fishing kayaks to Canada. Freedom Hawk Kayaks and SAIL Outdoors Inc., have joined forces to introduce the award-winning Pathfinder and other Freedom Hawk angling kayaks to SAIL retail locations in Eastern Canada.Newburyport, MA (PRWEB) May 09, 2012 Retail Move Brings Patented Stand-Up Fishing Kayaks to ...

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Freedom Hawk Kayaks Enters Canadian Kayak Fishing Market with SAIL Outdoors Inc. Partnership

Freedom Alliance to Host Exciting Smith Mountain Lake Outdoor Activities for Injured Service Members

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Freedom Alliance is set to host another “Salute to Our Heroes” retreat May 23-26Smith Mountain Lake, VA (PRWEB) May 10, 2012 Freedom Alliance is set to host another “Salute to Our Heroes” retreat May 23-26. This is the second consecutive year that the retreat will be held at Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia. Approximately 15-20 of our nation’s injured service members will enjoy a few days of ...

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Freedom Alliance to Host Exciting Smith Mountain Lake Outdoor Activities for Injured Service Members

WXYZ Honors Ford Freedom Award Winners

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SOUTHFIELD, Mich., May 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --WXYZ is proud to partner with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and the Ford Motor Company to present "Ford Freedom Award: Talent, Tenacity, Teamwork," honoring the New York Renaissance Basketball Team and NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the Ford Freedom Award Scholar. The half hour special will air Saturday, May 12th at 7:00 p.m. and will be rebroadcast on Saturday, May 26th at 7:00 p.m.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100922/DE69906LOGO )

Hosted by WXYZ Editorial and Public Affairs Director Chuck Stokes, the program will feature an in-depth interview with actor, coach, author and newly selected U.S. Cultural Ambassador Abdul-Jabbar, who will be named the Ford Freedom Award Scholar. His basketball career spanned six championships, and he received a record six regular season MVP awards. The show will also look at the Ford Freedom Award recipient, the New York Renaissance, who were the first all-black, fully-professional African American owned team that dominated basketball in the 1920s and 30s.

The encore of "Ford Freedom Awards: Talent, Tenacity, Teamwork" will include highlights from this year's Ford Freedom Award celebration on Thursday, May 17, featuring Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's lecture to more than 1,500 Detroit area middle school students.

The Ford Freedom Award is awarded posthumously to distinguished individuals who dedicated their lives to improving the African American community and the world in general. Previous honorees include Judge Constance Baker Motley, Ossie Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Langston Hughes, Jackie Robinson and John H. Johnson.

The Ford Freedom Award Scholar distinction is given to individuals who have excelled on a national or international level in the same field as the Ford Freedom Award honoree and who have furthered the achievements for a new generation. Past Scholars include Judge Damon J. Keith, Morgan Freeman, Reggie Jackson and Raymond Usher IV.

Ford Freedom Award proceeds support educational programs, exhibits, and community outreach initiatives of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the world's largest institution dedicated to the African American experience.

WXYZ-TV is part of Scripps Media, Inc., which operates 10 TV stations. The corporate parent, the E.W. Scripps Company (SSP) is a diverse, 131-year old media enterprise with interests in television stations, newspapers, local news and information Web sites, and comics/features syndication. For a full listing of Scripps media companies and their associated Web sites, visit http://www.scripps.com/.

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WXYZ Honors Ford Freedom Award Winners

Armed Forces Day Gala to Raise Funds for Freedom Center

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DETROIT, May 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Freedom Center, the newly opened military lounge at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, will benefit from funds raised by an Gala Event on Armed Forces Day, May 19.

Since their official opening on Veterans Day 2011, Freedom Center has hosted more than 8,000 traveling members of our military, their families and veterans. The lounge, located at Gate A43 in the center of the McNamara Terminal, offers a relaxing atmosphere to armed forces members, travel assistance and complimentary juice, water, soft drinks, coffee, tea, snacks and traveling amenities.

"At Meritor, it is our honor to offer support for our military men and women serving today, and everyday, as they sacrifice for our freedom and safety here at home. We view our nation's warfighters as heroes. They and their families earn our respect every day," said Tim Burns, vice president and general manager, Defense and Specialty, Industrial. Burns is Honorary Chair of the Gala Event. Meritor maintains a 100-year legacy of serving commercial truck, aftermarket and industrial markets including the supply of drivetrain components for U.S. military fleets around the world.

The event will include an elegant strolling dinner catered by Andiamo's, complimentary bar, entertainment by Johnny Trudell musicians and valet parking. The Gala will be held at the Defense Corridor Center (DC3S), 7205 Sterling Ponds Court, Sterling Heights, Mich. on Saturday, May 19 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tickets are $100 per person and can be ordered via the Freedom Center website: http://www.MIFreedomCenter.org or by calling 313-610-5600.

Underwriting support for the Gala is being provided by: The Michigan Chapter, National Defense Industrial Association (Freedom Sponsor); Meritor, Inc. and Robert and Virginia Vallee (Honor Sponsors); The Arsenal of Democracy Chapter, Association of the US Army; Rave Computers; Oshkosh Defense, Inc. and General Kinetics (Service Sponsors).

For more information, contact:John McCandless 313-610-5600

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Armed Forces Day Gala to Raise Funds for Freedom Center